Planning Amidst Uncertainty
Strategic planning is a systematic process that allows the organization to align on direction and efforts as well as ensure it is moving towards a future desired state.
The misconception about strategic planning is once the plan is built it is a stagnate document. Most companies build a strategic plan and then never refer to it again. The truth is a strategic plan should be a living, breathing, and iterative document that evolves as the business evolves.
No one anticipated a pandemic. Businesses may have an emergency plan, but I have yet to connect with a company who had a plan in place to deal with something as unprecedented as this. But, it is here and impacting our businesses. That leaves us with two choices: flounder amidst the chaos or recognize we have an opportunity to intentionally move through the crisis.
My hope is people will begin to embrace the latter. I believe the desire to do that exists. The challenge is people are struggling to figure out the how. Below are 7 recommendations as you continue to think about the future and sustainability of your business.
UNDERSTAND YOUR CIRCLE OF CONCERN AND CIRCLE OF INFLUENCE
No business is going to “fix” the ongoing problem. If all the time is spent discussing and agonizing on the things you have zero control over, you minimize the effort put towards the things you can influence.
The Fix: when people start talking, panicking, or venting about the current pandemic and the things outside of their control, shift the conversation back to ownership.
“It is crazy we are facing this in our business and families right now. How can your team take advantage of some slower production time right now?”
BE TRANSPARENT ABOUT ANSWERS… AND LACK OF ANSWERS
Everyone prefers clarity. The biggest qualm I am hearing from people is, “I just want to know when we can go back to normal.” I have heard people frustrated that their leadership hasn’t provided them with an answer. Let’s be clear - we do not know. Just because you lead a company doesn’t make you an omnipresent being with the answers. The challenge? People assume leadership possess answers that they are not sharing.
The Fix: Be clear with your people about what you know, and what you don’t know.
“We don’t know when we will be able to get back into the office. We will share information as we have it.” And, if you haven’t already, institute a weekly communication from leadership to everyone. Some of our clients are doing this through a short video, others are actually hosting a weekly town hall zoom call, while others send out weekly emails. The point is associates are receiving information from leadership, even if that information is “nothing has changed.” Don’t over think it - the goal is to get them the information, not to have it perfectly produced.
MAKE A START, STOP, KEEP DOING LIST
There are things you have adjusted in the business that are working. Great. There are other things that have been instituted that are not working. That’s ok. What is not ok is to keep doing the things that are not working. Then, there is a whole other list of things you haven’t thought of trying because you are not an expert at navigating your business through a world pandemic. That is ok too - we are all in the same boat - trying to figure out how to survive before we can identify how to thrive.
The Fix: Ask the people what they want to start, what they want to stop, and what they want to keep! When asked, people are typically willing to share. Send an email:
“These past few months have been unprecedented for all of us. We have tried some things that have been a resounding success (give an example) and others that we quickly abandoned (give an example). We would love to hear from you - what should we start, what should we stop, and what should we keep as we all work together to navigate through these unique times.”
Then give a way for people to provide feedback: a survey, just respond via email, a virtual meeting leveraging a white board platform (mural or miro). Just make sure that if you receive feedback - you do something with it.
CREATE AN AGILE CULTURE
Darrell Rigby, author of Doing Agile Right: Transformation Without Chaos, talks about agile as being a mindset. He says, “[…] agile is a great way of adapting, of accelerating evolution.” Being agile means:
-being comfortable making fast decisions (which is why a set of values and a vision is so important, it allows everyone to know what decisions can be made),
-empowering your people to do their jobs (this means they have the resources, you are removing obstacles, and you support their decisions), and
-start evaluating success on outcomes (not time).
It takes trust, clarity, and practice to build an agile team. And this chaos seems like the perfect time to practice!
The Fix: when something isn't working, be bold enough to change course, when someone identifies something isn't working, give them permission to adapt, and when someone does evolve something (even the smallest thing), reinforce their decision.
SHORTEN THE PLANNING PROCESS
In the past, you may have hosted a two-day leadership team retreat to kick off the next strategic planning initiative. After the retreat you probably took the next few months to properly craft the plan and then slowly started to roll it out. Throw this all out the window. You don’t need the perfect plan for the next three years, you need a plan to get you through this month.
The Fix: If you had a plan that isn’t 100% relevant any more, do a start, pause, keep exercise with the plan (what needs to be added, what needs to be paused (maybe we go back to it when it makes sense), and what needs to stay in the plan). Build something short that allows people to successfully use it to navigate their decisions.
BUILD A TRANSITION PLAN
The way we re-open stores, offices, and our economy will not be a light switch on/off type of experience. As much as people are anxious to get things back to normal, normal will need to look different. You need to make sure you are creating a comfortable and safe environment for both associates and customers. There are questions and situations that will arise and if you and your leadership team can proactively determine your answers, your people will be able to focus on their role opposed to the unknown.
The Fix: Even if you don’t have dates connected to the phases, build a plan of what it looks like to navigate back to life on the other side of the pandemic. Build this plan in short bursts instead of locking in the multi-phase plan now. Questions to consider include:
-How will we clean our facility?
-What expectations will we have of internal associates?
-What expectations will we have of external customers?
-What material will we need to communicate change (email campaigns, signs, stickers, etc.)?
-How will we support associates who are home with children? What if we need them and their role physically present once we open?
-Are we comfortable with people continuing to work remotely?
-What will our sick-day/sick leave policy be during this transition? What about moving forward?
-How will we support regulations or policy changes in the states we operate?
-Are we comfortable with people traveling for work? To attend conferences? To other offices?
THINK POST PANDEMIC
Post-COVID-19 consumers are going to have a different perspective then we are used to. One big trend we have seen is people’s comfort with video. Another is completing daily errands online (banking/shopping). We have also seen an increase in virtual work in a way people didn't predict for years to come. All of these things can have positive and constructive impacts on business.
The Fix: Rethink your business model. Ask yourself:
-What does our supply chain look like? Will that be sustainable?
-Be curious about what can be completed virtually. Consider who actually needs to be in the office (do you need that much space?).
-How can you support your customers from the comfort of their own home?
-What are you doing for your employee’s wellbeing? What do they need to be successful?
-Our clients are starting to engage in conversations around the trust they have in their associates. Do you need people sitting at their desk 8+ hours a day? Can people be empowered to do their work, where and when they believe they will be most effective?
-How can you integrate technology to enhance the efficiencies of the workplace?
The truth is no one has the perfect answer for how to navigate this situation. It is unprecedented and people are operating out of fear which impacts business in ways we will have to continue to adjust to. Want to think through your strategic plan, develop a transition plan, or consider what your business in a post-COVID-19 world looks like? Shoot us an email - we would be happy to discuss!
