Strategic Planning Process in Local Government

1
Strategic Planning Process in Local Government

• A comparative analysis by
• N. Nyathi and D. Korver

2
BACKGROUND TO SNVs involvement

• Organisational Analysis Mat South RDCs
  (2001-2002)
• Joint Analysis of OA with 5 RDCs (2002)
• Priority listing of issues for capacity
  development (2002-2003)
• URDC, IRDC, BMRDC Strategic Planning Priority 1
• SNV development of strategic planning process for
  local government in Zimbabwe

3
What is Strategic Planning?

• It is a disciplined effort to produce fundamental
  decisions and actions that shape and guide what
  an organisation is and what it does and why it
  does it (Bryson 1995)

4
What does Strategic Planning do?

• Focusses on achievement of the best fit between
  an organisation and its environment
• Encourages a participative process to development
  that is medium term , innovative and flexible to
  meet strategic objectives in line with available
  resources

5
Characteristics of Strategic planning

• cross sectoral coordination and integration
• Financial feasibility
• Agreement on roles of public private sector in
  development
• Enabling role of public sector in support of
  private sector
• Linkage to and from national policy issues
• Regular monitoring and evaluation
• Source UNDP Global Report 1996

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Major assumption about Strategic Planning

• The major assumption of strategic planning is
  that an organisation must be responsive to a
  dynamic, changing environment, it emphasises the
  organisations need to understand the changing
  environment and to develop organisational
  decisions responsive to those changes.

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Strategic Planning Process

• This can be split into 4 broad phases i.e.
• 1.Environmental scanning
• Internal External
• 2. Strategy Formulation
• 3. Strategy Implementation
• 4. Monitoring and control
• Many organisations break these further down into
  manageable processes as shown below

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The Process

• Prepare
• Define
• Shared Values
• Shared Vision
• Mission
• Scan
• Environmental Scan (OT)
• Internal Audit (SW)
• Formulate
• Set Strategic Goals
• Set Areas of Key Results
• Set Key Result Objectives
• Action Planning
• Sub Unit Integration
• Implement
• Monitor

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The Process - Timetable

• Prepare (8 weeks)
• Define (4 weeks)
• Shared Values 2 weeks
• Shared Vision 1 week
• Mission 1 week
• Scan (16 weeks)
• Environmental Scan (OT) 8 weeks
• Internal Audit (SW) 8 weeks
• Formulate (24 weeks)
• Set Strategic Goals 4 weeks
• Set Areas of Key Results 4 weeks
• Set Key Result Objectives 4 weeks
• Action Planning 4 weeks
• Sub Unit Integration 8 weeks
• Implement (depends on plan)
• Monitor (ongoing)
• TOTAL 52 weeks

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Summary on Strategic Planning

• Strategic
• Goals values
  Scanning the environment
• where we want to go
  what the world is like
• Policies
  Strategies
• How we
  intend to get there
• 
  Targets
• (milestones
  along the way)
• Operational
• Activity Planning
• Performance Standards
  Appraisal
• (inputs, outputs, outcomes)
  (Annual reviews, audits)
• 
  Monitoring (Resource and service plan monitoring)

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What makes SP unique in Zimbabwe?

• Economic hardships for RDCs
• Limited financial resources
• Limited time
• Other priorities e.g. food distribution
• Decentralisation Policy GoZ
• Clear requests from Min of LG regarding need for
  strategic planning for local authorities
• Political environment

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Benefits for local governments

• Strategic (long term) Thinking by staff and
  councillors
• Community involvement
• Improved relationships Councilors-Staff
• Ability to get buy-in from stakeholders in region
• Improved Coordination of NGO activities
• Compliance with GoZ regulations

13
GoZ involvement, pros and cons

• Positive
• Local authorities have a platform to learn from
  each other
• Healthy competition (who has the first/best plan)
• Becomes a legitimate process, councils willing to
  cooperate

• Negative
• Less ownership felt (is something that has to be
  done for Min of Local Govt)

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Lessons learned from SNV viewpoint

• The process can take a long time to complete (up
  to 1,5 years)
• Once people involved understand the process and
  the purpose they become motivated
• Keeping a good record of all meetings,
  documentation of outcomes throughout the process
  is crucial to come up with a good document
• The composition of the strategic planning
  committee determines the success of the process
  (motivated people at influential positions such
  as CEO, Councilors, HoDs, people from the RDDC).
• The process is often to expensive for RDCs given
  the current situation and priorities. This
  affects the quality and time it takes to
  complete.

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Different process developments for different
local authorities
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Major challenges and solutions

1. Little money for process.
2. Limited CEO availability.
3. Other priorities (e.g. food security, AIDS/HIV).

1. Scale down process, hold internal meetings with
   less people, make use of existing documentation
   and parallel activities (e.g. scans), be
   realistic in planning.
2. Delegate to capable, motivated HoDs.
3. Address these priorities first and also take them
   into account as strategic objectives.

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Pitfalls observed

• Rushing through the process to save time and
  money and dragging the process resulting in loss
  of momentum
• Delegate to someone who is not in a position to
  command authority
• Not acknowledging other more important priorities
• Not documenting process, not keeping important
  documents (minutes, sheets)
• Copying parts from other local authorities
  documents
• Seeing Strategic Planning as something that will
  solve everything
• Seeing Strategic Planning not in connection to
  other activities/processes that take place in a
  local authority

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Best practices

• Prepare budget for process (to understand steps
  involved and financial implications)
• Involve 1 or 2 people from other organizations to
  participate in the SP committee
• Meet frequently with a small core team of 3-4
  people
• CEO to delegate responsibilities early on if CEO
  is to occupied with other priorities to champion
  process
• Involve 1 or 2 councilors to facilitate
  acceptance and information flow between staff and
  councilors
• Document extensively to capture not only the
  outcome (e.g. lists of points) but also the
  (strategic) thinking involved
• Relate Strategic Planning to other activities
  taking place (e.g. performance management, annual
  planning, project definition, NGO activities)
• Be positive (e.g. look at strengths and
  opportunities)

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SNV Advice

• There can be a standard approach, but the process
  varies. Any approach chosen should be flexible.
• GoZ could allocate funding for this process to
  facilitate it.
• Ministry of Local Government could produce
  guiding manuals, standards to assist local
  authorities.
• A platform could be further developed at national
  or provincial level where local authorities share
  their experiences and learn from each other
  regarding the strategic planning process.
• The SP should guide annual planning. It should
  not only be a bookshelf document nicely bound.

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Way Forward SNV

• To continuously relate capacity development
  activities to the organisations strategy.
• THANK YOU
•