objectives for strategic planning in education

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Strategic planning

The need for an iiep remains higher than ever.                                    (unesco internal oversight services, 2013).

 An effective ministry is guided by a plan which brings together all stakeholders and is regularly monitored and updated. IIEP strongly believes that planning is not a one-off activity. Rather it is a continuous practice that should engage all ministry departments and partners at national and subnational levels in a consultative and participatory process. Institutionalizing planning necessitates that ministries establish a strategic vision and priorities, coordinate their programmes and budgets annually and within a medium-term expenditure framework, negotiate with national and international financing agencies, and periodically monitor that it is on track to achieve policy objectives through implementation reviews.

Strategic planning guides educational development by giving a common vision and shared priorities. Educational planning is both visionary and pragmatic, engaging a wide range of actors in defining education’s future and mobilizing resources to reach its goals. For policy-makers, planning offers the path to:

• implement education reform and system transformation;
• realize equal opportunities for children and youth;
• provide quality education for all.

IIEP has strong experience and expertise in strategic planning and has developed in collaboration with the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) two newly published documents to help ministries in charge of education transform their processes and operations to meet the challenges of a changing world:

• Guidelines for Education Sector Plan Appraisal
• Guidelines for Education Sector Plan Preparation
• Guidelines for transitional education plan preparation

• train and coach on concepts, processes and tools to improve the practice of educational planning and management;
• analyse and reflect on education trends and issues from a policy and planning perspective;
• provide technical assistance and policy advice on critical issues for educational development.
• IIEP in Action 2018-2019
• Capacity development in educational planning and management: Learning from successes and failures

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Ensure your strategic plan succeeds with your educational partners’ input

September 29, 2023

Sarah Mathias

Strategic planning in education – 3 keys to success.

Effective strategic planning is critical for creating positive change in your district. Among the many benefits, strategic plans align educational partners with a shared vision, mission, and values; promote productive decision-making; and help students reach their full potential.

While having a plan in place will usually improve results, strategic planning can present challenges—resulting in endless meetings, countless goal and tactic revisions, and plans that are never fully realized.

In this post, we explore strategic planning in education, touch on some K-12 planning tips, and share three best practices for making strategic planning successful in your school district. With your community’s insights and the right tools, you can win at strategic planning. Here’s how.

In this Article

• What is Strategic Planning in Education?

Strategic planning tips for K12

See thoughtexchange in action — watch the product tour, what is strategic planning in education.

Strategic planning is the process of setting goals, deciding on actions to achieve those goals, and mobilizing the resources needed to take those actions. A strategic plan describes how goals will be achieved using available resources.

While the concept initially stemmed from business practices due to people moving from the private sector into educational leadership positions, many strategic planning tools and paradigms have been adapted to focus on engagement and consensus.

This is because effective strategic planning requires community support at the school district level, both functionally and legislatively. School districts of all sizes use strategic planning to improve student outcomes and respond to changing demographics while staying within the given funding box.

In top-performing schools, leaders have proactively shifted their strategic planning process to include their educational partners. They know that their strategic plans are more likely to succeed with community support and the insights that come with community engagement.

Strategic planning is key to setting students up for success in K-12 and beyond. A solid strategic plan articulates a shared vision, mission, and values, increasing engagement while providing a framework to ensure students’ needs are met so they can reach their full potential.

Your strategic plan will benefit from your district’s input. Here are a few effective ways to engage your district in K-12 strategic planning.

Tap into your educational partners’ wisdom

Your educational partners have valuable insights. Consult teachers, staff, students , parents, and community members throughout the planning process, so your strategy aligns with their perspectives.

Whether you’re setting strategy at the district, school, or department level, consulting diverse participants will uncover unbiased insights, enhance trust and buy-in, and ensure greater success with new strategic directions.

Using ThoughtExchange , leaders can scale their engagement to efficiently and effectively include their community in their district strategic plans.

Use climate surveys

Completed by all students, parents/guardians, and staff, school climate surveys allow leaders to collect participants’ perceptions about issues like school safety, bullying, and mental health and well-being, as well as the general school environment.

ThoughtExchange Surveys get you both nuanced qualitative and robust quantitative data with instant in-depth analysis, ensuring your district understands all angles of school climate. Run surveys independently or combine them with Exchanges for faster, more accurate results.

• Collect benchmark comparisons while tracking and measuring improvements over time
• Gather quality quantitative data for reporting to state agencies or funders
• Identify outliers and trends across demographic groups

Put in some face time with town halls, meetings, or listening tours

In-person gatherings like town halls, meetings, and listening tours are effective ways to understand your educational partners’ wants and needs to ensure they line up with your strategic priorities.

When managed effectively, they give staff and other educational partners the chance to closely interact. In-person gatherings can build trust and morale, promote transparency, and help create a sense of purpose.

Leverage community engagement platforms

Community engagement software lets you streamline your community engagement initiatives. It allows education leaders to gather feedback and get tens, hundreds, or even thousands of people on the same page in just days. It also facilitates candid, collaborative community conversations that help districts realize their goals.

A comprehensive community engagement platform like ThoughtExchange allows you to integrate your strategy with your community and take decisive, supported action in less time. It provides planning, scheduling, and analysis tools to help you quickly set strategy and monitor execution.

3 keys to strategic planning success

1. get everyone on the same page.

Make sure your educational partners are on the same page by allowing them to contribute to and shape your strategy from the start. Lack of alignment about what strategy involves can hinder even the best plans. So the first step in creating a successful strategic plan is getting everyone involved to provide their insights and opinions.

Letting your people know you’re listening and that their insights affect decisions, builds trust and buy-in. Your community will be much more likely to support—not sabotage—a strategy or decision.

2. Be a collaborative leader

According to ThinkStrategic , creating a school strategic plan should always be a collaborative process. Avoiding a top-down approach and getting input from educational partners will help minimize blind spots and unlock collective intelligence. It will also ensure everyone is committed to the plan. Get all community members involved in how to make the most of the school’s possibilities.

Commit to becoming a collaborative leader and put a plan in place to ensure you can achieve that goal. That may include implementing technology that can support scaled, real-time discussion safely and inclusively for students, teachers, and other educational partners.

3. Get a holistic view of your district

Getting a holistic view of your educational partners’ wants and needs helps you build more inclusive, supported strategic plans.

Depend on a platform that meets all your engagement needs in one place—from surveys to Exchanges—and allows you to consult more people in an inclusive, anti-biased environment. You’ll reduce the time and resources spent on town halls and meetings, and reach your district’s goals more efficiently and effectively.

Engagement and survey software has been proven to contribute to more effective strategic planning in education. It empowers leaders to run and scale unbiased engagement initiatives where they can learn what the people who matter really think— explore ThoughtExchange success stories to learn more .

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Five steps to planning for improved learning.

Improving educational quality through education sector plans

The techniques of strategic planning in education are well-developed, but students’ actual learning experiences have not always been the central concern. In the context of the new Education 2030 focus on education quality, what steps can planners go through to ensure that their education sector plans give priority to improving students’ learning outcomes?

Developing an education sector strategic plan can be a complex and iterative process. But in its simplest form,  Planning for Learning   involves five basic steps, from analysis of the current situation through to the detailed planning needed to accomplish change. Below, we suggest some of the key questions education planners need to ask in order to focus each step of this process on improving learning outcomes.

1. Education sector analysis: Where are we now?  

The process of planning for improved learning outcomes starts with a diagnosis of the current situation in the education sector, with a specific focus on learning.

Questions to ask : What information about students’ learning do we have, and what are we missing? What are students learning and how well are they learning it? Does their learning match the needs, aspirations, and plans of their parents, communities, and the nation? What are the major learning successes and weaknesses, and what are the causes behind them?

Tools planners can use:   Assessment data ,  Other monitoring data ,  SWOT analysis ,  Problem tree analysis . 

2. Policy and strategies: Where do we want to go?  

A plan for improving learning outcomes should offer a vision of a desirable situation for the education system in the future, and identify the ways to reach this situation.

Questions to ask : What are our end goals for improving learning? What are our medium-term objectives? Which strategies will be effective in achieving these learning goals and objectives?

Tools planners can use : Explore  strategies for improving learning , Convert your  problem tree into a solution tree ,   Complete a  strategic planning grid .

3.  Programmes: How do we get there?  

Once policy priorities and key strategies have been defined, they must be translated into specific actionable programmes.

Questions to ask:  What are the immediate results or outputs that must be achieved in order to meet our learning objectives and end goals? Which programmes and activities must be carried out in order to produce those outputs? How will objectives and outputs be measured?

Tools planners can use : Complete a  Logical Framework Matrix , Develop  indicators and targets .

4.  Costing and financing: How much will it cost and who will pay?  

To be achievable, policy priorities and strategies have to be consistent with the demographic and economic realities.

Questions to ask : What are the categories of costs involved in each of our activities to improve learning? What are the other recurring costs in the education sector? Do we need to account for growth (population growth, increased attendance, etc.) when calculating our recurring and new programme costs? What are our projected sources of funding and does the total match our projected costs?

Tools planners can use:   Simulation models ,  Budget template for GPE grants .  

Once projected costs have been established, policies, strategies, activities and/or targets may have to be revised in an iterative process until the plan is feasible in all respects.

5. Action plan: Who will do what and when?  

The action plan is sometimes referred to as an implementation plan or operational plan. It outlines the detailed activities for a specific period of the plan, with information on timing, roles, responsibilities, and costs.

Questions to ask : Which institutions and departments are responsible for each activity to improve learning outcomes? When should each activity be accomplished? Will the financial resources be ready on time?

Tools planners can use :  Action plan template ,   Gantt chart .  

The Next Step: Monitoring your plan

Once an action plan has been determined, planners need to ask themselves: How will we monitor whether these activities, outputs, and objectives are accomplished? What kind of data will we collect in order to see whether we are improving our education quality and students’ learning outcomes? and, How and when will this information be collected and analysed? For a more in-depth look at the education sector planning process, two helpful resources are the GPE/IIEP   Guidelines for Education Sector Plan Preparation  and IIEP’s  Strategic Planning: Techniques and Methods .

You can also learn more by reading our  Plan for Learning articles  and searching for resources in the  IIEP Learning Portal Library.

Adopting Strategic Planning for School Improvement

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(2006). Adopting Strategic Planning for School Improvement. In: Gamage, D.T. (eds) Professional Development for Leaders and Managers of Self-Governing Schools. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-4929-3_8

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5 Steps To Highly Effective Strategic Planning In Higher Education (FREE template)

A crystal clear strategic plan can be the big difference between becoming the leading university… VERSUS ending up at the bottom. You know - where you struggle to attract students, the right staff members or even funds to support your institution.

So, in order to achieve your university’s goals, you need to learn how to build an effective strategic plan. 

In this blog post, we will reveal:

• The #1 reason university strategies fail
• The overlooked role of a strategic plan for higher ed
• The 5-step process you can follow to build a plan with your team

What is strategic planning in higher education? 

Strategic planning is the process an institution follows to realize its vision of its ideal future state. It’s a roadmap for getting there. Your vision becomes a reality through the process that defines specific goals, needs, and actions. It helps you to structure and contextualize information leading to important decisions. 

Sounds obvious, right? 

So, the question is:

Why do so many universities fail at strategic planning?

Because they forgot what the main role of a strategic plan is.

Most universities and colleges work on some form of strategic planning, but they usually come out as a 28-page PDF. They create an impressive presentation with shiny headings, upload it to their website and consider themselves successful. 

The end result is a ‘strategic plan’ that serves more as a marketing brochure and less like a roadmap to success.

What’s wrong with this usual approach?

Most vice-chancellors and vice presidents are not even aware of what they are losing. Staff members and faculty members work in silos with no focus on the big picture. Departmental plans are unaligned with the overall strategic plan. This leads to inefficiency, wasted resources, and things getting missed.

Clearly, this approach lacks the organization and accountability necessary for success. As a result, some institutions are losing their reputation, while others are losing program accreditation, experiencing declining student success, or having fewer funds available.

Sometimes all of the above. 

Strategic planning goes beyond ambitious and attractive presentations that describe the organization’s state in the next 5, 10 or more years.

Now let's take a closer look...

What is the real purpose of the strategic plan in higher education?

Your first and foremost goal should be to stay true to the promises you made to your stakeholders.

Think of your strategic plan as the foundation to achieve your long-term goals.

It’s supposed to help you translate high-level ambitions into tangible actions at a departmental level. Furthermore, it organizes everyone so that they can do those actions and report on them in a systematic and transparent manner. 

It serves as a guiding light for your staff, allowing them to focus on the things that drive real progress towards the university's strategic goals. 

On top of that, it’s an important resource for planning your yearly budget allocation. Even in the most difficult financial times, integrating strategic planning and budgeting throughout the organization creates opportunities for success.

It's obvious, isn't it? You need to stop treating your strategic plan as merely a glorified marketing document.

What are the 5 steps in the strategic planning process?

This five-step process will help you to craft a strategic plan that goes beyond marketing and delivers on promised results.

1. Understand your current situation

An effective planning process starts with a thorough understanding of your current situation. 

You can start by asking these questions: 

• What are our core competencies?
• Which important KPIs are trending over the last few years upwards? 
• Where do we notice a drop in performance? What led to this drop?
• Where do we want to be in 5 or 10 years?
• Do we need to develop new programs?
• How do we get there? 
• What external factors can impact us in the future?

Search for answers and go deep into every department and aspect of your institution. From financial health and university rankings to student enrollment, retention rates, and placement rates.

Next, understand the expectations and needs of your internal and external stakeholders.

Remember, top-down approach doesn’t work for universities. Higher education institutions are highly interconnected with their community and shouldn’t neglect its interest when making strategic decisions.

Collect feedback from every stakeholder group whose expectations affect your performance:

• Alumni members
• Faculty members & campus community
• Community groups
• Senior administrators
• External partnerships

Include their input into planning and translate it into the institution’s major goals. Embrace this collaborative approach and prevent too many unexpected "buts" in the future.

Don’t forget that you’re only collecting information at this stage, not brainstorming solutions or action plans. 

‍ Cascade tip:

The SWOT analysis framework  is still one of the most effective methods for evaluating internal operations and the external environment. Be honest and thorough in your evaluation. You can use it numerous times through strategic planning but you should start early in the planning process.

2. Lead with vision and values

Your university's vision is a part of its identity and a powerful latent tool.

Higher ed institutions of any size can utilize it, but they usually don’t. They don’t believe that people care about the big picture or that it affects the university's daily operations.

However, a clear and unique vision statement will set you apart from the competition and make you more memorable to potential students. They will know exactly what to expect from studying at your university and why they should come. 

At the same time, it gives a strong sense of pride and belonging to current students, faculty, and alumni. It becomes an emblem that attracts the right students, staff members, and funding opportunities. 

Here’s  an example  of a vision statement for the university: 

We will work as one Oxford bringing together our staff, students and alumni, our colleges, faculties, departments and divisions to provide world-class research and education.

- University of Oxford

You can take it one step further and include your institutional mission statement. 

And don’t forget about the values. They define your university’s culture. They determine how people act, which behaviors are praised and which are condemned. 

When you build a culture intentionally, then everyone inside and outside your school knows what you stand for, reinforcing all the benefits of a harnessed vision.

Cascade tip:

One of the biggest blockers to the successful execution of a strategic plan is the attempt to accomplish too much at once.  Creating a Vision Statement  will help you to avoid that trap right from the start. It becomes your north star guiding your strategy. It will be easier for you to identify what is relevant and worthy of your attention versus what isn't.

3. Concentrate your strategic planning efforts on key areas

There's a problem most presidents and strategic planning committees face: they don't define the real focus of their plans. 

You see, you can’t achieve everything, everywhere, all at once.

Your resources are limited, and you should prioritize accordingly. 

I’m glad you followed the first two steps. Now you have all the information you need to identify the biggest and most urgent challenges your university faces.

Clarifying the obstacles ahead of time helps you prioritize your strategic goals and develop focused efforts to achieve them.

For example, let’s say you’re creating a 5-year strategic plan. Here are some key focus groups you might want to focus on: 

• Provide superb undergraduate experience 
• Ensure graduate education and lifetime learning 
• Increase community engagement 
• Increase research excellence 
• Optimize financial resources

Focus areas help you decide what falls outside the university's priorities and prioritize your strategic planning efforts. 

We usually suggest creating between 3 to 5 Focus Areas. Any fewer and they will probably be too vague. Any more, and well..... you lose your focus. Dive deeper into focus areas with this  guide . 

4. Translate plan into tangible actions

This is the part that turns your strategic plan into reality. 

If you ever want to achieve your goals, you need to break down the plan into smaller, granular pieces specific to each department. Start by adding strategic objectives to your focus areas. 

The secret to  writing great strategic objectives  is simplicity and specificity. Avoid jargon and use a verb to indicate action. Accompany it with a deadline and preferably an owner (or two).

Here is an example:

Increase citations per faculty by 5% by May 2024, owned by Jane Doe.

The next step is to migrate from goal-setting to action-planning with projects. Projects describe what you’ll do to accomplish your objectives.

Projects  articulate a set of actions within a certain timeline. They include specific tasks, milestones, dependencies and dates (deadlines). Every objective should include at least one project or action-like event. Otherwise, you’ll never achieve any progress towards it.

Of course, nothing is so linear, but this process forces you to come up with action plans to support every strategic initiative and allocate funds and your staff’s time appropriately.

One of the most important steps in the planning process is to take the high-level plan and break it down into tangible actions at the departmental level. 

Cascade  helps you to achieve that with  planning models completely customizable  to your strategic planning approach. 

You can create a university-wide strategic plan and then break it down into  portfolio or departmental plans.  Clarify their goals, projects and key metrics. Collaborate with your teams to build multiple inter-connected plans and tie them back to the overall plan.

You get complete  visibility into how different plans or projects are connected  and contribute to the overall strategic plan. 

5. Don’t forget to measure progress

There is no perfect strategic planning for higher education (or anywhere for that matter). 

Every plan can be derailed by events beyond our control (such as a pandemic, change in public policy, or an unstable economic environment on a global scale). There is, however, disciplined execution through regular reviewing habits. The secret lies in the way you measure your progress and the frequency of reviewing it.

Determine the indexes that you want to improve and then  set key performance indicators (KPIs)  to drive and measure your performance against set targets. 

Here are some examples of KPIs you might want to keep track of:

• University ranking
• Post-graduation placement rate
• Number of students involved in undergraduate research
• Fundraising ROI

Establish the KPIs you will be reporting on in advance, and always end your reviews with a "next steps" discussion.

Create dashboards to measure progress in real-time.  Cascade’s customizable dashboards  help you to quickly identify areas that are underperforming and act before it’s too late.

Zoom your screen in on the screenshot below to check out Cascade's beautiful dashboards!

Extra tip:  Use Cascade reports to help you demonstrate your success in a transparent way and attract more investments in the key areas of your university. 

What’s next for your university?

Most university’s failure to reach their strategic goals isn’t because of bad strategy, but because strategy is constrained by PowerPoint. Kept miles from those who can make it happen. The best in Advancement, the finest HR, the most profound ideas - they’re all framed in slides rather than shaping every day’s activities for everyone across the university.

Remember, a strategic plan isn’t just a glossy presentation to attract new students or to get that accreditation approval for your academic program. It’s a manifesto for every employee to embrace and enact in whatever they do at your university. 

So, the next step is to transform your strategy from an intellectual exercise to an executable plan. It’s just a matter of shifting your approach and using the right tools. 

And once you make that shift, you’ll be able to create  an organized and aligned approach  to make your strategic goals happen.

Do that and get your plan to everyone, and your competition will be choking in your dust.

Are you ready to create your plan and start executing it? Turn your strategic plan into a competitive advantage with our 100% free, battle-tested strategic plan template , built for teams in higher education. 

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In education, evolution and adaptation are constants. Academic institutions must stay up to date with technology and teaching methods to succeed, while also managing students' social, emotional, and academic needs. With all of these considerations in addition to budgetary constraints, It's easy to see why ensuring student and institutional success requires a dynamic strategic plan.

This blog post will outline the best practices academic institutions should consider when developing an effective strategic plan to address these challenges. To create an effective strategic plan, we need to eliminate the disconnect between leadership's high-level vision and employees' tactical work. Leading academic institutions, growing companies, and organizations adapt to change through dynamic strategic planning. 

A dynamic strategic plan breaks down an organization's long-term vision into short-term goals and then builds a roadmap to achieve those goals. As part of this process, the organization's plan should be reviewed and revised regularly to ensure relevance and alignment with its mission. Academic plans are typically written as multi-year plans and organizations often face challenges in developing effective strategic plans that are easy to understand and execute. Here are a few suggestions to help address these challenges:

• Clearly define your vision: The first step in developing an effective strategic plan is to define the vision for the school. This should be a clear, concise statement that articulates what the school hopes to achieve. 
• Identify key objectives: Once you have a clear vision, identify the key objectives that will help you achieve them. These should be specific and measurable goals that align with your vision.
• Create measurable, outcome-focused key results: With your objectives in mind, it is important to focus on creating key results that drive outcomes, not outputs to help you reach your targets. Schools that focus on driving actionable objectives with outcome-based key results will ensure they stay aligned on what truly matters.
• Prioritize and allocate resources: It's essential to prioritize your strategies and allocate resources accordingly. Determine which strategies are most critical to achieving your objectives and ensure that you have the resources (e.g., time, budget, personnel) to implement them effectively.
• Monitor and evaluate progress: Finally, monitor and evaluate progress regularly to ensure that you are on track to achieving your objectives. This will help you identify areas where you may need to adjust your strategies or allocate additional resources.

By following these steps, academic institutions can develop a strategic planning framework and process that is effective, simple, and links vision to tactical execution. So now that we have the steps needed to build our strategy, let's start to bring it to life.

Take a field trip: host an annual Strategic Planning Offsite 

Before each academic year, we recommend holding a strategic planning meeting offsite with your leadership team. This is dedicated time to focus on the priorities for the upcoming year. Before diving into where you're headed, set aside time for a retrospective to discuss the previous year. In addition, discuss the current education landscape.

To build a future-focused and tailored plan for your academic institution, the team should reconfirm your mission and values, set your vision, and define your top strategic priorities. 

As you head into your offsite, we recommend the following best practices that lead to success:

• Get Outside of the Office : Find space outside of the work environment to reduce distractions and encourage collaboration.
• Set a Clear Agenda : Agree ahead of time on the purpose of each day, the deliverables, and actionable next steps. 
• Make Space to Think: Carve out time for free thinking vs. relying on group thinking to encourage new ideas. If you need a template, we recommend using this worksheet to guide the conversation .

Simplify the strategic plan: align your high-level strategy with tactical execution

Academic plans are typically written as multi-year plans (5-year plans are most common) which can lead to a very detailed and dense plan. Given the complexity and length of the strategic plan, it can feel overwhelming and difficult to break the plan down and prioritize what’s most imperative to execute and focus on. We recommend breaking the larger multi-year plan into digestible annual plans that are more manageable. 

We recommend identifying 3-5 main themes in your strategic plan, often referred to as pillars or rallying cries. Once you have core themes, you can prioritize and bucket the most critical initiatives and objectives. Every theme will have specific supporting objectives and key results. We recommend using consistent nomenclature when creating themes, objectives, and key results so any team member can easily understand why the work is significant. 

Once we have the multi-year plan broken into annual plans and themes identified, we recommend defining short-term objectives (quarterly or semi-annually) and measurable metrics to drive key results. Breaking down the plan into quarters will feel more approachable and attainable. In addition, it will provide clarity and transparency for the executing team. When the strategic plan is broken down into actionable items, small wins can be celebrated along the way. This boosts motivation, engagement, and morale.  

Consistency is key to a successful strategic plan

When individuals understand how their work aligns with the high-level strategy and vision, they can prioritize their initiatives. Establish clear, measurable objectives and key results that are easy to track and provide consistent nomenclature. Keep these three tips in mind when writing your strategic plan objectives:

• Objectives should be aspirational and push people outside their comfort zone.
• Each objective should have 2-3 measurable and quantifiable results.
• Have a clear, defined owner responsible for recurring status updates. 

The best way to write objectives is to start by asking, “Why is this initiative important?” When you understand the why, you can create measurable outcome-driven results. Let’s walk through an example objective with key results laid out in Elate.

Theme: Develop and retain a diverse educator workforce.

Objective: Strengthen and diversify the educator pipeline and workforce.

Objective Purpose Statement: Increase mentoring and leadership development programs to retain educators, particularly educators from under-represented backgrounds. 

Key metrics: 

• Increase mentoring program engagement by 50% 
• 96% educator retention rate 

Implement rituals and track success with dynamic strategic planning

After your plan is built, it is imperative to establish rituals to stay on track and measure progress against the strategic plan. Rituals are defined as a rhythm, cadence, and process for reviewing objectives and strategic plans. Establishing strong rituals allows critical conversations to happen proactively. When objectives are stuck in limbo or fall off track, proactive discussions can happen. However, many academic institutions have different rituals for different teams. Implementing consistent rituals regularly will help you stay aligned, measure progress, and ensure you’re having the right conversations at the right time.

To keep everyone on the same page and connect tactical execution to strategic vision, we recommend objective owners provide bi-weekly updates. Across many academic institutions, strategy, and operations leaders spend countless hours tracking down updates that become outdated quickly. With Elate, reminder notifications are automatically sent to team members so they can focus more on execution and less on chasing down updates. 

We recommend spending a few minutes in executive team meetings reviewing objectives that are off-track or not making progress to create an action plan moving forward. This ritual of reviewing the plan early often brings awareness to the leadership team about objectives that need attention or are falling behind. It also allows space to celebrate accomplishments and wins. 

This makes it easy to ensure the strategic plan lives and breathes. Setting and clearly defining rituals for how the plan progresses, updates are made and reviewed, and addressing red flags is key to success. 

Focus on the right metrics to measure your strategic plan's success

With key results, objectives, and business-as-usual metrics all in one place, Elate keeps the strategic plan organized with a consolidated view. In Elate, scorecards provide an essential view of business-as-usual metrics and progress. Create specific scorecards for the board, enrollment, grant, and donor activity. 

Elevate your strategic plan with Elate

Strategic planning is critical for academic institutions that want to stay competitive, adapt to change, and achieve their goals. By following these best practices, higher education and academic institutions can achieve their goals and stay competitive in an ever-changing environment. 

Strategic planning has never been easier with Elate. Our platform simplifies and streamlines the strategic planning process, taking the stress out of it. We make it easy to stay on track with transparent reporting, simple collaboration, and one-click integrations with Salesforce, Google Sheets, Microsoft Teams, and Slack. Your vision can finally meet your strategy.

Learn more about our strategic planning tools and services, or contact us today to learn more about how we specifically work with other Academic Institutions!

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Other Resources

Strategic Planning in Education: The Teacher’s Role

Table of Contents

Have you ever considered the meticulous planning that goes into crafting the educational experiences we sometimes take for granted? Behind every effective lesson is a teacher who has played the critical role of a strategic planner , orchestrating the learning environment with the precision of a conductor leading an orchestra. Let’s delve into the multifaceted role of a teacher as a planner and uncover how this impacts every aspect of the learning journey.

The cornerstone of teaching: Setting clear objectives

Imagine setting out on a journey without a destination. That’s what teaching would be without clear objectives. Teachers begin their planning with the end in mind, formulating what students are expected to learn and be able to do after a lesson or series of lessons. This isn’t just about academic content; it includes skills, attitudes, and values. Objectives serve as the guiding stars, providing direction and purpose to the educational process.

Aligning objectives with curricular goals

Objectives aren’t plucked from thin air; they are carefully aligned with broader curricular goals. Teachers ensure that each lesson contributes to the overarching framework of the curriculum, building upon previous knowledge and preparing the ground for future learning.

Measuring student success

Effective objectives are measurable . This means that a teacher must be able to assess whether students have achieved the learning goals. Planning for this assessment is an integral part of the teacher’s role, involving the creation of tests, projects, and other evaluation tools that accurately measure learning outcomes.

Understanding learner needs: The backbone of tailored education

Every student is unique, bringing different backgrounds, abilities, and learning styles to the classroom. A teacher must recognize and understand these diverse needs to ensure that each student can access and engage with the content. This understanding informs every aspect of planning, from selecting appropriate teaching strategies to designing inclusive materials .

Adapting to diverse learning styles

Some students learn best through visual aids, others through hands-on activities, while others prefer listening to explanations. Teachers plan their lessons to incorporate a variety of teaching methods that cater to these different learning styles, increasing the chances of each student grasping and retaining the material.

Creating an inclusive environment

Planning for inclusivity means considering the physical, cultural, and emotional barriers that might hinder learning. Teachers strive to create a safe and welcoming atmosphere where every student feels valued and supported, which is essential for effective learning.

Timing and location: Synchronizing educational elements

Learning isn’t just about what is taught, but also when and where it takes place. The timing of a lesson can greatly affect student engagement and comprehension. Similarly, the location — whether it’s a traditional classroom, a science lab, or an outdoor field — can provide context and relevance to the learning experience.

Optimizing the schedule for peak learning

Teachers must be strategic in scheduling lessons , taking into account the natural ebbs and flows of student attention throughout the day. They consider the best times for high-energy activities or complex problem-solving tasks, as well as quieter periods for reflection or reading.

Utilizing space to enhance learning

The learning environment is an extension of the teaching process. Teachers plan how to use space effectively, whether it’s arranging desks for collaborative work, setting up stations for exploration, or utilizing technology in a computer lab. The physical space is configured to support the learning objectives and activities planned for the lesson.

Execution: The art of bringing plans to life

Planning is only the beginning. The true test of a teacher’s planning prowess comes in the execution of those plans. This involves not just the delivery of content, but also managing classroom dynamics , adapting on the fly, and ensuring that each student is engaged and making progress.

Dynamic delivery of content

Even the best-laid plans can fall flat without dynamic delivery. Teachers use their creativity, knowledge, and passion to bring content to life, making it interesting and relevant to their students. This might involve storytelling, demonstrations, discussions, or interactive technology — all planned in advance but delivered with the spontaneity that keeps students engaged.

Classroom management and adaptability

Effective execution also requires strong classroom management skills. Teachers plan for potential disruptions and have strategies in place to maintain a conducive learning environment. However, they’re also prepared to adapt their plans if an unexpected teaching moment arises or if students are struggling with the material.

Strategic planning is an essential skill in a teacher’s toolkit, one that requires foresight, adaptability, and a deep understanding of their students’ needs. It’s clear that the role of a teacher as a planner is multifaceted, influencing every aspect of the educational experience. Through careful planning, teachers craft lessons that not only impart knowledge but also inspire, engage, and accommodate the diversity of learners in their care.

What do you think? Have you ever encountered a learning experience that was clearly well-planned? What impact did that have on your engagement and understanding of the material? Can you recall a time when a teacher’s adaptability made a difference in your learning journey?

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Learning & Teaching

1 Understanding Learning

• What is Learning?
• Nature of Learning
• Learning and Related Concepts
• Dimensions of Learning
• Learning Styles
• Pace of Learning
• Modes of Learning
• Transfer of Learning

2 Approaches to Learning

• Behaviouristic Approach to Learning
• Cognitive Approach to Learning
• Social Learning Approaches
• Humanistic Approach to Learning

3 Learning for Construction of Knowledge

• Constructivism: An Introduction
• Various Constructivists’ Ideas
• Constructive Learning Environment
• How Learning Takes Place

4 Learning In Various Contexts

• Active Learning
• Observational Learning
• Situated Learning
• Collaborative Learning
• Learning Out of the School

5 Learner in Socio-Cultural Context

• Socio-cultural Diversity among Learners
• Factors Affecting Learners
• Changing Perception about Learners
• Various Type of Learners
• Differently-abled Learners

6 Learner as an Individual-I

• Concept of Intelligence
• Intelligence and its Role in Learning
• Understanding IQ, EQ, and SQ
• Multiple Intelligence
• Concept of Personality
• Personality and Learning

7 Learner as an Individual-II

• Learner Preparedness

8 Understanding Teaching

• Nature of Teaching: Dual Nature
• Teaching as a Morally Laden Activity
• Interrelationship between Teaching, Learning, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Concepts Related to Teaching
• Phases of Teaching
• Maxims of Teaching
• Teaching as a Complex Activity
• Teaching as a Profession
• Role of Teacher in Providing Dynamic Curricular Experiences

9 Planning Teaching-Learning

• Considerations for Instructional Planning in Classroom
• Planning for Teaching
• Behaviourist Lesson Planning
• Alternative Approach to Planning
• Constructivist Lesson Planning (5-E Approach)

10 Organizing Teaching-Learning

• Designing Instructions
• Basic Consideration for Selecting a Method
• Lecture Method
• Demonstration Method
• Team Teaching
• Inquiry Approach
• Problem Solving
• Cooperative Learning

11 Teaching-Learning Resources

• Teaching-Learning Resources
• Learner and Their Environment as Learning Resources
• Classroom as a Resource
• Community as a Learning Resource
• Improvised Resources
• ICT and Multimedia as Learning Resources

12 Managing Classroom Teaching-Learning

• Management and Instruction
• Classroom Management: The Concept
• Understanding Learners’ Needs
• Principles of Classroom Management

13 Teacher in Diverse Role

• Teacher as a Person
• Teacher’s Personal Characteristics
• Teacher as a Transmitter of Knowledge
• Teacher as a Planner
• Teacher as a Facilitator
• Teacher as a Co-creator
• Teacher as a Leader
• Teacher as a Manager
• Teacher as a Counsellor

14 Teacher as Innovator and Action Researcher

• Innovation: Need and Concept
• Types of Innovation
• Process of Innovation
• Teacher as an Action Researcher
• Pre-conditions for Taking Up Action Research
• Quality Issues in Action Research
• Steps Involved in Action Research
• Format for Documenting Your Action Research

15 Teachers as Reflective Practitioner

• Concept of Reflection
• Different Perspectives on Reflection
• Approaches to Reflective Thinking
• Techniques of Promoting Reflection

16 Professional Development of Teachers

• What is a Profession?
• Characteristics of a Profession
• Characteristics of Teaching Profession
• Need and Importance of Professional Development
• In-service Teacher Training as Professional Development
• Continuous Professional Development (CPD)
• CPD through ICT

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• Section 1. An Overview of Strategic Planning or "VMOSA" (Vision, Mission, Objectives, Strategies, and Action Plans)

Chapter 8 Sections

• Section 2. Proclaiming Your Dream: Developing Vision and Mission Statements
• Section 3. Creating Objectives
• Section 4. Developing Successful Strategies
• Section 5. Developing an Action Plan
• Section 6. Obtaining Feedback from Constituents: What Changes are Important and Feasible?
• Section 7. Identifying Action Steps in Bringing About Community and System Change
• Main Section

VMOSA (Vision, Mission, Objectives, Strategies, and Action Plans) is a practical planning process used to help community groups define a vision and develop practical ways to enact change. VMOSA helps your organization set and achieve short term goals while keeping sight of your long term vision. Implementing this planning process into your group's efforts supports developing a clear mission, building consensus, and grounding your group's dreams. This section explores how and when to implement VMOSA into your organization's planning process.

What is VMOSA?

One way to make that journey is through strategic planning, the process by which a group defines its own "VMOSA;" that is, its V ision, M ission, O bjectives, S trategies, and A ction Plans. VMOSA is a practical planning process that can be used by any community organization or initiative. This comprehensive planning tool can help your organization by providing a blueprint for moving from dreams to actions to positive outcomes for your community.

In this section, we will give a general overview of the process, and touch briefly on each of the individual parts. In Examples, we'll show you how an initiative to prevent adolescent pregnancy used the VMOSA process effectively. Then, in Tools, we offer you a possible agenda for a planning retreat, should your organization decide to use this process. Finally, the remaining sections in this chapter will walk you through the steps needed to fully develop each portion of the process.

Why should your organization use VMOSA?

Why should your organization use this planning process? There are many good reasons, including all of the following:

• The VMOSA process grounds your dreams. It makes good ideas possible by laying out what needs to happen in order to achieve your vision.
• By creating this process in a group effort (taking care to involve both people affected by the problem and those with the abilities to change it), it allows your organization to build consensus around your focus and the necessary steps your organization should take.
• The process gives you an opportunity to develop your vision and mission together with those in the community who will be affected by what you do.  That means that your work is much more likely to address the community’s real needs and desires, rather than what you think they might be.  It also means community ownership of the vision and mission, putting everyone on the same page and greatly increasing the chances that any effort will be successful.
• VMOSA allows your organization to focus on your short-term goals while keeping sight of your long-term vision and mission.

When should you use VMOSA?

So, when should you use this strategic planning process? Of course, it always makes sense for your organization to have the direction and order it gives you, but there are some times it makes particularly good sense to use this process. These times include:

• When you are starting a new organization.
• When your organization is starting a new initiative or large project, or is going to begin work in a new direction.
• When your group is moving into a new phase of an ongoing effort.
• When you are trying to invigorate an older initiative that has lost its focus or momentum.
• When you’re applying for new funding or to a new funder.  It’s important under these circumstances to clarify your vision and mission so that any funding you seek supports what your organization actually stands for.  Otherwise, you can wind up with strings attached to the money that require you to take a direction not in keeping with your organization’s real purpose or philosophy.

Let's look briefly at each of the individual ingredients important in this process. Then, in the next few sections we'll look at each of these in a more in-depth manner, and explain how to go about developing each step of the planning process.

Vision (the dream)

Your vision communicates what your organization believes are the ideal conditions for your community – how things would look if the issue important to you were perfectly addressed. This utopian dream is generally described by one or more phrases or vision statements, which are brief proclamations that convey the community's dreams for the future. By developing a vision statement, your organization makes the beliefs and governing principles of your organization clear to the greater community (as well as to your own staff, participants, and volunteers).

There are certain characteristics that most vision statements have in common. In general, vision statements should be:

• Understood and shared by members of the community
• Broad enough to encompass a variety of local perspectives
• Inspiring and uplifting to everyone involved in your effort
• Easy to communicate - for example, they should be short enough to fit on a T-shirt

Here are a few vision statements which meet the above criteria:

• Healthy children
• Safe streets, safe neighborhoods
• Every house a home
• Education for all
• Peace on earth

Mission (the what and why)

Developing mission statements are the next step in the action planning process. An organization's mission statement describes what the group is going to do, and why it's going to do that. Mission statements are similar to vision statements, but they're more concrete, and they are definitely more "action-oriented" than vision statements. The mission might refer to a problem, such as an inadequate housing, or a goal, such as providing access to health care for everyone. And, while they don't go into a lot of detail, they start to hint - very broadly - at how your organization might go about fixing the problems it has noted. Some general guiding principles about mission statements are that they are:

• Concise . Although not as short a phrase as a vision statement, a mission statement should still get its point across in one sentence.
• Outcome-oriented . Mission statements explain the overarching outcomes your organization is working to achieve.
• Inclusive . While mission statements do make statements about your group's overarching goals, it's very important that they do so very broadly. Good mission statements are not limiting in the strategies or sectors of the community that may become involved in the project.

The following mission statements are examples that meet the above criteria.

• "To promote child health and development through a comprehensive family and community initiative."
• "To create a thriving African American community through development of jobs, education, housing, and cultural pride.
• "To develop a safe and healthy neighborhood through collaborative planning, community action, and policy advocacy."

While vision and mission statements themselves should be short, it often makes sense for an organization to include its deeply held beliefs or philosophy, which may in fact define both its work and the organization itself. One way to do this without sacrificing the directness of the vision and mission statements is to include guiding principles as an addition to the statements. These can lay out the beliefs of the organization while keeping its vision and mission statements short and to the point.

Objectives (how much of what will be accomplished by when)

Once an organization has developed its mission statement, its next step is to develop the specific objectives that are focused on achieving that mission. Objectives refer to specific measurable results for the initiative's broad goals. An organization's objectives generally lay out how much of what will be accomplished by when. For example, one of several objectives for a community initiative to promote care and caring for older adults might be: "By 2025 (by when), to increase by 20% (how much) those elders reporting that they are in daily contact with someone who cares about them (of what)."

There are three basic types of objectives . They are:

• Behavioral objectives . These objectives look at changing the behaviors of people (what they are doing and saying) and the products (or results) of their behaviors. For example, a neighborhood improvement group might develop an objective around having an increased amount of home repair taking place (the behavior) or of improved housing (the result).
• Community-level outcome objectives . These are related to behavioral outcome objectives, but are more focused more on a community level instead of an individual level. For example, the same group might suggest increasing the percentage of decent affordable housing in the community as a community-level outcome objective.
• Process objectives . These are the objectives that refer to the implementation of activities necessary to achieve other objectives. For example, the group might adopt a comprehensive plan for improving neighborhood housing.

It's important to understand that these different types of objectives aren't mutually exclusive. Most groups will develop objectives in all three categories. Examples of objectives include:

• By December 2030, to increase by 30% parent engagement (i.e., talking, playing, reading) with children under 2 years of age. ( Behavioral objective )
• By 2025, to have made a 40% increase in youth graduating from high school. ( Community -level outcome objective )
• By the year 2026, increase by 30% the percentage of families that own their home. ( Community-level outcome objective )
• By December of this year, implement the volunteer training program for all volunteers. ( Process objective )

Strategies (the how)

The next step in the process of VMOSA is developing your strategies. Strategies explain how the initiative will reach its objectives. Generally, organizations will have a wide variety of strategies that include people from all of the different parts, or sectors, of the community. These strategies range from the very broad, which encompass people and resources from many different parts of the community, to the very specific, which aim at carefully defined areas.

Examples of broad strategies include:

• A child health program might use social marketing to promote adult involvement with children
• An adolescent pregnancy initiative might decide to increase access to contraceptives in the community
• An urban revitalization project might enhance the artistic life of the community by encouraging artists to perform in the area

Five types of specific strategies can help guide most interventions . They are:

• Providing information and enhancing skills (e.g., offer skills training in conflict management)
• Enhancing services and support (e.g., start a mentoring programs for high-risk youth)
• Modify access, barriers, and opportunities (such as offering scholarships to students who would be otherwise unable to attend college)
• Change the consequences of efforts (e.g., provide incentives for community members to volunteer)
• Modify policies (e.g., change business policies to allow parents and guardians and volunteers to spend more time with young children)

Action plan (what change will happen; who will do what by when to make it happen)

Finally, an organization's action plan describes in great detail exactly how strategies will be implemented to accomplish the objectives developed earlier in this process. The plan refers to: a) specific (community and systems) changes to be sought, and b) the specific action steps necessary to bring about changes in all of the relevant sectors, or parts, of the community.

The key aspects of the intervention or (community and systems) changes to be sought are outlined in the action plan. For example, in a program whose mission is to increase youth interest in politics, one of the strategies might be to teach students about the electoral system. Some of the action steps, then, might be to develop age-appropriate materials for students, to hold mock elections for candidates in local schools, and to include some teaching time in the curriculum.

Action steps are developed for each component of the intervention or (community and systems) changes to be sought. These include:

• Action step(s): What will happen
• Person(s) responsible: Who will do what
• Date to be completed: Timing of each action step
• Resources required: Resources and support (both what is needed and what's available )
• Barriers or resistance, and a plan to overcome them!
• Collaborators: Who else should know about this action

Here are two examples of action steps, graphed out so you can easily follow the flow:

Of course, once you have finished designing the strategic plan or "VMOSA" for your organization, you are just beginning in this work. Your action plan will need to be tried and tested and revised, then tried and tested and revised again. You'll need to obtain feedback from community members, and add and subtract elements of your plan based on that feedback.

Everyone has a dream. But the most successful individuals - and community organizations - take that dream and find a way to make it happen. VMOSA helps groups do just that. This strategic planning process helps community groups define their dream, set their goals, define ways to meet those goals, and finally, develop practical ways bring about needed changes.

In this section, you've gained a general understanding of the strategic planning process. If you believe your organization might benefit from using this process, we invite you to move on to the next sections of this chapter, which explain in some depth how to design and develop your own strategic plan.

Online Resources

Concerns Report Handbook: Planning for Community Health

The Free Management Library  presents a thorough guide to strategic and action planning, plus links to online discussion groups.

Imagining Our Dream Community provides guidance for visualizing your organization's ideal community.

Preventing Adolescent Pregnancy: An Action Planning Guide for Community-Based Initiatives

Preventing Adolescent Substance Abuse: An Action Planning Guide for Community-Based Initiatives

Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect: An Action Planning Guide for Community-Based Initiatives

Preventing Youth Violence: An Action Planning Guide for Community-Based Initiatives

Promoting Child Well-Being: An Action Planning Guide for Community-Based Initiatives

Promoting Health for All: Improving Access and Eliminating Disparities in Community Health

Promoting Healthy Living and Preventing Chronic Disease: An Action Planning Guide for Communities

Promoting Urban Neighborhood Development: An Action Planning Guide for Improving Housing, Jobs, Education, Safety and Health

Reducing Risk for Chronic Disease: An Action Planning Guide for Community-Based Initiatives

The Ruckus Society  offers an Action Planning Manual that discusses strategies for nonviolent direct action.

Strategice Plan information page from Implementation Matters.

The Strategic Planning Process outlines 8 steps to developing a customized strategic plan for a coalition.

Work Group Evaluation Handbook

Your Action Planning Guide for Promoting Full Community Participation Among People with Disabilities , a resource for independent living centers and other community-based initiatives, from the KU Research & Training Center on Independent Living and the KU Center for Community Health and Development.

Youth Development: An Action Planning Guide for Community-Based Initiatives

Print Resources

Barry, B. (1982).  Strategic planning workbook for non-profit organizations . St. Paul, MN: Amherst H. Wilder Foundation.

Bryson, J. (1988).  Strategic planning for public and nonprofit organizations: A guide to strengthening and sustaining organizational achievement . San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Coover, V., et al. (1985).  Resource manual for a living revolution: a handbook of skills & tools for social change activists . Philadelphia: New Society Publisher.

Fawcett, S., Paine, A., Francisco, V., Richter, K.., Lewis, R., Williams, E., Harris, K., Winter-Green, K., in collaboration with Bradley, B. & Copple, J. (1992).  Preventing adolescent substance abuse: an action planning guide for community -based initiatives . Lawrence, KS: Work Group on Health Promotion and Community Development, University of Kansas.

Fawcett, S., Schultz, J., Francisco, V., Cyprus, J., Collie, V., Carson, V., & Bremby, R. (2001).  Promoting urban neighborhood development: An action planning guide for improving housing, jobs, education, safety and health, and human development . Lawrence, KS: Work Group on Health Promotion and Community Development.

Halfon, N., Inkelas, M., Rice, T., Sutherland, C., Tullis, E., & Uyeda, K. (2004).  Building State Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems. Volume 6: A Strategic Planning Guide for State-Level Early Childhood Systems-Building Initiatives: From Resources to Results for Young Children and Their Families.  Los Angeles: UCLA Center for Healthier Children, Families, and Communities.

Kansas Health Foundation.  VMOSA: An approach to strategic planning . Wichita, KS: Kansas Health Foundation.

Lord, R. (1989). T he non-profit problem solver: a management guide . New York, NY: Praeger Publishers.

Murray, E., & Richardson, P. (2002).  Fast Forward: Organizational Changes in 100 Days . New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Olenick, J., & Olenick, R. (1991).  A non-profit organization operating manual: planning for survival and growth . New York, NY: Foundation Center.

Stonich, P. J. (1982).  Implementing strategy: making strategy happen . Cambridge: Ballinger Publishing Company.

Unterman, I., & Davis, R. (1984).  Strategic management of not-for-profit organizations . New York, NY: CBS Educational and Professional Publishing.

Watson-Thompson, J., Fawcett, S.B., & Schultz, J. (2008).  Differential effects of strategic planning on community change in two urban neighborhood coalitions . American Journal of Community Psychology, 42, 25-38.

Wolff, T. (1990).  Managing a non-profit organization . New York, NY: Prentice Hall Press.

Wolff, T. (2010). The Power of Collaborative Solutions: Six Principles and Effective Tools for Building Healthy Communities . San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

The Importance of Strategic Planning for Successful School Management

Apr 19, 2023 | Blog

As the international school, educational landscape continues to evolve and become more complex, it is becoming increasingly important for schools to have a well-thought-out strategic plan. A strategic plan is a roadmap that guides the school towards achieving its goals and objectives. Strategic planning is a vital aspect of successful school management, and it plays a crucial role in helping schools to meet the needs of their students, staff, and community.

Review and Self Assessment for Strategic Planning

Strategic planning involves a comprehensive and systematic approach to assessing the current state of the school, identifying the school’s strengths and weaknesses, and developing a clear plan of action to achieve the school’s goals and objectives. The process typically includes a thorough analysis of the school’s internal and external environment, including factors such as student demographics, staffing levels, budget, facilities, and community needs. Use data to drive decision-making. Implementing, measuring, and assessing school improvement across a variety of metrics provides critical information for improvement plans.

Strategic Planning for Alignment

One of the key benefits of strategic planning is that it helps schools to align their resources and efforts towards achieving their goals. This is particularly important for schools that are facing budget constraints or other resource limitations. By prioritizing the school’s needs and identifying areas where resources can be most effectively deployed, strategic planning can help schools to achieve more with fewer resources. It is important that schools have vision and mission integrity . It is important that there is one plan and there is alignment.

Strategic Planning for Change

Another benefit of strategic planning is that it helps schools to anticipate and respond to changes in the educational landscape. With new technologies, shifting demographics, and changing educational policies, schools must be agile and adaptive. Strategic planning can help schools to identify emerging trends and anticipate future challenges, allowing them to prepare and respond proactively.

At its most effective, school improvement planning is a dynamic practice that engages data and people in the improvement process.  However, many plans fail to address the  processes for   improvement , instead focusing solely on the  outcomes of improvement . Greg Parry, CEO

Strategic planning is also important for schools that are looking to expand or launch new initiatives. A feasibility study, which is typically part of the strategic planning process, can help schools to assess the viability of a new program or project. By conducting a feasibility study, schools can evaluate the potential benefits and risks of a new initiative and make informed decisions about whether to move forward. Plan for change rather than being a victim of it.

Curriculum Design in Strategic Planning

Curriculum design is another critical aspect of strategic planning. Schools must design a curriculum that meets the needs of their students while also aligning with their educational goals and objectives. A strategic plan can help schools to identify the key competencies that students need to develop and design a curriculum that fosters those competencies. By aligning curriculum design with strategic goals, schools can ensure that their educational programs are effective and relevant. The unique “curriculum voice” of a school must be loud and clear.

The Challenges of Strategic Planning and Implementation

International schools also face several pressures and challenges that can complicate strategic planning in educational environments. To overcome these challenges, schools must understand them and develop strategies to address them.

Authenticity

It is important that the process and the plan is truly authentic and not just window dressing for change or compliance. Improvement should be the goal, not just a document or a new direction. Masquerading changes that look like reform but are really change for the sake of change is a big mistake.

“Strategy plans are often elaborate management ballets perfectly choreographed to do only one thing, and that’s get to a yes.” Chris Bradley Source: Jumpstart a better way to do strategy

Overly Complex and Disconnected

There is evidence that schools are well served by one-page plans that are clearly focused and simple enough that every participant in the process understands his or her role in executing the plan. One page plans, or simple and clear plans, are the most effective. Large and complex documents are not only less likely to be read but they are often not focussed.

Lack of Ownership

Ownership is critical in ensuring the success of a strategic plan. International schools must ensure that there is explicit ownership over the strategic plan to prevent initiatives from being lost, forgotten or overlooked. Designating one person in charge of the plan and documentation can help ensure success as long as that person understand the power of devolution and stakeholder engagement.

Poor Strategic Alignment

Alignment and representation are essential to success in international schools. However, schools may face challenges in achieving alignment because of the diverse goals and perspectives of different entities involved in the school, such as the board of directors, administration, faculty, and students. This can lead to a lack of strategic alignment and difficulty in decision-making. International schools must work towards achieving alignment and representation across all entities involved in the school.

Poor Communication

Effective communication is necessary for successful strategic planning in international schools. The absence of effective communication can lead to poor decision-making, ineffective solutions, and unattainable goals. International schools must prioritize effective communication by promoting institutional-wide teamwork and ensuring that all stakeholders are involved in the planning process.

Slow Plan Adoption

Innovation and growth are critical for international schools, but constant changes can lead to low motivation to adopt new plans. The longer schools take to implement a strategic plan, the more likely it is to become outdated and irrelevant. International schools must develop strategies to ensure that plans are adopted quickly and efficiently to ensure that they remain relevant to current processes.

International schools face several challenges when it comes to strategic planning. Lack of ownership, poor strategic alignment, poor communication, and slow plan adoption are only some of the significant challenges that schools face. International schools must develop strategies to address these challenges and ensure the success of their strategic planning efforts. By prioritizing ownership, alignment, communication, and plan adoption, international schools can create impactful approaches to strategic planning and ensure the success of their educational institutions.

Most successful schools seek out independent and critical friends to help facilitate change processes and strategic planning. Education consulting firms and critical friends can be valuable partners in the strategic planning process. These firms bring a wealth of experience and expertise in school management, curriculum design, and feasibility studies. They can help schools to assess their current state, identify areas of improvement, and develop a clear plan of action. By working with an education consulting firm, schools can gain a fresh perspective and access to best practices from other institutions.

Strategic planning is essential for successful school management. It provides a roadmap for schools to achieve their goals and objectives while also aligning resources and efforts. Strategic planning is particularly important for schools facing budget constraints, new initiatives, or changes in the educational landscape. By partnering with education consulting firms and focusing on curriculum design and feasibility studies, schools can develop a strategic plan that is effective and relevant. Strategic planning is a critical component of school management that helps schools to meet the needs of their students, staff, and community.

If you want to learn more about the steps required to set up a school check out some of our other articles:

– steps to setting up a new school, – 10 steps and articles on how to set up a new school, – gse international school franchise models, gse provide specialist services to set up all forms of education institutions including international schools, kindergartens, vocational colleges, universities and online/virtual schools., contact us directly 👇, ceo and education expert greg parry.

Internationally renowned for his expertise in education leadership, Greg Parry’s vast experience includes leadership of projects for education institutions throughout Australia, the Middle East, the United States, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and China. Recognised for his numerous contributions in the education arena, Greg has received the Ministers Award for Excellence in School Leadership based on improvements in school performance and a range of successful principal training and leadership development programs, as well as the School of Excellence Award for Industry/School Partnerships and the School of Excellence Award for Technology Innovation. His company GSE (Global Services in Education) has been recognised as having the Best Global Brand in International Education in 2015 and 2016.

Considered one of the premier experts in his profession, Greg has trained teachers and principals throughout the world in areas such as critical thinking, language development and leadership. His expertise in school start up projects, leadership and curriculum development, has made him a sought after authority in these discipline.

www.gsineducation.com

Global Services in Education set up and operate schools in all parts of the world. Governed by a philosophy of global citizenship, every member of the GSE team shares a passion to help shape international education and student achievement through inspiration and collaboration. Our goal is to meet the highest objectives of every school, teacher, student and parent, with an unwavering dedication to quality education, shared ideals and intercultural perspectives.

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Objectives And Goals Of Strategic Planning

In an overly competitive business world, it’s highly crucial for organizations to consistently ace up their game to stay relevant….

In an overly competitive business world, it’s highly crucial for organizations to consistently ace up their game to stay relevant. A part of it comes from effective strategic planning that involves crafting long-term strategic goals , and formulating a strategic plan that outlines the organization’s process to achieve these goals. Strategic Planning not only builds a competitive advantage for an organization, but also removes uncertainty and confusion. Let’s dive deep into the topic and build a deeper understanding of it.

What Is Strategic Planning?

How is strategic planning different from business planning, purpose of strategic planning and importance, the strategic planning process, effective strategic goals, what is strategic planning .

Strategic planning is the systematic process of defining an organization’s long-term goals and proposing strategies to achieve them. This is essential to elucidating the organization’s long-term vision and its process of making that vision a reality. The strategic planning process is used to effectively allocate resources, prioritize work, and ensure that organizational goals are backed by statistical data and sound reasoning.

In a nutshell, the process of strategic planning includes answering questions like:

• Where are we now?
• Where are we going?
• What is going to get in our way?
• What do we need to do to get to where we want to go?

Strategic planning differs greatly from business planning. Strategic planning requires you to withhold your general day-to-day activities and enunciate where your organization is heading. It also requires crafting strategic goals and objectives for the future and setting up milestones and steps required to achieve those goals. A business plan , on the other hand, is more concerned with creating and working on short- or mid-term goals. It focuses on goals that are not more than a year long and serves a specific purpose, such as directing operations, launching a product and acquiring funding.

The main purpose of strategic planning is to set clearly defined goals for the growth and success of your organization and achieve them with the help of an effective strategic plan. It establishes a connection between your organization’s mission, its long-term vision and the established plan. 

It’s important because of a variety of factors:

• It’s crucial to determine the direction and focus of an organization. 
• It ensures organizational alignment, allowing everyone to work towards shared goals. 
• It helps an organization understand its weaknesses and analyze potential risks.
• It boosts productivity and builds a positive work environment. 

Following are the steps involved in the development and execution of a strategic plan:

• Understanding your organization’s mission and defining its ultimate purpose.
• Describing your organization’s vision.
• Crafting long-term goals and objectives that are clearly aligned with the organization’s vision.
• Formulating a strategic plan that outlines how the organization will achieve its goals in the next 3–5 years.

Big Picture thinking is a critical aspect of the strategic planning process. Furthermore, the strategic planning process might look a bit simple at first, but the challenges start creeping in over time. It’s important for your organization to persistently stick to its plan, and leverage short term implementation to reach its goals.

Objectives of strategic planning are detailed statements of direction that indicate what all is necessary and important in an organizational strategy. Specifically, these are clear goals that the organization strives to achieve in the near future. Ideally, these are statements for the next 3-5 years that address the core competency and functional areas of an organization. These objectives help you draft strategies that include effective measures and initiatives. 

The following are some characteristics of effective strategic goals: 

Purpose-driven

Focused on the long term.

Some of the key aspects that you should focus on while drafting the right goals and objectives of strategic planning for your organization, include understanding your industry, and what your organization is seeking to achieve.

Objectives of Strategic Planning differ greatly based on the industry your organization is operating in. For instance, if you’re in IT, construction or technical services, which are fast-paced industries, you should focus on creating objectives that work for your organization’s growth goals. Launching a new range of products or investing in marketing and customer acquisition can be a few appropriate strategies. Organizations operating in slow-growing industries, such as coal power production and steel manufacturing, should bank on objectives that focus on stability, by managing expenses and protecting assets.

For creating goals of strategic planning , always begin with a label. The label must clearly define your organization’s long-term goals. For example, if customer retention is what your organization is eyeing, the objectives should focus on offering more value-for-money products and better customer services. But if your organization is seeking to improve employee retention rate, crafting objectives such as enhancing the recruitment process, streamlining the onboarding process and creating a better culture would help.

It’s essential to understand that while some organizations may require a comprehensive strategic plan for the future, others might just want to update their existing strategic plan, or specifically revise some elements of the plan. A lot of organizations focus on crafting a plan that tackles a particular strategic issue such as an unexpected competitive initiative, the latest technological trends or a possible M&A transaction. 

Let’s look at a few examples of strategic goals to understand them better.

Financial Objectives

• Increase revenue
• Maintain profitability
• Grow shareholder value
• Ensure favorable bond ratings
• Ensure financial stability

Internal Objectives

• Grow sales percentage for new products.
• Decrease employee turnover rate.
• Improve customer service and relationships.
• Invest in total quality management.
• Reduce a certain amount of cost annually.
• Streamline core business processes.

Customer Objectives

• Offer the best value for money.
• Cross-sell more products.
• Provide the best service.
• Increase market share.
• Expand product offerings.

Learning And Growth Objectives

• Enhance technical and analytical knowledge.
• Improve staff productivity.
• Build a performance-focused culture.
• Invest in productivity tools.
• Maintain alignment across the organization.

Strategic planning is important, and one can readily assume that with a good plan, any business will prosper. Harappa’s Making Decisions course that includes effective strategies, frameworks and mental models that will help you avoid uncertainty and make smarter strategic goals. Check it out now!