Aligning your
team/strategic plans with
institutional vision
Officer’s of Administration Strategic
Leadership Conference
April 18, 2016
Robin H. Holmes, Ph.D.
Vice President, Division of Student Life
Goals for the presentation
• Understand definitions of strategic planning, strategic
frameworks, operational plans, etc. and why you should
consider doing it
• Understand how strategic planning has evolved in
higher education—what works, what doesn’t, and why
• Understand how to avoid common mistakes when
strategic planning
• Be better able to assess your organizations current
readiness for strategic planning
• Understand basic strategic planning framework
components
• Re-familiarize yourself with the University of Oregon’s
strategic framework, vision, and presidential goals
What is it?
What is Strategic Planning?
• Used to set priorities
• Focus energy and resources
• Strengthen operations
• Facilitates employees and other stakeholders
working toward common goals
• Ensure organization's direction in response to a
changing environment.
Source: http://www.strategymanage.com/strategic-planning-basics/; Balanced
Scorecard, Robert Kaplan and David Norton
Why do this?
• Higher education as an entity needs to better justify it’s return
on investment
•
If you were charging customers $120,000+ shouldn’t you be able to
show you are using those resources efficiently?
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Other challenges:
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Fluctuating enrollments – how to manage that?
Inconsistent funding from the State – how to attract other
funding sources?
Scrutiny and challenge of the value of higher education
• A rise of technology-enabled data collection and analysis–
we are capable of doing it
So…are we doing it??
…..Not really
Universities tend to be very decentralized. As a
result, you see inconsistent application of planning
and strategy across the institution
• What has happened if you have not completed
strategic planning at our institution??
Many folks feel that strategic planning just doesn’t
work—why bother?
So why doesn’t it work?
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Done for the wrong reason
Done at the wrong time
Done by the wrong people
Not enough buy-in
Not enough resources
Resources don’t follow the strategic
goals/directions
• Not prioritized, not talked about
• Because we are higher ed!!
We are not corporations
“The difficulties with initial attempts to convert corporate
strategies to the culture of higher education were legion.
While corporations developed their planning processes
based on market data and customer-driven production,
academe was limited in the data it could bring to bear on
its issues and did not view itself as serving ‘customers’.”
Source: A Practical Guide to Strategic Planning in Higher Education, Karen E. Hinton,
2012. Society for College and University Planning
Strategy or Operational?
Before you hold even one meeting or make that first keystroke,
spend some time determining why you’re creating a plan and
how you will use it.
• High level guidance or down and dirty details?
• Is this for our internal use or for an external audience?
• What kind of leadership team do I have? Do we need lots of
specifics to be effective? Or, are we good at the details, but
need help imagining the future in broad strokes?
• We need to know if we are doing the right thing based on the
current environment? Or, do we want to know what we need
to be doing in the coming year to best accomplish our goals?
Source: http://www.quinnstrategygroup.com
Operational Plans vs Strategic Plans
Meaning
Strategic planning is for
achieving the vision of
the organization
Operational planning is
a process of deciding in
advance what to
achieve and the tactical
objectives to achieve it
Time Horizon
Long term planning
Short term planning
Approach
Outward facing
Inward facing
Modifications
Slight, but not often
The plan changes every
year
Performed by
Top level management
Middle level
management
Scope
Wide
Narrow
Emphasis on
Planning of vision,
mission and objectives
Planning the routine
activities and ensuring
they are accomplished
Source:
http://www.quinnstrategygroup.com
Top 7 mistakes when
strategic planning
1.
2.
You don’t asses if you should be strategic planning or operational
planning—so you mix in both
Your strategic plan is not really strategic
•
Strategic—Definitions
• A method or plan chosen to bring about a desired future, such
as achievement of a goal or solution to a problem.
• The art and science of planning and marshalling resources
for their most efficient and effective use.
Source: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/strategy
3.
You don’t have buy-in
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4.
5.
6.
7.
Part of the process of strategic planning is just the process itself
You don’t align resources
You don’t use it!
You use it, and then you don’t
You don’t assess the effectiveness
We know the vision but are
we ready to achieve it?
Know where you are and what you are ready to do
Where does your organization fall?
Source: Strategic Management Maturity Model (SMMM). The Strategy
Management Group. http://www.strategymanage.com/
strategic-management-maturity-model/
Level 1: Ad Hoc and Static
• Currently do not do any strategic planning or
management in a formal sense
• Tend to plan only on the tactical or operational
level
• “Planning” is on an ad hoc and uncontrolled
manner
• Plans are developed by senior management
behind closed doors
• Leaders spend a majority of their time addressing
operational issues and “putting out fires” and never
address long-term strategy.
Level 2: Reactive
• Some planning and strategic performance
management are being applied--but in an
inconsistent fashion
• Planning only happens in reaction to events or to
temporarily please an individual leader
• Some measurement of performance but not for the
right reasons so not taken seriously
Level 3: Structured &
Proactive
• Formal structures and processes in place to
comprehensively and proactively engage in
strategic planning and management
• Planning activities occur on a fairly regular basis
• Measurements are somewhat aligned with strategy
• Employee accountability is taken seriously
Level 4: Managed & Focused
• Strategy drives focus and decision making
• Organization-wide standards and methods are
broadly implemented
• Leaders formally engage staff/faculty in the
process
• Measurement & accountability help drive strategic
success for the organization.
Level 5: Continuous
Improvement
• Strategic planning and management excellence
are embedded within the culture of the
organization
• Continuous improvement is the norm
• Excellence in strategic management drives the
organization’s competitive edge or performance
success.
Where does your organization,
department or program fall?
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Ad Hoc and Static?
Reactive?
Structured and Proactive?
Managed and Focused?
Continuous Improvement?
Components of a strategic
plan
The basic:
• Vision
• Mission Statement
• Strategic Goals
• Objectives
• Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s)
Components of a strategic
plan
Here’s another one:
• First step: Someone takes leadership for the need for and
development of a plan
• Second step: Environmental Scan –-where are you now?
What are the driving forces? (SWOT analysis, focus groups,
etc.—great way to get buy-in, build excitement)
• Third step: Plot a direction—where do you want to go?
What is your vision? Where do you hope to be when done?
• Fourth step: Review your mission statement—what is your
purpose? Why does your organization, department, program,
exist? Another great place to have robust engagement—
calibration, getting everyone on the same page
Components of a strategic
plan (cont.)
• Fifth step: Decide who needs to be involved in order to
create the plan—sometimes bigger is not better. Also,
do you need outside help?
• Sixth step: Chose your specific goals/objectives—
these are the goals that will help you to achieve your
vision
• Seventh step: Create you action plan— these are the
strategies and activities that will help you achieve your
goals/objectives
• Eighth step:—Outline the financial implications of your
strategic and action plans--DON’T SKIP THIS STEP!!
• Ninth step: Develop your evaluation of the plan-DON’T SKIP THIS STEP!!
• Tenth step: Communicate it!
Example: Career Center—aligning with
Division of Student Life Strategic Plan
CAREER CENTER 2014-2019 STRATEGIC PLAN
Mission
The UO Career Center inspires futures. As educators we serve a diverse population of
students and alumni and support them in exploring meaningful careers. We build thoughtful
relationships and facilitate connections that lead to experiential learning and professional
development opportunities. Through our work we enhance student and alumni success and
the value of a University of Oregon education.
SL Goal I: Student Life will create an exceptional experience for every student
CC Objective #1: Support student and alumnus(a) career exploration and decision-making
Strategies:
a) Help students/alumni identify relevant next steps in their career development and
engagement with the Career Center through responsive Information and Referral (i.e., I&R)
services and high-quality customer service
b) Enhance students’/alumni’s awareness about their career development needs and
strategies through counseling, advising, online resources, social media, workshops, events,
and programs
c) Facilitate students’/alumni’s individualized career action planning through the instruction
of career decision- making and job-search strategies courses
d) Make hands-on career exploration opportunities available to students/alumni through
hosting professionals, employers, and alumni in multiple and diverse networking events, oncampus recruiting, and career fairs
e) Enhance students’/alumni’s career exploration and decision-making through diverse
employer outreach and facilitated internship experiences, including GoIntern! credit-bearing
internship opportunities and career instruction and coaching
Example: UCTC—aligning with Division of
Student Life Strategic Plan
Goal #1: Student Life will create an exceptional experience for every student.
A. Facilitate and promote experiences that develop students’ ability to think and
reason effectively, engage with others and the community, and thrive personally and
professionally.
1. Provide exceptional clinical intervention, educational/prevention programs, and testing
services to students that promote self-awareness, effective thinking and reasoning,
emotional intelligence, interpersonal effectiveness, multicultural competence, and
psychological well-being.
a. Implement outcome measures to ensure that clinical, testing, and referral/case
management programs and services are effective and of the highest quality.
b. Redesign the prevention and educational outreach program to align with the Division’s
co-curriculum and to focus on psychological issues that most closely relate to academic
persistence and success.
2. Provide innovative educational employment and involvement experiences for students
that promote self-awareness, effective thinking and reasoning, emotional intelligence,
interpersonal effectiveness, multicultural competence, and the ability to maintain a healthy
work/study/life balance.
a. Expand undergraduate internship and student employment positions.
b. Develop and enhance experiences for students to provide input into UCTC policy and
decision-making and to be involved in peer education.
3. Utilize technology and other media forms to increase students’ self-directed access to
psychological and other educational resources.
You know you want to and
you are ready to do it
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Be sure of what you are doing—Planning? Strategic? Strategic
planning? Strategic framework? Operational planning? All??
Make the case for why you are doing it
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Identify who will lead it
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It has to be from the top
Need to identify other champions, too
Get broad buy in
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What are some reasons
Why now?
Make the case
Environmental scans, SWOT, focus groups, etc.
Town Halls
Give ample opportunities for input
Assess your ghosts
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What has stopped you before?
You know you want to and
you are ready to do it—what’s
next?
• Make sure you have the resources or can get them
• Understand your institution's vision and strategic
framework—discuss, discuss, discuss
• Where do you fall in your institution's vision? Can you
envision yourself there?
• Why do you matter? What would be missing if your
division, department, program was no there?
DISCUSS
• Find effective ways to tell your story—the story the
institution wants to hear (not the one you decide upon!)
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Data, learning outcomes, KPI’s, etc.
University of Oregon’s vision:
Imagine...
• a comprehensive research university rooted in a liberal
arts education.
• an institution that teaches people to think deeply,
critically and creatively.
• an incubator where inquiry leads to real impact.
• a place where innovation occurs at the intersection of
disciplines.
• a setting where mountains, forests, rivers, and beaches
are part of the everyday learning environment.
• a home for students, researchers, teachers and
employees consistently focused on the greater good.
Welcome to the University of Oregon.
University of Oregon
Strategic Framework
UO’s four institutional priorities are:
• Enhance the impact of research, scholarship,
creative inquiry and graduate education.
• Promote and enhance student access, retention
and success.
• Attract and retain high quality, diverse students,
faculty and staff.
• Enhance physical, administrative and IT
infrastructure to ensure academic excellence.
President’s objectives based on
strategic framework:
• Building our tenure-related faculty and promoting
academic research.
• Ensuring affordability and access for our students.
• Delivering a rich, excellent educational experience
for our students.
How will you align?
Discussion
• What’s stopping you?
• What do you need to know?
• Who do you need to know it?
• When can you start?
• How will you know when you are done?
Questions?