Some companies feel they don’t need a new strategy every year choosing to stick to last year’s strategy instead. They may feel they don’t have the time, money, or resources to develop a new strategy.  This is can be especially true when things as going well.

But that might be a big mistake…

If company leaders put off working on evaluating their strategic plan until too late in the year to do it well, they might opt to settle for what worked last year. This may be particularly true if they are drowning in day-to-day emergencies. Time is needed to properly strategize, rigorously evaluate, and then initiate strategic changes. Sadly, in times of stress, strategic changes can be made recklessly, or not with all the facts at hand. The former wastes precious resources and time, while the latter invites disaster.

But it does not have to be this way…

Implementing new, well-conceived strategies can begin any time of year. Why not separate strategy development from your operational planning process to simplify and de-stress the process?  This can be accomplished by first creating a simple One Page operational plan first quarter. After that, you can then schedule a robust strategic planning session after January 1st, targeting implementation at the start of Q2 or Q3.

Strategic planning must have its own place on the calendar, separate from operational planning. Leaders should take enough time to collect, research, and clarify needed information and only then make strategic decisions.

Our One Page Business Plan methodology can help you create separate operational and strategic plans by greatly simplifying the process to hours and days… not weeks and months. Click on the button below to learn more…