Strategic Planning for Design Firms PDF

Professional Practice 3 Strategic Planning for Design Firm If firm leaders want to achieve something they’ve never had before, they must do something they’ve never done before. Through strategic planning, firm leaders can envision the future of their firm, and then implement strategies and action...

Professional Practice 3 Strategic Planning for Design Firm If firm leaders want to achieve something they’ve never had before, they must do something they’ve never done before. Through strategic planning, firm leaders can envision the future of their firm, and then implement strategies and action plans that will help the firm achieve positive results. *** "A good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be" ~Wayne gretzky, national hockey league record-holder for most career points scored 1. Why Design Firms Need to Use Strategic Planning? Strategic planning is/involves... Thinking about the future. To envision the companies objectives for the future and lay out the steps to achieve them. Begins with envisioning a desired future state of the firm. To plot a course for the firm to follow. If the vision of the firm is considered, the strategic plan will provide the road map to reach it. The purpose of strategic planning is to create positive changes and outcomes for a firm that aligns with its values and professional aspirations. A firm can articulate the fundamental mission, describe the long-term vision, and address the issues, initiatives, and goals in Prepared by Ar. Elsinore B. Elcano  Professional Practice 3 management, operations, and other crucial firm functions in its strategic plan. It is different from marketing plan and business plan. An organization’s process of defining its strategy, direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy. Architecture firms—from sole practitioners to large multinational firms—can prepare for, understand, and respond to the dynamics of the ever-changing economic, social, and political environment in which they practice: They can plan for change, which is inevitable, and design their own futures through strategic planning. Business studies confirm that companies and organizations in any industry that employ strategic planning tend to be more successful than firms that do not. Elements of the Strategic Plan Strategic plan is a management tool used/employed by many firms, making all their key decisions within the context of moving toward a carefully thought-through vision that they wish to reach. Below are the elements of strategic plan: 1. Mission 2. Vision 3. Issues and Initiatives 4. Goals 5. Strategies 6. Action Plans Detailed explanation of each elements are available here. Comparison of Designing a Project and Strategic Planning Process Designing a building Strategic Planning Issues and Initiatives Programming What works, what doesn’t work, Determining the client’s needs and what opportunities lie ahead? Mission Schematic Design Purpose of the firm Creative, big-picture concepts Vision (long-term) Prepared by Ar. Elsinore B. Elcano  Professional Practice 3 The firm’s aspirations for the future Goals (midterm) Quantifiable, measurable targets Design Development Strategies (midterm) More defined building systems Good ideas to push the firm in the right direction Action Plans (short-term) Construction Documents Who is going to do what, and by Detailed drawings and specifications when? Implementation and Construction Contract Administration Communication Assessing and maintaining progress Sharing the plan and keeping it on track 2. Preparing for Planning As discussed previously, it is necessary to develop a strategic plan within the context of the internal vision, issues, and initiatives of the firm as well as the larger world within which the firm does business, taking into account trends, drivers, and forces that comprise these external dynamics. In order to determine the basis on which to make the decisions that form a firm’s strategic plan, the planning team needs to understand what’s going on both within the firm and in the wider world. Therefore it is important to gather and analyze relevant information externally, as well as from within the firm. Conducting Research Some internal research tools that yield actionable information include the following: Employee survey Interviews with key managers Financial reports showing gross and net revenue patterns, profit margin trends firm-wide and by target market, and other financial metrics including utilization, multiplier, revenue factor, as well as non-financial metrics such as resumes received, employee turnover, proposal hit rates, etc. Some sources for external research include the following: Prepared by Ar. Elsinore B. Elcano  Professional Practice 3 Industry and general business reports regarding trends and drivers that would affect demand in the market sectors of interest, typically those publications that could be found on a client’s desk. Published data to provide peer and competitor benchmarking, widely available from the several private survey and publishing firms that serve the architecture and engineering industry. The firm’s own survey of marketplace perceptions, including past, current, and prospective clients of the firm, as well as partner firms (peers, strategic partners such as specialty consultants, prime firms, or sub-consultants). Analyzing the Findings After completing any internal and external research in preparation for strategic planning, objectively and dispassionately examine the information that has been collected. Identify the real issues that affect the firm (and its clients) today, as well as into the future. SWOT - A valuable tool that organizations in all industries employ in order to synthesize the findings from disparate sources into a systematic approach for strategic decision making is an analysis of the firm’s strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Top row contains internal factors, those are the items that occurs within the firm Prepared by Ar. Elsinore B. Elcano  Professional Practice 3 and are completely within its capability to influence. The bottom row occurs outside which can be searched, anticipated, and prepared for. Left column contains positive and negative in the right column. Preparing the Strategic Planning Team When the research and analysis are complete, provide the results of all of the preplanning materials—the previously mentioned report containing findings from the internal interviews with managers and key staff of the firm; results of an employee survey; results of a marketplace perception survey; and additional findings of internal and external market research—to the strategic planning team to provide ample opportunity to digest the findings, consider implications, and prepare for brainstorming and decision making. Give homework assignments to the planning team members so that they can develop their own individual visions and goals for the firm, which can be compared and reconciled during the planning workshop. To help achieve greater success in strategic planning, the firm leaders can access additional background reading materials on the subject. 3. Developing The Plan In addition to the research and preparation that will inform a firm’s strategic plan, it is also important to involve the right participants—in the right place—to develop the plan. Strategic Planning Team In forming the planning team, consider the following: Size of the team – For a firm with sufficient staff size, the ideal size for the team is 6 to 12 people. This will provide enough minds for brainstorming, yet preserve a comfort zone and a sense of intimacy in the planning workshop to facilitate discussing anything and everything. Responsibilities of the team – Participating on a strategic planning team is a major commitment, so in choosing the team members, firm leaders should include only those who will contribute actively to the process. The highest and best use of some of firm’s key personnel—even principals—may be to stay with their clients and projects while the planning workshop is underway, participating in implementation of the plan after it is developed. Prepared by Ar. Elsinore B. Elcano  Professional Practice 3 Planning Workshop The planning workshop is an opportunity for open and straightforward discussion of the most important matters affecting a firm: its future vision and what it will take to reach it. The concept of a “workshop” in which to develop a strategic plan applies to any size firm. Implementing Strategic Plan Plans are only good intentions, unless they immediately degenerate into hard work. —Peter Drucker, noted management consultant It is imperative that plans are put into motion and are carried through to the next planning cycle, managing and delivering the elements of the plan with the same priority as the firm’s most important projects. The firm should employ a system for implementing the strategic plan so that it can harness the momentum gained during the preparation and workshop. Implementing the Plan Strategic implementation is critical to a company's success, addressing the who, where, when, and how of reaching the desired goals and objectives. It focuses on the entire organization. Implementation occurs after environmental scans, SWOT analyses, and identifying strategic issues and goals. Communicating the Plan A communications strategy, also referred to as a communications plan, is a document that expresses the goals and methods of an organization's outreach activities, including what an organization wishes to share with the public and whom the organization is trying to reach. The strategic plan greatly affects the firm’s future and requires the support of every Prepared by Ar. Elsinore B. Elcano  Professional Practice 3 member of the firm. The firm leader should share the plan with all employees and refer to it often to keep it top-of-mind and inspire confidence in the firm’s leadership and direction. Maintaining the Strategic Planning Culture If the decision diverges from the vision or intent of the plan, then a good business reason for the deviation should be documented—which may in itself signal the need to update the plan with a course correction. Below are some methods on how to keep the strategic planning culture. Talk About It Firm leaders can foster a strategic planning culture within their firm by keeping the plan an important topic in conversations among firm stakeholders. A discussion of the firm’s progress toward achieving the action plans, as well as any questions or further input from managers and employees, should be a standing agenda item at staff meetings, management meetings, and board of directors meetings. In addition, progress can be reported periodically in a firm’s internal newsletter, in a featured blog on the Intranet, at all-hands meetings, and through ongoing e-mails to all staff members. Firm Leader's Role Just as each action item in the strategic plans should be led by an enthusiastic and empowered champion, the entire strategic plan is the responsibility of the president, CEO, or managing partner of the firm. It is the leader’s charge to rally others in the firm to share a vision for the future and determine how to get there. In addition, it is generally the firm leader’s responsibility to allocate investments and other resources that are necessary to pursuing the strategies and carrying out the action items laid out in the strategic plan, supporting the individual champions in their missions. Updating the Plan If a firm is to rely on the strategic plan as a management tool, then it will be important to keep it fresh, up-to-date, and relevant. Far too many changes occur—both outside and within most firms—for a strategic plan to remain a static document. For most firms, this means updating the plan annually or biannually, with fully rendered renewals every three to five years. Prepared by Ar. Elsinore B. Elcano