HPA COO Justin Moser discusses six key shifts in thinking that are key to managing in the midst of a downturn.

Too often when companies embark on a strategic plan, the results are disappointing. A common error involves assembling a long-term business plan, calling it a strategic plan, and complaining about how the exercise is mostly ‘financial,’ with limited use beyond the one-time rollup.  So, what’s causing these frequent unsatisfactory results?

Let’s assume you’ve worked through your strategic imperatives with decisive prioritization, calling out what you clearly will and will not invest in for the next 12-18 months, as part of your 3-year (+) aspirations. From those few decisive strategic imperatives, you have an execution mandate for both in-year initiatives and multi-year executions. Typically, at least a portion of those imperatives requires significant changes or new processes within your operations.

A truly effective Strategic Plan centers on making strategic choices around the company’s most critical go-forward imperatives, and then aligning an executive team and resourcing around those choiceful imperatives. Only then will a strategic plan chart a path toward greater, sustainable profitability.