Strategic Planning for Communications

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StrategicPlanning forCommunications

• Gloria Walker, ABC, FRSA
• Chair, Europe/Middle East Region

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What Communicators Want

• International collaboration
• Lead trends in new media landscape
• Demonstrate value of communications to CEOs and
  managers
• Opportunities to reach audiences more
  effectively, i.e. using social/digital media
• Provide bigger functional role within
  organisations
• Global Alliance survey, 2009

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• If you dont know where youre going, any road
  will get you there!

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• The strategist is the one who helps the
  organization adapt effectively to its changing
  environment.
• - Karl Albrecht, management consultant, futurist,
  
• speaker, and prolific author, 1983

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Strategic Planning

• Mental process of thinking through what you want
  and how to get it.
• Essential to have a plan to direct and manage the
  organisation.
• Picture of the future in relation to the present,
  focusing on relevant issues
• Makes informed decisions
• Not a budget

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Benefits of Strategic Planning

• Clearly defines the purpose of the organisation
• Establishes realistic goals and objectives
  consistent with the mission in a defined time
  frame
• Ensures effective use of resources by focusing on
  key priorities
• Provides a base for measuring progress and
  establishing a mechanism for informed change
• Builds a consensus about where the organisation
  is going
• Increases productivity through increased
  efficiency and effectiveness

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When do strategic planning?

• When an organisation is getting started
• Strategic plan, marketing plan, financial plan,
  operational/management plan, communications plan
• In preparation for a new venture
• At least once a year
• Action plans should be updated regularly
• Review progress at least quarterly

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Strategic Plan Components

• Executive Summary
• Key points
• Communication Process
• Management tool
• Roles and responsibilities
• Background
• How did we get here?
• Who are we?
• Vision, mission, values statements
• Situation analysis
• What is our current situation? Why?
• Stakeholders/publics/audiences
• SWOT, etc

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• Strategic Summary
• Goals
• Objectives
• Where do we want to go?
• What do we want to do?
• How do we get there?
• Schedule (Action Plan)
• When, who, how much, how long?
• Budget
• Monitoring and evaluation

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Strategic Planning Triangle
Vision Mission Values
Goals Objectives
Objectives Strategies Tactics Strategies Goals
Programs
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ExecutiveSummary
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Executive Summary

• Provide an overview of the salient business
  issues the plan will address.
• Describe the business issues in terms of problems
  or opportunities that form the need for the plan.
• Describe the impact of each issue on the
  organisation if it is not dealt with in a timely
  manner.
• List any research on which the plan is based.
• Describe in detail what you expect the plan will
  achieve and what the expected outcomes will be.
  (goals and objectives)

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• Describe how the plan will be implemented, along
  with its time frame (strategies and tactics)
• Explain how the plan will be evaluated and at
  what cost.
• Provide a summary of the cost of the plan or your
  annual budget so decision makers can get an idea
  of the cost.
• Write the executive summary after the plan is
  completed.

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CommunicationProcess
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Communication Process

• Describe/explain communication used as a
  management tool how it supports organisational
  strategic management and helps the organisation
  deal with issues that will affect the achievement
  of the mission, goals and objectives.
• Two-way symmetrical model IABC Excellence Study
• Discuss managements roles and responsibilities
  in organisational communication.
• Discuss managers/supervisors roles and
  responsibilities.

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• Discuss how communication can help solve
  organisational problems and exploit
  opportunities.
• Whats in it for me? Provide information for
  managers/supervisors who must help you implement
  your plan and whose help you must have to be
  successful.

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Background
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Background

• List in chronological order (earliest to most
  recent) any major events that have led to the
  need for this plan.
• For example
• Organisational history
• Legal matters
• Regulatory impacts
• Market changes
• Significant research
• Stakeholder issues

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Situation Analysis
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Situation Analysis

• What are the most important issues facing our
  organisation?
• What are the most important business issues that
  the communication function should address with a
  strategic communication plan?
• What is our external environment that will affect
  our business?
• What is our internal environment?

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• Internally and externally
• Greatest strengths?
• Biggest weaknesses?
• Best opportunities now and in the future?
• Greatest threats now and in the future?
• Does our organisation have any unique competitive
  advantages? Disadvantages?
• What will be our strategic response to those
  opportunities? Threats?

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• What changes do we need to make in order to
  continue to be successful?
• In terms of audiences and stakeholders, what are
  our biggest concerns?
• what reputation or relationship problems do we
  have with any specific audience or stakeholder?
• In terms of employees, what are our biggest
  concerns? What needs to change?
• Skills? Behaviours? Attitudes?
• What are expectations for the communications
  function in helping to address these issues?

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Environmental Scan

• Organisation is dynamic and open
• Must react and adapt to changes in environment
  and markets
• Observe trends and changes in public opinion,
  market, regulations, etc
• Monitor, evaluate and disseminate information to
  key decision makers

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SWOT Analysis

• A platform to begin building a success-driven
  plan
• Starts with a clean slate
• Considers all activities equally
• Choose those that will contribute the most to
  achieving desired goals

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INTERNAL
Strengths
Weaknesses
Now and future
EXTERNAL
Opportunities
Threats
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Other Research

• Interviews
• Surveys
• Audits
• Focus Groups
• Media Analysis
• Competition Analysis
• Just ask people!

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StrategicSummary
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Tactics Measures Budget Plan B
Final Goal
Objectives/ Strategies
Barriers
Priorities
Target Date
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Setting Objectives

• Objectives should be clear and compatible
• Based on business priorities
• Objectives are measurable!
• To do (what) by (when) with what effect
  (numerical, impact)
• SMART
• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Relevant
• Time-sensitive

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Tactics

• The step-by-step details that must happen to
  accomplish a strategy.
• Often appear to be small things viewed
  separately, but when combined form the necessary
  whole for strategy completion.
• Many departments/functions may be involved.
• Tactics are highly visible.
• Tactics involve many people.
• Most strategic plans fail because they do not
  include tactical detail.

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Track and Document

• Strategic Plan usually 3-year period
• Major emphasis on current fiscal year
• Tactical plan must support strategic plan
• Both plans should be written documents
• Regular progress meetings
• Record of actions completed and changes made
• Share with management

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Planning Worksheet
Problem and / or Opportunity Problem and / or Opportunity
Issues Publics / Audiences / Stakeholders
What are the issues, in order of importance, that your plan must address? List the important groups of people with whom you must successfully communicate on each issue.
1.
2. etc
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Planning Worksheet
Strategy and Tactics Strategy and Tactics Strategy and Tactics Objectives Measure-ment
Messages Media, Vehicle, Channel and Timing Costs Expected Outcomes How evaluate?
For each group on each issue How share with each group? Tactics? Each tactic Hope to achieve? How evaluate success or failure of each expected outcome?
1. etc
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Business Plan Author Date
Business Priorities Dept Objectives Key business
issues to address What can we deliver to support
the
business
priorities? Priority One Objective
1 Objective 2 Objective 3
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Objective Person In Charge Start
Date Completion Date
Tactic Steps to be taken Person
Responsible Start Date Due Date Team Members
Initials (accountability)
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Additional Worksheets

• Implementation plan
• Set up a calendar showing what is planned for
  each month
• Identify areas of conflict/tension
• Agree best way forward
• Budget
• Expenses by quarter and total expenditure
• Monitor against this
• Evaluation
• How research results of plan activity to evaluate
  success or failure and then take corrective
  action tied to objectives, not tactics (research
  technique, when, cost)

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Getting Started
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Getting Started

• Prepare the plan
• Any plan is better than no plan
• Objectives
• To do what by when with what effect
• Resources
• People, money, time, technology
• Measures
• Monitoring
• A test of your project management skills!

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Available Resources

• The Communication Plan The Heart of Strategic
  Communication by Les Potter, ABC (3rd edition)
• MyComm IABC website
• The Internal Communications Handbook
• Websites

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http//europe.iabc.com
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