To better understand the different parts of the strategic planning process, including the role of firm leaders and employees, and how many people should have input into the strategic plan, The Zweig Letter recently sat down with John Doehring, principal and managing director of ZweigWhite's strategic advisory services consulting group. Here's a transcript of the conversation:

The Zweig Letter: What are the main components of the strategic planning process?

John Doehring: ''In our seminars, we start with an example flowchart diagram of the planning process, as outlined early on in the days of operations management. It's horrendous, and always gets a chuckle from the crowd. The model we use at ZweigWhite is much more concise, and straightforward. The steps are: 1) mission, 2) vision, 3) issues, 4) strategies, and 5) goals/actions. The process starts with the bigger picture, the destination, or ‘dream' as Carl Sandburg called it, and ends with a plan, the roadmap to success.''

TZL: How is a strategic plan different than a marketing plan or a business plan?

J.D.: ''The strategic plan is an overall business plan, focused on the mid- and long-term planning horizon. It should not be the same, or even similar, to the annual business plan, which is focused on what to do today, or in the next 6-12 months.

''Same thing with the marketing plan, though the terminology here is a bit more muddled. A firm's marketing plan may be more tactical— focused on short-term communications or business development efforts— or it may be considerably more strategic itself—organizational, positioning, differentiation, or branding strategic. These items are more ‘big picture' in scope, and are often (appropriately) considered during the strategic business planning process.

''The bottom line is frankly that all planning within the organization— short- or long-term, internal or external, practice- or functionally-focused— should work and fit (more or less) seamlessly together. The idea is to move the firm forward strategically— that is, on purpose,
intentionally.''

TZL: Should firms be all-inclusive and gather input from all employees through surveys to use in the strategic plan?

J.D.: ''We promote inclusiveness, and encourage efforts like the firm-wide survey. Organizational buy-in is a critical success factor, so asking employees for their opinions and perspectives is most often a very good idea. Moreover, employees throughout the firm often know the most about the firm and clients, and often have some very good ideas for solutions and strategies. Finally, operating the firm with more informational transparency supports a more collaborative culture— something many AEC firms could benefit more of from.''

TZL: Should only a firm leader be the moderator of the strategic planning process?

J.D.: ''Enlightened leaders— presidents, CEOs, principals— usually understand and appreciate the dynamic at work here. It's not that they don't know what likely needs to be done, but they see the advantage of having a credible, more ‘objective' outside expert leading the group to a consensus position. Many planning participants will have an instinct to believe and follow the expert consultant— someone who has completed this process for others before.

They may in fact be cynical, or pessimistic, about their own team (and leader's) ability to execute on their own, if their experience has included failed or false starts in the past.
''Moreover, many firm leaders frankly have trouble with the role. The talents, skills, and attributes of their own personalities— charging, authoritative, self-confident, results-oriented— suggests an approach that may not be as successful in strategic planning, where teamwork, consensus, variety of perspectives, buy-in, and leadership development can all be of substantial importance.''

TZL: How long does the strategic planning process take? When should firms expect to see a strategic plan if they decide tomorrow to start the planning process?

J.D.: ''Again, we want to think of strategic planning as more of a process than an event or deliverable— something the firm will want to commit to ‘from this point forward...' The first step in the process— a comprehensive strategic assessment and strategic planning facilitation, ending with a planning document— generally takes ZweigWhite 8 to 16 weeks. In large to very large firms, the process can take twice this long— there can be a lot more to assess and consider, and many more people might be involved. And the process can be compressed significantly, if time, schedule, and other commitments allow. Each year, we complete a few of these planning engagements under very short time schedules, usually in the context of an acquisition or merger between firms.''

TZL: Is there a right number of people who should be involved in the strategic plan? How many cooks are too many cooks?

J.D.: ''This is a very good question, and again, one that comes up often. The planning facilitation meeting is designed to be a ‘roll-up-the-sleeves' working session with considerable and meaningful interaction among the participants (no wallflowers allowed!). As the size of the group grows to 18 to 20 people, the dynamic changes— one or two can sit quietly, and really hide in the meeting.

''Many firms want to have more people at the meeting, to be inclusive, or because they have difficulty drawing the line on who to include and who to leave out. There are ways to work this, different techniques that we employ. For instance, the planning process can be divided into multiple meetings, with a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) session with one group, and perhaps a visioning session, and ultimately, a strategy and planning session with another group, or subset of the team.

''Another technique we employ with large groups is to break into smaller groups focused on single issues or strategies. Breakout groups have the advantage of giving more participants more responsibilities and expectations, giving them an opportunity to develop and showcase leadership talent in the firm. Buy-in, commitment, and strategy champions are positive outcomes of employing these smaller teams.

''Finally, the right answer must consider the firm's context itself. For companies with fewer than 20 to 25 employees, perhaps having everyone in the process (and at the meetings) is appropriate. Having 10 of the 123 employees of the firm is probably not a good idea.''

TZL: What are some common myths/misconceptions about the strategic planning process? And how do you debunk them?

J.D.: ''Many engineers, architects, and other design professionals know, understand, and have some experience with strategic business planning. Lots of these folks have some bad, or less-than-optimal experiences— efforts that did not ultimately lead to success or positive return on their investment. So they are cautious, skeptical, and cynical. I try to remind them of the difference between bad strategy and good strategy poorly executed.

''Since much of the work of AEC professionals is tangible, visible, and project-oriented, they don't necessarily make the instinctive connection to business management, or (even worse) people management issues— which seem not real, or process-oriented, and too ‘squishy.' We work to encourage these leaders to see strategic planning as a process, and as a project, itself. It can have a job number, billable time, a budget and schedule, performance metrics, and such.

''It's also important to link planning with success. The truth is that there are no guarantees. Some firms with great plans are not successful, and some without plans are wildly successful. But statistically, over the marketplace, those with strategic plans in place— compelling visions and the roadmap to get there— are much more successful than those without them."