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The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution: Real-Time Strategic Planning in a Rapid-Response World
Binding Information: Softcover Product Code: 069657 ISBN: 978-0-940069-65-7 Publisher: Fieldstone Alliance Pages: 208 Size: 7" X 10" X .5" Price: $34.95 www.NonprofitStrategyRevolution.org FINALIST Ben Franklin Awards, Independent Book Publishers Association, Business Category Manage opportunities and challenges quickly—and strategically The fact is, the world changes continuously and rapidly. It’s foolhardy to believe that strategies should not do so as well. Nonprofit leaders already know this, but traditional strategic planning has locked them into a process that’s divorced from today’s reality. That’s why plans sit on the shelf and why smart executives are always seeking workarounds in between planning periods. The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution offers a nimble and powerful alternative. In this ground-breaking book, strategy expert David La Piana introduces “Real-Time Strategic Planning,” a fluid, organic process that engages staff and board in a program of systematic readiness and continuous responsiveness. With it, your nonprofit will be able to identify, understand, and act on challenges and opportunities as they arise—not in six months when the “plan” is done. A framework to fuel change Strategic thinking begins with a clear understanding of strategy. To help you grasp this essential but often-confusing concept, the Strategy Pyramid offers a simple, graphical framework. You’ll learn about the three types of strategies—organizational, programmatic, and operational—and how they align to contribute to the overall aim. Instead of a hodgepodge of unrelated goals and activities that ultimately lead to inertia or total chaos, you’ll learn to develop true strategies—coordinated actions that pull the organization in the same direction, toward the same ends. That is revolutionary. Complete guidance for forming strategies At the heart of this practical book is the Real-Time Strategic Planning Cycle. Based on four years of research and testing with a variety of nonprofits, this proven process guides you through the steps to sound strategy. You’ll find tools for
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Get started in one day Kick off the process with a one-day Real-Time Strategic Planning session. In seven hours you’ll have formed the backbone needed to develop strategies going forward. The Facilitator’s Guide to Real-Time Strategic Planning (also on the CD) gives you everything you need: the day’s agenda, instructions for preparing flip charts, prework to be done, handouts, and worksheets. Because the work is done by the staff, not a consultant, your organization will learn key skills, take ownership of the process, and increase its capacity to think and act strategically. Use The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution and get the clarity and direction you need for maximum mission success. Quotes: What others are saying about The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution... “What more can one possibly learn about strategic planning? Surprisingly lots. David La Piana thoroughly dissects what has come to be thought of as strategic planning, presents compelling new ideas about how best to talk about strategy, and provides useful tools to advance your mission-focused work ambitiously.” —Gregg Behr, Executive Director, The Grable Foundation “Clear, concise, efficient, and practical. Exactly what nonprofits need in today’s rapidly changing marketplace.” —Ann Felter Mason, Director of Development, Tickets for Kids Charities (Former Executive Director of The Renaissance & Baroque Society) “If it’s time for your organization to create another strategic plan, STOP! Read this book. La Piana gives you a better way to ensure that the work you’re doing is on mission and in service to the community. Anyone who has a stake in setting the strategic direction of a nonprofit organization should STOP and read this book.” —Liz Callahan, ACC, Executive Director, The CBO Center “An innovative, fast-track approach to clear thinking and action planning for the twenty-first century.” —Joanne Lundstrom, CEO, Mental Health Kokua “Important new insights in an area that is neglected or misunderstood by many nonprofits.” —Richard L. Moyers, Director, Nonprofit Sector Fund, Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation “A very helpful framework and tools for clarifying organizational, program, and operational strategies for nonprofits.” —Bryan Barry, Vice President, Leadership Foundations of America Table Of Contents: Preface: Welcome to the Revolution The Seeds of Revolution: The Strategy Formation Project How to Use This Book Conclusion: Creating Winning Strategies PART ONE The Strategy Revolution Chapter One: Why a Strategy Revolution? What Is Strategy and Why Do Nonprofits Need It? The Disconnect Between Strategy and Strategic Planning Conclusion: Hence the Revolution Chapter Two: The Strategy Pyramid Aligning Organizational, Programmatic, and Operational Decisions Successful Strategies Embody Implementation Conclusion: A Framework to Fuel Change Chapter Three: Understanding Organizational Strategy Mission, Competitive Advantage, and Strategy What Is Organizational Strategy? What Does Organizational Strategy Look Like? Conclusion: Organizational Strategy Comes First Chapter Four: Organizational Identity and Strategy Formation Understanding Organizational Identity Three Essential Ingredients of Organizational Identity What Organizational Identity Looks Like Conclusion: Organization, Know Thyself Chapter Five: Developing a Strategy Screen Crafting a Strategy Screen A Variation—The Opportunity Matrix Conclusion: Habits of Mind Chapter Six: Big Questions, Strategy Formation, and Implementation Understanding and Facing Big Questions Crafting a Big Question Developing a Strategy That Fits the Screen Implementing the Strategy Conclusion: Real-Time Strategy Chapter Seven: Forming Programmatic Strategies Forming Programmatic Strategies Constructing a Program Logic Model Programmatic Strategy in Action Programmatic Strategy Essentials When to Form New Programmatic Strategies Conclusion: Programs As Strategic Choices Chapter Eight: Forming Operational Strategies Real Life Operational Strategy1 Operational Strategy Essentials When to Form New Operational Strategies Conclusion: Operations Are the Broad Shoulders of Strategy Chapter Nine: Putting It All Together Using Real-Time Strategic Planning to Advance Your Mission and Vision Strategy Formation as a Continuous Cycle Crafting a “Traditional” Strategic Plan Conclusion: Real-Time Strategy in a Rapid-Response World PART TWO Essential Tools for Forming Strategy Tool 1: Current Business Model Tool 2: Financial Analysis Tool 3: Competitor Analysis Tool 4: Trend Analysis Tool 5: Future Business Model Tool 6: Identity Statement Tool 7: Strategy Screen Tool 8: Big Question Tool 9: Next Steps Work Plan Tool 10: Strategy Road Map References Index CD-ROM Instructions Materials Found on Accompanying CD-ROM Facilitator’s Guide to Real-Time Strategic Planning (materials you can use to conduct a one-day Real-Time Strategic Planning session) Tools Essential Tools for Forming Strategy (electronic versions of the tools found in Part Two) Tool 1: Current Business Model Tool 2: Financial Analysis Tool 3: Competitor Analysis Tool 4: Trend Analysis Tool 5: Future Business Model Tool 6: Identity Statement Tool 7: Strategy Screen Tool 8: Big Question Tool 9: Next Steps Work Plan Tool 10: Strategy Road Map Supplemental Tools Tool 11: Market Position and Strategy Analysis Tool 12: Community Meeting Tool 13: Identify and Establish a Nonprofit Brand Tool 14: Strategic Thinkers Group Tool 15: Expert Interviews Tool 16: Reading Group Tool 17: Brainstorming Process Tool 18: Scenario Thinking Tool 19: Value Creation Cycle Tool 20: Mission Statement Refinement Tool 21: Organizational Self-Assessment and Discussion Tool 22: The Due Diligence Tool Tool 23: Opportunity Matrix Tool 24: Logic Model Tool 25: 90-Day Plan for Incremental Improvements Tool 26: Post-Action Debriefing Tool 27: Traditional Strategic Plan Template Nonprofit Strategy Revolutionary Certificate
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By: Moore Cassie, Chronicle of Philanthropy - September 4, 2008
Taking Strategy From Stodgy to Streamlined By Cassie J. Moore The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution: Real-Time Strategic Planning in a Rapid-Response World by David La Piana Written for those "frustrated and dissatisfied with the traditional approach to strategic planning," this book by David La Piana, a nonprofit consultant, speaker, and author, seeks to make the strategic-planning process more efficient, flexible, and focused. At the beginning of the book, Mr. La Piana divides the goals of nonprofit groups into a "strategy pyramid" designed to help staff members decide whether a particular plan or action relates to an "operational," or administrative, strategy; a "programmatic" strategy, developed using the staff capabilities and resources now available; or an "organizational" strategy, which takes into account long-term trends and opportunities. Mr. La Piana gives illustrated examples of each type of approach and explains in following chapters how nonprofit groups can best map out their plans. One example he uses is the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which reviewed its investment policies when it was criticized for investing in corporations whose products were in conflict with its charitable mission. The foundation decided to continue to avoid investments in tobacco companies, but would otherwise invest in the businesses that brought in the most dollars. "The choice of a financial strategy (an operational strategy) that supports rather than thwarts its mission (an organizational strategy) is valuable," he writes. "The foundation now knows better why it will stick with this particular strategy: it has become more conscious of the reasoning behind its choice." Publisher: Fieldstone Alliance, 60 Plato Boulevard East, Suite 150, St. Paul, Minn. 55107; (651) 556-4500 or (800) 274-6024; fax (651) 556-4517; books@fieldstonealliance.org; http://www.fieldstonealliance.org; 208 pages; $32.95; ISBN 978-0-940069-65-7. Award By:
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