Does your strategic plan feel more like a wish than a plan?
Read on for practical tips on how to successfully transition from strategy development to execution.
Most organizations invest significant time, money, and resources into crafting beautiful strategic plans. It’s easy to get excited about creating a new strategic plan – grappling with trends, sharing big ideas, visioning for the future, and setting goals.
But despite the excitement and initial investment in plan development, many organizations really struggle to make their plans a reality. The plan sits on a shelf, a testament to what they wished would happen, rather than what they were truly prepared to make happen.
So, how do you know if your strategic plan is a wish or a real plan?
A wish is a dream without a roadmap. It’s a list of priorities that are disconnected from the day-to-day work. A wish ignores the practical realities of an organization—like whether the team has the capacity, the resources, or the systems to actually achieve the goals. This is where organizations get into trouble
A plan, on the other hand, is a strategic document grounded in reality. It’s not just about the “what” (the vision, mission, positioning statements, and goals) but also the “how.” A plan is supported by intentional structures, disciplined practices, and a clear understanding of the principles that guide the work. It recognizes that every outcome is the result of a system, and therefore, for the plan to succeed, the systems must be designed to enable it.
The difference between the two is simple: a wish focuses on outcomes without addressing the process, while a plan is working towards outcomes by building the systems and structures that will make achieving the outcomes inevitable.
The 10-Item Checklist: Is Your Strategic Plan a Wish?
To help you determine whether your strategic plan is a wish or a plan, consider this checklist and circle the response for each statement that best fits your organization.
| Yes | No | |
| Do you have a clear purpose? Does your plan stem from an unwavering understanding of why the organization exists and where it’s going, or is it simply a reaction to a market trend or a new demand? | 2 | 1 |
| Is your plan disconnected from daily work? Do your teams struggle to explain how their daily tasks contribute to the strategic objectives? Do your strategic activities seem like an “add on”? | 1 | 2 |
| Do you have too many priorities? Are you trying to achieve everything at once, spreading your resources so thin that no single initiative can gain momentum? | 1 | 2 |
| Is the “how” missing? Does your plan focus on “what” you want to achieve without clearly defining the specific systems, processes, and tools needed to get there? | 1 | 2 |
| Are your resources allocated effectively? Have you truly assessed the capacity of your team and budget, or are you hoping things will just work out? | 2 | 1 |
| Is there a way to measure progress? Do you have key metrics and tools in place to consistently monitor whether you are on track, or are you waiting for a big reveal at the end of the year? | 2 | 1 |
| Are leaders aligned? Do your leaders have a unified understanding of the plan, or are they driving their own separate agendas? | 2 | 1 |
| Is the plan understood by everyone? Can every person in your organization articulate the core purpose of the plan and how their role supports it? | 2 | 1 |
| Is there a system for continuous improvement? Does your plan include a feedback loop to learn from mistakes and adjust course, or is it a rigid document that’s set in stone? | 2 | 1 |
| Are you focused on behaviors? Does your plan address the key behaviors and “rituals” that will drive success, or does it only focus on high-level outcomes? | 2 | 1 |
Circle mostly 1s? Your strategic plan is more of a wish
Circle mostly 2s? Your strategic plan is more of a plan. Congratulations!
If you’ve identified that your plan is more of a wish, don’t worry. The good news is that you can change it. By focusing on principles, refining your strategy to be achievable, and building the foundational systems to support it, you can turn your wish into a powerful, executable plan.
At Collective Results, we love helping organizations with strategic development and execution. We offer different levels of support, from developing templates and tools to fully integrating into organizations to lead strategic plan implementation. If you’d like help, don’t hesitate to reach out! https://collectiveresults.ca/contact/