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Strategic Plan and Presentation

Resource: Implementation, Strategic Controls, and Contingency Plans assignment with facilitator feedback

The following information is provided to help with guidance in completing the week 6 assignment.  In the items below, you will find the text (in black) from the actual assignment with added text (in red) that defines what is needed.  There are seven (7) key items that are assessed and these 7 items are split among the strategic planning function and the strategic implementation function.  The seven key items that must be evident in your paper are:

a.     A detailed and defined company situation that requires strategic change

b.    A detailed analysis of the data pertaining to the company situation which addresses why the strategic change is needed

c.     A detailed description of the decision making approach used with the data

d.    A detailed description of the impact from the proposed strategic change on the organization

e.     A detailed description of the alternatives considered, their risks, and their impact on ethics and social implications

f.     A detailed description of the implementation metrics that would be used to assess the success of both the strategy and its implementation

g.    A detailed description of the actual implementation plan

1.     Complete a strategic plan for your organization of no more than 3,500 words. Note – Using a bulleted style of writing and sectioning the components of the plan is a great idea. Adding charts and graphs also is a good idea.  BTW – I do not count words – I am looking for depth and detail in the plan that makes it logical.  Fluff is not needed – keep this to the point, detailed, but short.

2.     Update your plan to incorporate facilitator feedback from the drafts you submitted in previous weeks. Include the following:

• Executive summary, with a 2-page maximum NOTE – the Executive Summary (ES) is a separate document from the Strategic Plan.  I suggest putting this document at the very beginning of your Strategic Plan (after the title page but before the Table of Contents).  This ES is typically read quickly by upper leadership to give then a quick overview of the Strategic Plan and its implementation plan.  It is generally bulleted and segmented into the following sections:

1.     Strategy Descriptions – list the specific strategies being focused on in the Strategic Plan.  These are derived from the company situation and data assessed. These are short descriptions similar to a “problem statement”.

2.     Impact of these strategies to customers and employees

3.     Alternatives considered

4.     Implementation Major event milestones with due dates

5.     Funding requirements needed to implement these strategies

6.     Resource requirements needed to implement these strategies

7.     Risks associated with the strategies and potential mitigation actions

8.     Control measures (implementation metrics) to ensure that the strategy is being implemented and controlled for sustainability

I suggest conducting a web research on the term Executive Summary – there are many formats and thoughts about how it should look and what the content should be.

            • Strategic Plan

• Table of contents – Note – keep this at a high level and ensure coverage of the seven key items shown above (a – g)

• Company background, organizational mission, vision, and value statements

• Note. For a start-up, you should focus on the backgrounds and accomplishments of key anticipated management personnel. The goal is to convince the investor that these individuals are trustworthy and successful.

• Environmental scan Note this needs to include applicable data associated with the scan and SWOTt.  This data gives you the reasons why the company should invest and move with the strategic plans being developed

• Review of Week 4 strategies and a recommendation for the best strategy for your organization Note this section provides the decision making and alternatives considered.

• Implementation plan including contingency plans for identified risks Note – this is a major section. The plan must contain the following:  Bulleted style is good to use. 

a.     Use the major event milestones from the Executive Summary

b.    Develop your functional tactics (actions) and tactical action lists. I suggest developing an action item table in Excel and pasting this in the paper. List ownership and date due for both actions and milestones.

c.     List resources (labor and material) needed, and funding needed

d.    The implementation plan also contains the following:

1.     Contingency plan

2.     Risk analysis including risk description, assessment of probability, and risk mitigation strategies

3.     Control plan that addresses both the data being used for the strategy and the methods to be used to monitor the data and communicate the data (implementation metrics) 

Your introduction to the plan addresses key item “a”, and includes the key sections of the plan

Your conclusion summarizes key item “a”, and also asks for acceptance of the strategic plan, implementation plan, and any funding or resources needed.

In summary for the paper – you should have: title page, executive summary, TOC, Introduction, Strategic Plan and Strategic Implementation Plan that addresses the seven key items, conclusion, and references.

Then --

Prepare a Microsoft® PowerPoint® presentation of no more than 10 slides with speaker notes. Your audience will play the board of directors or a venture capital firm. The focus is to sell your Strategic Plan and Strategic Implementation Plan recommendations to the board or venture capital firm and obtain approval for funding your plan. Note to be effective, the presentation is basically the Executive Summary in a presentation format.  Envision yourself in front of the leadership team – what do they need to know about the Strategic Plan and Strategic Implementation Plan to be comfortable and to approve the plan? The key is to market and sell your plan.

Format your plan and presentation consistent with APA guidelines.