Ms. Marketing: I want to do some strategic planning for 2009, but I not sure of how to get started.
Ms. Marketing: I want to do some strategic planning for 2009, but I not sure of how to get started.
Dear Ms Marketing: I want to do some strategic planning for 2009, but I not sure of how to get started. Can you help?
The importance of strategic planning for an existing business in this turbulent economic time should be at the top of your list of things to do. With the New Year just starting now is the time to take a look at where you are and where you want to go.
Strategic planning is a process that allows businesses to perform a periodic reassessment of where they are and where they are going with respect to their business operations. The outcome of this process will provide a plan of action to respond to changes in the business environment. This plan will also give the formal forward direction for the business, aid in the decision making process, and should provide for an improvement in the overall business
performance.
If you are a small business you should always be looking for ways to adapt to changes in the environment. The level in which you are able to respond to the changes in the current condition will depend on your ability to survive and thrive during any economic cycle.
First step you should take is research. Find out where you were this time last year. Have a plan for if work drops by 10 percent this will be the game plan. If it drops by 15 percent this is what we will do and so on. Make sure you include your management team in on the plan. You may have to cut hours and or change hours but some hours are better than no hours. Remember your employees are also hearing the doom and gloom. Let them know that you are doing everything you can. They want to know that you are working on a plan.
The second step is to review your accounts. Make phone calls and or drop a note to an account that may have sent you work in the past but is not sending work now. Let them know you are still here if they need your service. You may have a new product that they didn’t know you offer. Keep them informed on what you are doing to help them grow.
The third step is to work with your employees. Remember you can’t do it all by yourself. You hired people you wanted to help you grow and run your business so take time to listen to their ideas. They are willing to bend instead of break when it comes to their jobs.
The fourth step is new technology. This may be part of your plan for the future. Do your homework. What works for one laboratory may not work for your laboratory. Take the time to check out different systems. Work with other laboratories. Outsource your work and see what you get back from some of the systems that are available.
The fifth step is to ensure you’re in survivable mode. Keep every thing in check. The same work hours may not apply, wages held in check. Supplies can be used up. It’s not forever, but it’s survival. Always keep an eye out for the next threat, even if you have not identified it yet.
In making a commitment to pursue a planning process, don’t be like Alice in Alice in Wonderland. Remember when Alice asks the Cheshire Cat:
“Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to walk from here?”
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” said the cat.
“I don’t care much where” said Alice.
“Then it doesn’t matter which way you walk.”
If you don’t have an idea for which way you want to go with your business, then it doesn’t matter what you do.
