Build a Better Strategic Plan for Your Function

Turn your strategy into action with these tools and templates.

Streamline strategic planning for your function

Download Strategic Planning Templates

Build a strategic plan you can use.

By clicking the "Continue" button, you are agreeing to the Gartner Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

Contact Information

All fields are required.

  • Step 2 of 3

    Back

    By clicking the "Continue" button, you are agreeing to the Gartner Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

    Company Information

    All fields are required.

    Type company and location
    Optional Optional

  • Step 3 of 3

    Back

    By clicking the "Submit" button, you are agreeing to the Gartner Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

    Strategic plans are often created and then forgotten until the next planning cycle begins.

    That’s one reason that strategic execution often takes too long and costs more than originally anticipated. In fact, only 8% of strategy leaders report a success rate of 90% or more on long-term strategic initiatives.

    Done well, a strategic plan turns the enterprise strategy into specific initiatives and actions that provide a clear roadmap to execute the strategy and meet business goals.

    By using simple tools and templates, functional leaders can map and communicate their priorities on a page or two and make it easier for everyone to understand why and how to execute the plan.

    3 Things to Know About Strategy When Doing Strategic Planning

    A clear tie between strategy and strategic plans

    It’s easy to confuse the essence of strategy with a more detailed strategic plan, especially when conditions are changing fast and the horizon for change is short, but Job No. 1 is to know the difference and why it matters.

    • Strategy defines the long-term direction of the enterprise, articulating what the enterprise will do to compete and succeed in its chosen markets or, for the public sector, what the agency will do to achieve its mission.
    • Strategic plans define how the enterprise will realize its long-term ambitions. Functional strategic plans define the roadmap of initiatives and portfolio of investments required to achieve those strategic objectives. In it, functional leaders document the choices and actions needed for the function to deliver on its contribution to the enterprise business model and goals.
    • Operational plans deal with the execution of specific projects and changes, as well as any operational tasks not contained in the strategic plan.

    If you’re responsible for a functional strategy, that means creating strategic frameworks focused only on what’s material. Focus on critical assumptions, relevant metrics and the key initiatives your function needs to contribute effectively to organizational goals, even as they shift.

    A way to scope key trends and disruptions

    It’s critical to scan and respond to trends and disruptions that could impact your strategy and strategic plans — and for which you need working strategic assumptions. 

    To ignore or devalue these areas of disruption, now or in the longer term, could leave critical gaps in your strategic planning process — as you overlook both threats and opportunities for your value proposition and competitive positioning.

    A recent Gartner survey found that only 38% of organizations have a formal process for this type of trendspotting. Gartner scopes the seven key areas of disruptive change as a “Tapestry” of trends — to reinforce the interconnected nature of the acronymized trend areas (TPESTRE). 

    Executives across functions and teams can use this TPESTRE construct to identify key trends — from augmented human experience to purpose-driven organizations and digitally enabled sustainability — and analyze their impact, and build strategic assumptions as they begin to map what actions might be needed in terms of business models, people/capabilities and IT systems.

    Adaptive approach to strategy

    The faster the rate of change in operating conditions and the more disruptions you need to integrate into long-term strategy, the more adaptive your strategy models must be.

    An adaptive strategy approach is what makes sure your organization can spot new opportunities earlier and respond more quickly than your competitors — making you most likely to succeed in a dynamic digital world.

    A truly adaptive strategy approach is consistent with four core practices designed to move the enterprise from a rigid, top-down, calendar-based process to a more adaptive, event-driven strategy approach. Functional strategy can incorporate the same principles.
    Download your function-specific strategic planning template
    Commonly Asked Questions About Strategic Planning

    “Strategy” creates a common understanding of what the enterprise wants to achieve and what it needs to do to achieve it. Strategic plans bridge the gap from that overall direction to the specific projects and day-to-day actions that ultimately execute the strategy.

    Strategic planning starts with setting strategy at the enterprise level, but that strategy must then be turned into actions. The three levels of strategic planning typically refer to corporate vs. business-unit and functional. The four types of plans are typically strategic, operational, tactical and contingency.

    An effective strategic plan helps leaders improve the focus and responsiveness of planning activities critical to achieving their long-term strategy. Leaders responsible for functional strategy can use strategic frameworks to focus their teams on what’s most material. 

    To build a successful strategic plan with a consistent and sequential process, functional leaders should:

    1. Ensure consistent usage of terms to minimize confusion in strategic planning and set a baseline for collaboration.
    2. Build a strong foundation for more detailed planning by setting or pressure-testing mission, vision and goal statement first.
    3. Streamline stakeholder input by limiting mission, vision and goal-setting to senior leadership, and leaving objective, action-plan, measure and metric development to managers with execution expertise.

    The key elements of a successful strategic plan include:

    • Mission and vision. The organization’s mission articulates its reasons for being, and the vision lays out where the organization hopes to be. The strategic plan, which links the two, must be adaptive enough to respond if the context changes during execution.
    • Strategic assumptions. To build a successful strategic plan, leadership should scope for trends and disruptions, and assess their potential impact on enterprise goals.
    • Strategic plan design. A rigorous strategic planning design effectively translates the strategy into plans that can and will be executed. Poor plans lead to poor execution.
    • Mission: Organization’s purpose. 
    • Vision: Desired future state. 
    • Goal: Aim. 
    • Objective: How to reach goals. 
    • Action plan: What’s needed to achieve objectives. 
    • Measures and metrics: Track progress toward goals. 

    Strategic planning “systems” refer to the tools used to document strategic plans. Gartner urges organizations not to focus on strategy in terms of the document they’re creating. Instead, focus on turning strategy into an easily communicated action plan.

    The strategic action plan is a formal document that serves as the primary source of information for how objectives will be executed, monitored, controlled and closed. Many organizations also deploy an associated but separate “action plan” for achieving the operating model. 

    Measures are observable outcomes that allow organizations to evaluate the efficacy of their action plans. Metrics quantify those observed changes to enable an organization to concretely quantify its progress and stay aligned to its chosen measures.

    Related Content

    Webinar

    The 7 Key Trend Areas to Factor Into Your Strategic Planning

    Register Now

    Article

    Lead Through Volatility With Adaptive Strategy

    Read Now

    Article

    Building Strategic Assumptions: Don’t Ignore These 7 Drivers of Change

    Read Now

    Work With Us

    Learn how you can work
    one-on-one with Gartner to achieve your goals.

    Become A Client