Understanding Strategic Business Planning for Business Analysts.
Matthew Coppola- Talk at the BA World Conference.
How did you all come here today?
No doubt some of you may have used a road map or GPS if you took your car. A strategic plan is like a road map. It provides us with the big picture so we can plan our route from start till end. Unfortunately in business we cannot see that far ahead.
So that’s why a strategic plan provides us with the big picture, helping us to choose the best avenue to take from a number of alternatives.
Would a road map be good if it was in black and white and didn’t show the streets?
Well no, A road map is very visual and colourful. It allows us to differentiate between streets, highways and freeways. It even shows us key landmarks and their names. Same with a strategic plan.
A strategic plan allows us to “see” the organisation visually, including future projects to be initiated, marketing strategies, the financial position and recent changes in the organisation. So, what does a detailed strategic plan look like and what does it all mean?
1. Introduction by the president of the board
This is just a small cover letter introducing the plan from the director or president of an organisation’s board of directors.
It’s simply a stamp of approval.
2. Executive summary
Most people are too busy and have very little time to read through a long document.
It’s always a good read because it summarises the key points and what the main priorities of the organisation are.
3. Mission statement & Vision
The mission statement simply outlines the purpose of the organisation and why it exists.
Take for example……..McDonald’s.
McDonald’s brand mission is to “be our customers’ favourite place and way to eat.”
Next is the vision.
The vision defines the key focus of the organisation.
It’s critical for a successful plan to have a strong vision as this provides strategic scope for the organisation.
For example…..Eagles.
Eagles are well known for their extraordinary eyesight.
The Bald Eagle for instance has two foveae or centers of focus that give birds the ability to see both forward and to the side at the same time.
Having a good vision in strategy involves not only looking forward to the future, but looking at the present and how the strategy is in line with what the organisation is doing now.
Like all birds, the eagle has colour vision, their eye is a little smaller than ours, but the sharpness of their vision is four times more than that of a person with perfect vision.
Even an eagle flying at an altitude of 1000 feet over open country can spot its prey over an area of about 3 square miles from a fixed position.
So a good strategy, be it an organisational strategy or even a personal strategy for yourself, should have a detailed and sharp vision of where to go.
A blurry vision will only affect the end result.
4. Organisation profile
The organisational profile outlines how the organisation first started and its characteristics.
Now the organisational profile is made up of the following 5 points:
• who their previous clients have been,
• what changes have been made in the company over time,
• what products and services they offer,
• what they specialise in and
• past accomplishments.
A big annoyance of business executives is an external BA who is hired to come in and help, without at all knowing the products or services the company is designed around.
So it’s always good before starting any project or contract to do your research on the company.
So how can we research an organisation we are working for? We can start off by looking at a company’s marketing materials and their website.
Marketing materials say a lot about a company and how they want to differentiate themselves from competitors. Websites are also good because they are continually updated with new information.
I recently consulted and trained a hearing aid clinic in business process improvement. The first thing I did was look at the businesses website, read their brochures and marketing material.
I even researched information on business trends for hearing aid clinics and what is happening in the industry to improve processes.
So after spending a couple of weeks learning about the business, following each employee around in their job, watching how they deal with customers and go about their routine activities, I gained not only an understanding of the business and its industry, but also the feel of what it’s like to be in their shoes.
So it when it came to training and consulting management in ways they can improve business processes, I was able to combine my knowledge and skills with a true understanding of how the business operates and its products.
Remember, the more the BA knows about the marketing message that has been developed for outside customers, the better he or she will be able to communicate with business stakeholders about products and customers.
5. Outline of core strategies
This part explains the strategic thinking behind the plan.
It’s the most interesting part of a strategic plan because it helps you understand why the organisation is making certain decisions.
There are two parts to the business strategy – firstly is an understanding of the business environment and secondly an analysis of the resources and capabilities that create a competitive advantage.
