Strategic Planning is sometimes misunderstood. Some may mistake operational planning for strategic planning until the enterprise is running along smoothly. Others might think they don't have time for strategic planning until the enterprise in running along smoothly.

If organizations don't understand or are not vigilant to the forces that may impact them now or in the near future, they are likely to find themselves 'positioned' so that they can no longer complete, or to take advantage of key business opportunities. They may become more susceptible to threats in the environment outside of the boundaries of the organization.

Nowadays with change occurring at breakneck speeds, organizations need to create a process and infastructure to complete effectively. Yet how often do we find companies that create the structure before they know their strategy. Wise organizations try to create a clear mission and align resources and efforts with the mission so that the firm stays on course while at the same time reduces waste and redundancy.

Some tips for developing a Sound Strategic Plan are:

Know your competition Have a clear understanding of who competes for your product or service and how they compete. Do they seek to gain customers and market share by a lower price or do they tout special features and attributes that differentiate them from their competition.   Leverage your key assets What's the heartbeat of your enterprise? Is it the expertise of your employees, or perhaps their motivation? Or is it a special technology that few of your competitors have?   Create a Mission statement Don't just create the mission but be sure to communicate it frequently! To make sure that a Mission statement has real value it must be precise and specific. This is important because the Mission is the 'compass' that steers the enterprise ship in turbulent competitive waters. It serves senior management as a filter for decision making. When faced with varied and sometimes competing opportunities the Mission statement acts as a road map to decide whether or not to pursue a certain course of action.   Use an appropriate time frame Be sure to address and revisit the strategic planning process each year...or more often if necessary. Don't try to develop a plan in a compressed amount of time. Spread out the process over a period of about a month or so. Engage the senior management team in the process about a day a week over that month's time. This gives everyone plenty of time to understand the process, to begin thinking strategically, to collect needed information, and to be able to mull over the results of the individual day long sessions.   Define your business model Are you going to compete on price alone? Do you have the distinctive competencies to compete by being different than your competition? If you do, your customers are likely to be willing to pay a premium price, and you wont have to worry so much about producing more and more to make a profit. Don't fall into the trap of focusing upon revenue. Look for profit. It's too easy to see the revenue numbers go up, and not fully understand that for all your extra effort your profitability is actually going down! Make decisions based upon your strategy.   Limit the number of strategic initiatives Try to keep the number of strategic initiatives that stem from the planning process to between three and five. Otherwise you may overburden the organization, because it still has to support 'continuing operations.' The strategic initiatives may be developed to gradually steer the enterprise into a somewhat altered course of action.   Operational planning keeps the ship afloat, but strategic planning ensures the ship navigates through competitive waters to seek out the most lucrative bounty and avoid the threats to its survival.