Reviewing Your KPIs and Strategic Plan
Here we are moving into the 3rd quarter of 2023, and I bet you’re thinking what I’m thinking…Time to review my goals for the year! I hate to wear out an old cliché, but where does the time go?
Now is a great time to review all you’ve accomplished since January, and examine your metrics or Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) to see how they stack up to your Strategic Plan. Don’t have a Strategic Plan? How about you set a goal to create one before the end of the year?
How to Create a Roadmap for a Strategic Plan
If you’re like most owners I work with, you’re thinking, “well, I really don’t want to try and create that myself. I could use some help, especially when involving my team to implement it”. If that’s you, let’s talk about what you’re trying to accomplish. Your Strategic Plan is your tactical road map to growing and improving the company. With the help of your leadership team and accountability measures in place, you’ll be amazed at how quickly you accomplish your objectives!
Strategy vs. Tactics
Many times, I hear the question “how are strategies and tactics different?” and I think it’s a good one, so let’s talk about it. If you have a goal of driving sales revenue by 15% next year, your strategy could be to revamp your marketing plan. The tactics within the strategy are the steps and tasks that ‘live out’ the strategy. Some of those tactics could be to increase your social media presence, revamp your website, implement a good CRM, or build up your sales force. All of these can help drive revenue, if done right and consistently.
Another strategy could be to increase a culture of teamwork among your staff. Some tactics to accomplish this strategy could be to host an offsite team building workshop, conduct regular staff meetings with interactive participation, or share your company’s vision and values on a regular basis with your staff. Some of my clients go so far as to post their values or mission statement in a prominent place, conveying it to employees and customers whenever they pass by.
Start Planning and Aligning Your Strategies
Whatever your goals are for the rest of the year, make sure your strategies align with them. In order to improve the chances of success, you should also determine which tactics are necessary to ensure they’re accomplished. It’s normal for companies to continue many of the same strategies into the new year, as long as they are relevant and moving the company forward. So, it’s OK to start your planning now, even though it’s the middle of the year! There’s still time to make some impact on value growth, culture improvement, your bottom line, or any other goals your business might have.
