The ABCs of Strategic Planning: A Quick Guide 

Many leaders begin strategic planning with bold goals and high hopes, only to find their organization stalled, overwhelmed, or off-track by midyear. Ambitious targets look great on paper, but if they aren’t grounded in your current context—your capacity, resources, and readiness—they can leave teams stuck or demoralized.

The best way to create a successful strategic plan is to make sure it’s clear, grounded, and usable. At BFM, we help leaders break the process into smaller manageable components. Here is a starting point, what we like to call the ABCs of Strategic Planning:

A — Make sure your plan Adaptable 

A strategic plan looks perfect when everything goes exactly as expected. But we don’t lead in controlled conditions.Your plan should have some flexibility in it so that it can adapt to market shifts, changes in personnel, and more

B — Bridge aspiration and action.

The purpose of a strategic plan is to have a blueprint for all of your business goals, no matter how lofty they may seem. It needs to reflect every step–and who’s in charge of those steps–that exist between wanting and getting. Teams gain confidence when they can see the pathway, not just the destination.

C — Keep goals Contextualized.

Goals need to be tied to real data, community needs, and internal bandwidth. When goals reflect the truth of your present moment, they drive progress instead of pressure.

When you begin with these anchors, your plan becomes more than a to-do list—it becomes an expression of who you are as an organization. Grounding in your core elements makes your plan and extension of who you are as an organization. It brings clarity, alignment, and confidence, which are the essentials for sustainable progress.

Ready to move forward? 

Download this free tool from BFM to develop goals that make a difference.

Want a more personalized plan? Schedule a quick conversation about how we can help you build a plan that leads to impact.