Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Feb 3, 2012, 12:41 pm
On our recent client engagement with a gas company in Abu Dhabi, I was struck again (as I was the last time I worked in the region) that implementing all the “best practice” management tools in the world does not a great company make. The prosperity of Middle Eastern companies enables management...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jan 31, 2012, 7:15 pm
When you are at the point in the strategic planning process where you are doing your environmental analysis and customer analysis, consider these tips to help assess your customers and their needs. Uncovering why your customers buy products from your company or use your services is essential to be ...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jan 20, 2012, 2:00 pm
Reconstructing your value creation The business model consists of eight key building blocks that deliver your value proposition. On the right-hand side of the model, you identify your target customer segments, how you develop relationships with those customers and the channels by which you reach t...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jan 17, 2012, 4:23 pm
Throughout the strategic planning process you should be working through a series of exercises and exploration that generate a long list of issues you need to address or solve during your planning process, including the following: Past history–lessons learned Current products and services attracti...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jan 6, 2012, 3:33 pm
We came across this article on NPR and had to share it with all of you as a little inspiration to the New Year and business strategy! We’ve all been there. Trapped in line at the DMV. Or stuck on hold while trying to call a city agency. It’s easy to complain about government bureaucracy. But it...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Dec 19, 2011, 5:54 pm
It is not uncommon that the term strategic plan and business plan get confused in the business world. Before beginning your strategy implementation, take a look at the difference between the two terms to ensure you are on the path to success.  While a strategic plan is a type of business plan, ther...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Nov 29, 2011, 6:11 pm
Strategic Planning is the Most Popular Management Tool – Find Out Why Companies committed to executing strategy are equipped with advantages over their competitors. Because managing strategically matters to the life of your business, our guide on the Benefits of Strategic Planning (on the right) ...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Nov 17, 2011, 5:22 pm
The 11 Step Business Action Plan I came across this article on the American Express Open Forum and had to share it with our followers and clients.  Murray Smith gives a quick 11-step list for creating a business action plan in this article.  In our system, MyStrategicPlan, we use Action Plan Repo...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Nov 11, 2011, 5:58 pm
We’re delighted to unveil our Second edition, the Strategic Planning Kit For Dummies. We wrote this book from our experience helping fortune 500 companies, non-profits and churches create and execute their strategy, and we’re happy to share our insight with you. This business climate has dramat...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Oct 31, 2011, 4:07 pm
Strategic planning can yield less than desirable results if you end up in one of the possible pitfalls! To prevent  that from happening, here’s a list of the most frightening and common traps to avoid: Relying on bad information or no information: A plan is only as good as the information which ...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Oct 27, 2011, 3:21 pm
Many leaders struggle with getting buy-in for the strategic planning process and getting their team to feel like they are part of the plan.  Recently we were asked, “How do you successfully lead the charge as a strategy leader?” This question applies to both people who are new to strategic pla...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Oct 18, 2011, 6:57 pm
The BSC was introduced by Robert Kaplan, a Harvard Business School professor, and David Norton, the founder and president of Balanced Scorecard Collaborative, Inc., in the early 1990s as a new way to work with business strategy. Today, over half of the Fortune 1,000 companies in North America are us...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Oct 7, 2011, 5:55 pm
Are you feeling like you’re in a strategic planning rut? Do you need a little inspiration to help find your path? Check out some inspiring quotes from Steve Jobs we pulled from Fast Company to help kick-start your planning process. “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only con...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Sep 27, 2011, 9:43 pm
In response to the great input from our valued clients, team members and professional colleagues, today we are unveiling our third major redesign in our seven years of existence. Our team worked with our friends at Mesh Creative and Delge to help make it possible, and we are excited to roll out thes...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Sep 2, 2011, 8:04 pm
There is no doubt that most business operators recognize a lack of leadership in our elected officials – no matter which side of the aisle you are on.  No jobs created in August during the height of what should be solid marketplace activity.  First time this has happened since 1945!!  Yet there...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Sep 1, 2011, 6:00 pm
A recent study from Bain & Company titled, Management Tools and Trends, looked at usage and satisfaction of the 25 most popular management tools.  This study showed that Strategic Planning Tools rank the highest for satisfaction and usage.  Figure 7 below shows how Strategic Planning Tools ranked ...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Aug 26, 2011, 12:45 pm
To maximize resources and funding, organizations need to focus on what they do best and outsource the rest. Easy to say, right? That concept is harder to do in practice. The MacMillan Matrix, a tool developed by Wharton School of Business professor Ian MacMillan, was specifically designed to tackle ...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Aug 18, 2011, 4:30 pm
Many people are confused by the terms strategy, strategic plan, and strategic planning. For the moment, forget what you’ve heard about this subject. Strategic planning makes a huge difference to your organization both tangibly and intangibly. Below are some explanations that should clear up all th...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Aug 12, 2011, 5:55 pm
MyStrategicPlan is one of many strategic planning software options available in the market today. There are very few options that allow you to input the plan content/data, then track progress and execute to it, but there are many that provide a mechanism to capture and structure the plan. At minimu...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Aug 9, 2011, 1:14 pm
Here are some tips to help planning in your agency or community: Identify specific agencies charged with implementation of clear outcomes. This only works if named agencies participate in the planning. Identify a single, coordinating entity charged with overseeing implementation. In some cases, the...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jul 29, 2011, 1:14 pm
Your organization’s governing or policy board plays an important part in your strategic planning efforts. The degree of influence boards have varies from nonprofit to government organizations. But in some form or fashion, these appointed or elected members are responsible for defining the organiza...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jul 22, 2011, 2:36 pm
Strategic planning thought:  “Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work.” – Peter Drucker I often see this quote, as many of you probably do, when reading blogs/articles/research on strategic planning.  We use it ourselves and couldn’t agree with it ...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jul 13, 2011, 7:00 pm
5 Best Practices for Creating a Hospital Strategic Plan in Uncertain Times I came across this article the other day on Becker Hospital Review and thought it would be a great one to share for those in the medical field who are in the strategic planning process.  James R. Trimarchi, director of stra...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jul 7, 2011, 6:42 pm
Implementing your strategic plan is as important, or even more important, than your strategy. It is the critical actions that move a strategic plan from a document that sits on the shelf to actions that drive business growth. The sad reality is that the majority of companies who have strategic plans...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jun 30, 2011, 4:35 pm
Clearly the big difference between for-profits and nonprofits and governments is that pesky little word profit. Social-sector organizations are mission-driven, not profit-driven. So instead of the bottom line being strictly money — although that’s necessary to keep the doors open — the real re...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jun 24, 2011, 1:53 pm
In the past half dozen years, M3 Planning, developers of MyStrategicPlan have been a part of a best practices movement in the field of Customer Loyalty.  With our balanced scorecard approach to developing research questions that are actionable at both operational and strategic execution levels, we ...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jun 14, 2011, 2:52 pm
A few weeks back, Tim Vanderpyl wrote a post about strategic planning on LeaderLab. It generated some great debate about the usefulness of strategic planning.  I took the opportunity to participate in the conversation and that response can be found below (as well as at LeaderLab). I’m a bit late...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jun 10, 2011, 4:23 pm
A few things that men can learn from women in their strategic planning process A recent article from Inc. Magazine entitled, Why Women Are Great Strategic Planners, highlighted the differences in a woman’s versus a man’s approach to strategic planning.  The author, Jenn Houser, explains a conv...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jun 8, 2011, 6:40 pm
Planning for the future is important but very few businesses actually do it. Instead of listing the benefits of business planning and strategic planning, the following list of warning signs can tell you that you need a new strategy for your strategic planning process: Someone asks where your busine...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - May 25, 2011, 4:38 pm
Need a quick gut check to see if your strategy is sound? Here are the guidelines for a good strategy. Make sure that your strategy… Establishes unique value proposition compared to your competitors Is executed through operations that provide different and tailored value to customers Identifies cl...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - May 16, 2011, 6:18 pm
Your competitive advantage is what you, your company, or your department does better than anyone else.  It is what makes you unique.  Here’s a 30-second test to determine if you know your competitive advantage. I meet you at a local networking event and you introduce yourself. “Hi, I’m Bob...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - May 13, 2011, 3:25 pm
More often than not, life and day-to-day operations take over a well-intentioned strategic plan implementation.  If the strategic plan in one more thing everyone has to do, it begins to feel like a burden instead of being exciting.  By embedding your strategic planning into daily operations, compl...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - May 6, 2011, 12:43 pm
A few weeks back, I saw this comment on Twitter and it peaked my interest. Poster X: Our industry doesn’t lend themselves to strategic planning. We need to have the freedom to react to an environment that is constantly changing. Let’s not fall into this trap! Strategic planning is so much mor...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Apr 27, 2011, 3:19 pm
Are you in the process of business planning or creating a strategic plan?  In order to do strategic strategic planning make sure you do not get caught up on some of these stats below: 95% of a typical workforce doesn’t understand its organization’s strategy 90% of organizations fail to execute...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Apr 21, 2011, 7:07 pm
Check out this quick guide to get the most out of writing your strategic plan. Whether you are just getting started in the strategic planning process or at the point to execute your strategy, these tips will definitely help. Pull together a diverse, yet appropriate, group of people to make up your ...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Apr 18, 2011, 6:15 pm
Although strategic planning in business seems best, not all things are planned. Sometimes things just fall into place, like as in the case of these female “accidental-entrepreneurs” below. Their careers took a 180-degree turn when the world of chocolate entered in. These women had enough of the...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Apr 13, 2011, 3:26 pm
Times are tough right now for everyone.  How do you do strategic planning looking out 1 -2 -5 years, when there is a real threat of a double dip recession?  How is it applicable?  How do you adjust?  Check out the video below for some great tips on planning in these turbulent times! What ar...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Mar 25, 2011, 3:14 pm
Often, business owners and executives fall prey to the allure of setting too many financial goals. Or, their goals are exclusively financial. This detracts from the other reasons you’re in business, such as employing people, contributing to their communities, or providing a needed product or servi...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Mar 24, 2011, 2:55 pm
Unhealthy Culture Examples The Passive-Aggressive Organization: Congenial and seemingly conflict free. “Everyone agrees but nothing changes.” The Over-Managed Organization: Multiple layers of management create analysis-paralysis. “We’re from corporate and we’re here to help.” The Outg...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Mar 16, 2011, 12:35 pm
M3 Planning is in the news We’re very proud of our work with The Boy Scouts of America and apparently Yahoo! News and The Street, a leading digital financial media company, share our enthusiasm. See for yourself: Yahoo! News The Street You may also be interested in:Boy Scouts of America With t...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Mar 9, 2011, 7:07 pm
With all this buzz surrounding Charlie Sheen, I’ve begun to wonder if all this insanity is part of a “winning” strategy.  Is this just a publicity stunt, or is he really just that crazy? Before you dismiss Sheen as clinically insane, note that he has passed all recent drug tests, and now re...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Feb 17, 2011, 7:36 pm
Yet another great Daily Stat provided via Harvard Business Review. Fewer Strategic Priorities Is Better: Executives who’s companies have very few (1 to 3) firm wide strategic priorities were the most likely to say their companies have above-average profitability and revenue growth.  “Companies...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Feb 10, 2011, 5:59 pm
An interesting approach to hitting your revenue via Verne’s Insights: Throw a “Pi” at a Senior Guy — this is Portland-based New System Laundry’s quarterly theme. With a Q1 revenue goal of $3.14 million, and considering that the mathematical constant Pi is 3.1416…Mark Rawlinson, Presiden...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Feb 9, 2011, 3:34 pm
Today’s Harvard Business Review’s Daily Stat was shocking for us here at MyStrategicPlan.  Give this stat a quick read and let us know how your company handles their list of strategic priorities. 49% of executives surveyed by Booz & Company say their companies have no list of strategic priorit...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Feb 5, 2011, 11:20 am
Clear leadership for change initiatives is an important element to the eventual success of the effort.  Anyone involved in leading change knows that this is certainly not the only thing that needs to be in place.  An article in Management Review expands the notion of leadership for change in “Th...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jan 20, 2011, 1:33 pm
A M3 Planning team member recently attended service at a local church, Living Stones Church in Reno (http://livingstonesreno.com/) as they do most Sunday’s and caught a message regarding the church’s mission, vision and strategy.  While strategy development in a church is different from that of...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jan 14, 2011, 11:22 am
According to Mark Frigo in his article “Culture Change for the Analytical Mind” the problem with culture is that it may be observable, but it is too fuzzy to submit to measurement or in-depth analysis.   Culture, he states, is an output of the organizational system:  you can’t change the cul...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jan 7, 2011, 11:40 am
Change is constant, yes.  Whether companies choose to acknowledge it or not, they are in the midst of it.  Understanding that change is a process, not an event is key to long term sustainability of any organization.  In the Best of HBR (www.hbrreprints.org), John Kotter has a great article posted...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Jan 5, 2011, 1:36 pm
Now that it is a New Year, it’s time to test your current strategy. A recent article in the McKinsey Quarterly highlights some timeless tests to see if your strategy execution is working and what you can do to help kick start it into high gear.  They point out that, “Ultimately, strategy is a ...
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Ed A. posted an article on MyStrategicPlan - Dec 23, 2010, 7:31 pm
Coca Cola’s Former CEO, Bryan Dyson, gives a great 30 second short and sweet speech! Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air.  They are Work, Family, Health and Spirit and you’re keeping all of these in the air. You will soon understand that work is a rubbe...
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