How to create a one-page strategic plan that wins business and produces results
Lengthy, multi-year strategic plans have a place — typically on the shelf. A concise, one-page strategy can guide stakeholders towards near-term goals with higher probabilities of success.
By Alex Teece | July 17, 2024
Board retreats. Off-sites. Step-backs. There is a strong chance that you remember the hors d'oeuvres menu better than what was laid out in the five-year strategic plan. Where is that thing by the way?
According to a 2022 Barclays report, nearly half of small and medium-sized businesses do not have a clear strategy or strategic plan in place to help their business grow. Of those that do, 25% have a verbal strategy, and 23% have a vague goal. In our last perspective we talked about why strategic planning was so important for small and family businesses. This article is the how - a short, concise description of the how. One page, in fact.
Below is a quick read on (1) how to build a one-page strategic plan for your small or family business, (2) the immediate impact and sustained results realized by such a plan, and (3) a working template and a few “how-to” tips to get started.
(1) The one-page strategic plan: something is better than nothing.
A Harvard Business Review study showed that 85% of executive leadership teams spend less than one hour per month discussing strategy, with 50% spending no time at all. One of the main challenges is that strategy, in and of itself, is a complex process that requires time, resources, stakeholders, and analytics; a company takes months (if not years) to build, refine, approve, publicize, and eventually follow their plan.
But, we aren’t talking about Walmart of J.P. Morgan here. We are talking about the small or family businesses (revenue up to ~$40MM, per SBA) who spend a majority of their time on, in, and growing their business.
Don’t get me wrong - a deeply analytical, multi-year strategic plan is great. However, given the connection between strategic planning and success (e.g., having a business plan can increase your chances of growth by ~33% per the Journal of Management Studies), a one-page strategy is a solid start.
The plan is as follows: (1) Vision, (2) Priorities, (3) Strategies & Goals, and (4) Operationalization of tactical actions.
The above framework will guide you through creating a crisp, pithy, shareable document that tells your story, shows where you are taking your business, and ensures stakeholders are clear on how to help, when, and at what level.
“85% of executive leadership teams spend less than one hour per month discussing strategy, with 50% spending no time at all.”
Main takeaway: starting somewhere is better than going nowhere.
(2) Three key results from implementing this plan: triple clarity.
Strategy is about looking over the horizon… seeing around the corner… and planning for the next bounce of the ball (and a million other metaphors). Yet, strategy often falls down the list of priorities due to seemingly more pressing issues like hitting short-term sales targets, new customer acquisition, staffing challenges, and more - changing business circumstances and resistance to change derail strategic efforts as well. Harvard Law School sums this up as The Modern Dilemma: Balancing Short- and Long-Term Business Pressures, and they are spot on: short-term wins are often better received than the promise of long-term success.
The irony: many of these issues can be alleviated with a one-page strategic plan. A one-page, one-year plan offers (1) clarity of vision, (2) clarity of priorities, and (3) clarity of strategies & goals or “what it will take to win.”
Clarity of vision — crystal clear, collective alignment towards the organizational North Star to ensure all stakeholders are oriented in the right direction.
Clarity of priorities — top 3-5 areas that will be activated in order to build momentum and progress towards the North Star.
Clarity of strategies and goals — strategic, goal-aligned efforts that required effective execution and delivery of results; along with priorities, this is what we refer to as “what it will take to win.”
“Strategy is about planning for the next bounce of the ball.”
The clarity and alignment of these three areas - vision, priorities, and strategies & goals - illuminate the path forward for a small or family business. The immediate results are increased efficiency and cohesive effort; the sustained impact is a more balanced, strategic organization that positions resources towards a common, transparent destination. The beginning of that journey is below in the form of a downloadable template and some immediate next steps.
(3)The plan, and a how to use it: template and some quick actions to build immediate momentum.
Here it is: one-page strategic plan template.
Like anything you can find on the Internet, the process only works if you complete, implement, and believe in the framework. Here are some quick, immediate actions you can take to increase the probability of planning and implementation success.
Time-box developing this plan to two hours to ensure it is a first-cut “working” draft that isn’t over-engineered.
Co-develop the plan with stakeholders so the very people you will rely upon for execution are involved in its creation.
Keep the document editable for as long as possible in order to welcome new ideas (tag “draft” or “for discussion purposes” on the early iterations to signal a “not fully baked” strategy) - no one likes receiving a vFINAL PDF with a hollow “do you have any feedback” question attached; keep it working, keep it open.
Revisit, revise, and re-orient over the first several weeks to ensure plan feels bespoke and responsive to current business needs.
Consider assigning priority or strategy owners who can take on leadership responsibilities of individual areas of success for the strategic plan either within, or adjacent to, the scope of their normal role.
The critical next step to this strategic planning methodology is “operationalizing” or getting tactical with each of the goal-aligned strategies to ensure a consistent, persistent cadence of efforts and inputs which will turn into outputs and delivery of results.
As business leaders, board members, and owners, we typically invest time and resources into the most pressing issues that are directly in front of us. Little time, if any, is spend on the strategic decisions that affect a business growth trajectory, and success over time.
Creating a one-page strategic plan will offer guideposts that will illuminate a short- and medium-term pathway forward for you and your business. Use the template, use the quick actions above, and please reach out with any questions or support needed for implementation - we are here to advise you in building a concise, nimble strategy that will lead to success now, and in the future.
Want support creating this plan? Or investing your employees, board, or stakeholders in the process? Set up a 20-minute situational review - we are eager to help.
