While this article is not specifically about farm succession planning, it is about succession strategies in a general sence. There are three reasons why I chose this story – click on the link above to read them.

The plan itself can be as simple and straightforward as the organization wants it to be, based on the way it normally makes its decisions.

The key is not what the plan itself looks like, rather how the conclusions are reached. In our experience in order for a business strategic development plan to be actionable – it must be a sincere effort by a group of knowledgeable individuals with the short and long term success of the organization in mind.

Click to read the whole story here.

Recommended Reading

• Family Farm Succession Planning
• Who in The World Requires a Farm Succession Planning Consultant?
• Farm Success Nowadays Needs High-class Management Competencies
• Who Are The Important Members Of Your Farm Strategic Planning Team, and Where Will They Come From?
• Farm Succession and Strategic Planning Group

Technorati Tags: strategic competitive analysis

The online dictionary Wikipedia defines strategic planning as “an organization’s process of defining its direction and making decisions on allocating its resources, including its capital and people. It is often times viewed as a process for determining where an organization is going over the next 3 to 5 years or more”. Strategic planning enables an organization to answer the following questions:

While this article is not about farm succession, it is about business succession meaning that it is very likely to be relevant to any sort of organizational succession planning you are interested in.

- Who are we?
- What can we do?
- What are our strengths and weaknesses?
- Which critical issues must we respond to?
- What should our priorities be?
- Where should we allocate our resources?
- How do we want to grow?
- Where do we want to be in the future?

Most large organizations have a significant process of strategic planning where overall directions are given to the organization.

They need to do this since there are large amounts of resources at stake and many people and departments involved to manage these resources.

However, few small organizations do strategic planning even though relative to their size, they too have large amounts of resources at stake and people involved to manage these resources.

The reason for this absence of a strategic plan is usually due to the fact that top management of the organization is very tactically oriented and involved with the day-to-day operations. Just getting through the near term is the only thing on their collective mind.

The problem with this is that within the organization, there is no overall plan that gives people direction as they make decisions which means that different parts of the organization can be going in different directions at the same time.

In small volumes, this is not such a problem, but as the company grows, it can become very chaotic, frustrating and problematic and can lead to failure due to the conflicting priorities that will exist.

A strategic planning process does not have to be long, time consuming and drawn out, but it should involve the key personnel of the organization.

With guidance from a facilitator familiar with the process, implementing a planning process can be fairly quick and simple and can be done without being a major intrusion to the operation. Benefits that can be realized include:

- Clearly defined business strategies and supporting objectives for growth
- Identification of business strengths and weaknesses
- Quantified resource requirements and financial projections
- Integrated operational plans for each area of the business
- Clearly defined business performance measures
- A focus on achieving and building advantages

Strategic plans are very different from operational plans. Operational plans are tactical and are concerned with “today”.

Strategic plans are concerned with “tomorrow” and are effective in coordinating the tactical activities so that the future growth of the organization is effective and under control.

Without some aspect of a strategic plan that is known to all, activities of the organization will be disjointed and counterproductive, even though everyone is doing what they think is best.

Frustration will exist within the ranks and growth will be difficult which can lead to the overall failure of the organization.

With a well conceived and communicated strategic plan, an owner or management team will likely get what they want in terms of organizational performance, but without one, they will most likely not and everyone in the organization will suffer to some extent.

Recommended Reading

• Family Farm Succession Planning
• Who in The World Requires a Farm Succession Planning Consultant?
• Farm Success Nowadays Needs High-class Management Competencies
• Who Are The Important Members Of Your Farm Strategic Planning Team, and Where Will They Come From?
• Farm Succession and Strategic Planning Group

Technorati Tags: farm strategic planning, strategic competitive analysis, Strategic Planning for Business

If this is something you’re planning for there are several things to consider, not the least of which is how are your going to get there. In other words, you’ve determined your destination and the date, you know where you’re starting from and have all the options at hand. Now you have to pick the best one for you and your family this time.

Planning for succession of your farm’s business can be boiled down to the same three step exercise you use to map out your trip to see Mickey, Goofy, and the gang.

First, (and of greatest importance) you have to get a handle on where you are right now, as a farm and as a family.

Second, you need to determine where you want to be. As Will Rogers said, “It really doesn’t matter that you are making great time if you’re heading in the wrong direction.”

Finally, you need to sort out the available alternatives will allow you to move smoothly from where you all are to where you want to.

Farmers planning for succession find that a great place to start is with a family meeting where we can begin the process. In a family owned farm or business, family members from different generations may have opposing ideas which need to be considered as you plan for the future. Even if all members are in general agreement, no one may know how to discuss his or her point of view.

Frequently a lack of honest, unemotional communication is complicated by a lack of understanding of the simple techniques available to help you and your family members get their points across constructively. While planning for the future of the farm business and the family, emotional issues are often overlooked or ignored in favor of “tax savings” for example, to everyone’s sorrow later on.

The Farm Family Conference: A Productive Planning Strategy

An excellent beginning is to hold a family conference. The family conference as a positive step toward assuring the future for everyone. The idea that “someday this will all work out” is a pipe dream. Nothing good happens by accident, without planning. The family conference helps you understand that your goals do not have the conflict with the goals of your father, mother, brother, sister, son, or daughter.

The objective of the family conference is to develop a set of suggested activities and planning ideas that you and your advisers can use to achieve your goals. Our quarter-century of experience has shown that the family/owners already have 90% of the information necessary to creatively plan for the future of their organization.

We believe that success comes only when the focus is on the needs and feelings of everyone involved.

What’s needed is a framework for discussion, a process that allows them to construct effective dialogue to remove past slights, align expectations and create shared goals for the future. The results will provide their advisors a blueprint for creating the results the family seeks.

The Strategic Conversations Process: Before, During, and After the Family Conference

The Key Principles of Strategic Conversations are:

Set the context for the interaction: In order for a conversation to be “strategic,” the stage must to be set with certain understanding and agreement. This process is a critical first step for it clarifies the objective and creates an atmosphere where trust can be built. You can see how important this is when the individuals involved have long histories with each other.

Initiate the dialogue: Both an action step and a mind-set. As you communicate, your mind will be oriented so that you will receive and process input and respond to it in a focused and strategic manner. It is not necessary for each person involved to understand the principles, as long as you do. Having a “conversations on purpose” not the usual chit chat. The process identifies the subject as important.

Feedback for clarification: “I know you believe you understand what you think I said, but I am not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.” Lewis Carroll in Alice in Wonderland. In its normal state, interpersonal communication is actually more often misinterpretation. All parties to the conversation believe they are being clear in what they are conveying, and the receivers think they are getting the message.

The truth is, most of the time the message being received is only partially correct. In order to have a strategic conversation, all parties to the conversation must be clear. The Strategic Conversations report provides examples of clarification strategies.

Show Appreciation: The ending of a conversation is an important event in and of itself. All too often, a conversation ends too abruptly leaving one or more of the participants feeling awkward or uncomfortable. Then, the uncomfortable feeling is the last memory with which the participant is left. The act of showing appreciation is an effective gateway to transitioning to the close of a conversation and summing up the value of the interaction. There are examples of the power and art of showing appreciation in the 5 Keys To Strategic Conversations report.

Extend yourself: This element opens the door for a future interaction of this type of communication. It can invite a closer relationship, if desired, or simply establish a connection. Modeling this type of behavior will encourage others to behave in a similar manner, leading to clearer, more accurate strategic conversations. Paying forward is an effective way to insure productive future conversations. The report contains tips on how to extend yourself in ways that will positively impact your communications.

Imagine, personal and business relationships without conflict. Decision made in a cooperative environment with “everybody rowing in the same direction” all the time.

Is it possible? It is when you have internalized the principles of “Strategic Conversations” and integrated them into your very being.

Is it easy? No, nothing worthwhile ever is. But since you have used, to a greater or lesser degree, each of the principles over time – you will be able to do this, given the commitment.

When Don Jonovic PhD and I wrote “Passing Down the Farm the OTHER Farm Crisis”, in 1986 – based on my experiences helping farm families plan for the future of their business during and beyond their lifetimes and Don’s insights into family business dynamics. We submitted a draft of each chapter to a panel of farmers, ranchers, and agribusiness owners – who checked it for accuracy and clarity.

The result. It was packed with universal truths about relationships and the need to take charge of the activities that surround planning for the future of the farm. It remains a favorite of farmers and their advisors to this day.

When I decided it was time to create a version for the new millennium, we first had to ask and answer three important questions. “In two decades, what’s changed, what’s stayed the same, and what should we do?”

If you are serious about farm succession you are in the right place!

Recommended Reading

• Family Farm Succession Planning
• Who in The World Requires a Farm Succession Planning Consultant?
• Are You Someone Who Thinks They Need a Farm Succession Planning Expert and Precisely Why or Why Not?
• Are You Someone Who Requires a Farm Succession Planning Specialist?
• Farm Succession and Strategic Planning Group

Technorati Tags: Farm succession planning, Planning for Succession, strategic competitive analysis, succession and planning

Companies and non-profit organizations need strategic plans at specific junctures in their existence: when they are new, when they are in crisis, and when they are ready to jump to the next level.

The process of creating an organization’s strategic plan can and should have its own goals. It’s important to plan the planning process. Among other benefits, the planning process itself can build community, stimulate creativity, enroll new stakeholders, strengthen bonds between stakeholders and the organization, and heighten an organization’s visibility.

While the elements of a strategic planning process are simple, an organization’s specific process will reflect its culture and resources. The amount of time needed to complete a strategic plan depends on the availability and commitment of key players. Typically, a planning process takes six to nine months. Leading a strategic plan takes a lot of time, and it is primarily the CEO or Executive Director’s responsibility.

Elements of the Plan

1. Define the Current Situation. Using a SWOT analysis, identify the organization’s Strengths and Weaknesses, and the Opportunities and Threats the group is facing.

Generally, the SWOT analysis is done by the internal team of staff and volunteers, Board members and key stakeholders (e.g. funding sources, sponsors, key partners). A group exercise can be very effective as a way to involve a broad group of people, surface all issues, and then prioritize them.

2. Identify the environment in which the organization operates. A useful framework is the PEST analysis: what are the Political, Economic, Social, and Technological conditions and trends affecting the organization now and in the future? It is not enough to name a broad trend. The strength of the analysis lies in ascertaining the impact such a trend could or will have on the organization, its operations, operating environment, and future options.

This step generally involves significant research, including in-person interviews and internet searches, as well as an assessment of the funding and competitive landscape. Interns can be quite useful as researchers as long as staff process and then present the findings to the Board and planning group.

3. Affirm or alter the organization’s mission based on the prior findings.  Missions are essentially timeless and define the reason the organization exists, or its purpose.

The goal is to have a mission that all agree on and all know what it means. The mission is a guide for program planning and consistency, identity and brand cohesiveness, fundraising, marketing, board development, hiring, and publicity.

A useful mission development process is to get everyone’s read and interpretation of the mission as it now stands, and what it means to them:
A.  Discuss what words mean to people

B.  Values

C. Areas of similarity, difference

• difference – place more conversation is needed

D.  Where motivated people to work there

• emotions
• values
• meaning
• impact

E. What would the world be like if we didn’t exist? What’s our reason, our purpose? To what group do we make a difference?A small committee needs to then take all the input and synthesize it into a rough draft of a mission statement. The Board and key staff then will discuss the draft, do its wordsmithing in order to put its stamp on the statement, and coalesce around the mission.

4. Create a vision of the future impact of the organization.

Visions usually look 3 to 5 years into the future and express the specific results an organization wants to have by the end of that period. It is a statement of desired impact and the difference an organization will make in its field on its constituency. A successful vision is one that motivates people, fulfills the mission, promises impact, communicates the meaning for intended constituency, and provides concrete guidance for designing and aligning programming. Visions are:

• Time-bound
• Measurable
• Achievable

This is a wonderful place to involve a broad group of stakeholders, internal and external. After a brief orientation and explanation of some of the key findings from the SWOT and PEST analysis, people can be split into smaller groups to answer a few questions aimed at surfacing people’s hopes and dreams for the organization’s role and impact. These questions have proven helpful in identifying vision:

• In [x period of time], we will be known for:
• In [x period of time], we will be capable of:
• In [x period of time], we will have the following impact:

Staff and a few Board members can take the answers to these questions and other information to craft a draft vision statement. The vision statement should account for the areas of programming, funding, visibility, infrastructure, and governance. The Board and key staff will discuss, edit, and adopt a final vision statement.5. Craft specific strategies for achieving the vision.

At this point, staff take over the planning process. With a clear mission and vision, staff can develop the specific strategies and methods for fulfilling the mission and achieving the vision.  After staff have developed a series of strategies, they will present those to the Board for its discussion, understanding, buy-in and hopefully approval. In a healthy planning process, staff should want and expect the Board to make recommendations and suggest changes in strategy. It is this interactive and iterative process that ensures the best possible plan, a plan that takes account of details and the broad picture. In addition, engaged Board members will be more effective fundraisers and “evangelists” for the organization.

6. Develop objectives and strategic outcomes that are measurable and time-specific.

In this stage, staff outline specific measurable targets and benchmarks to be achieved over the 3 to 5 year period of the plan. These targets serve as the basis for developing the annual plan in each of the 3 to 5 years. These targets and intermediate goals will be approved by the Board of Directors when it adopts the entire Strategic Plan, usually at its annual meeting. In subsequent years, staff and Board will have the opportunity to tweak and approve these plans during the annual budget and plan process.

7. Report on progress to date and evaluate success in achieving the plan. With measurable goals and objectives, it is possible to measure progress toward these goals. It is also possible to determine whether a strategy is successful, and to change course or shift program emphasis if the data show lack of progress or success.

This phase is increasingly important to funding sources and oversight agencies. Organizations must have a system for measuring and reporting on their effectiveness to donors and oversight agencies, or they risk losing funding from people who want to know their dollars are actually making a tangible difference and positive impact.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Julia_Erickson

Recommended Reading

• Family Farm Succession Planning
• Who in The World Requires a Farm Succession Planning Consultant?
• Farm Success Nowadays Needs High-class Management Competencies
• Who Are The Important Members Of Your Farm Strategic Planning Team, and Where Will They Come From?
• Farm Succession and Strategic Planning Group

Technorati Tags: farm strategic planning, Julie Erickson, strategic competitive analysis, Strategic Planning for Business

A strategic plan lays out a company’s path to building an economically significant and defensible position in its industry. The plan will specify the target industry, target customers, value proposition and form of the offering, and a business model to most effectively deliver the offering to the market.

Once this is clearly specified it will dictate what type of organization is required to achieve the objectives. I disagree with the first answer that started with org design first. I believe that a organizational design is a natural extension of strategic planning (i.e. planning comes first).

Org design will specify the required organizational assets needed to execute the strategic plan in terms of people, functions and assets.

Recommended Reading

• Family Farm Succession Planning
• Farm Success These Days Takes Top-quality Management Capabilities
• Farm Success Nowadays Demands Exceptional Management Abilities
• Does Anyone Really Need A Consultant to Get The Farm Succession Planning Rolling, Or Not?
• Farm Succession and Strategic Planning Group

Technorati Tags: strategic competitive analysis