Monday, December 15, 2014

Reader Results Are In!: Good Strategy vs Great Plan

And the winner is . . . Good Strategy by 63% to 37%!

This was fun and thanks to everyone for playing along.  In fact, it was so fun that I am thinking of turning this into a mid-term question for my grad class on Nonprofit Strategy at Maryland.

Is “Good Strategy” the “right” answer?

It all depends on your reasoning.

A number of people pointed out that the only way for a Plan to be “Great” is for it to be based upon a Great Strategy.  Aha!  This was a pretty good answer.  Holding this assumption then you get BOTH a Great Strategy and a Great Plan.  So those of you who pointed this out definitely get an “A.”

Another “A” answer for the Good Strategy option is from friend and former student Rahul Shah who points out:

“A great plan would be useless if the overall strategy does not guide the organization towards achieving their mission. The strategy is really what incorporates the mission, vision, organizational goals and much more as you know. If you can't clearly zero in on the intended impact, a great plan will not ensure you are working in the desired direction. This is why I believe a good strategy is more critical than a great plan (yet we can't deny that both are still very important!).”

Yes, Rahul, we can’t deny that both are important – vital actually.  Thanks to everyone for participating.  And with that, we are closing up the Blog Shop for 2014.  Happy Holidays to all and I’ll be back in touch in the New Year. 


For more ideas on how you can lead breakthroughs in your organization, follow this blog and check out my web site at www.SheehanNonprofitConsulting.com   You will find free resources you can download, including a Breakthrough Strategy Workbook that you can download at no cost.  You can also check out my book, Mission Impact:  Breakthrough Strategies for Nonprofits, and buy it if you are interested.  And you can follow Sheehan Nonprofit Consulting on Facebook.

Monday, December 1, 2014

Quick Reader Poll: Good Strategy vs Great Plan

Which would you prefer?

Imagine that the proverbial magic genie appeared at your door and offered you either a “good strategy” for your future or a “great plan.”

Which would you choose?  Just send me a quick email at robsheehan@aol.com to let me know.  You don’t have to provide your reasoning, but if you do then I’ll provide some summaries of reader comments when I report the results next time.

Please respond in the next week, by December 9!  Thanks!





For more ideas on how you can lead breakthroughs in your organization, follow this blog and check out my web site at www.SheehanNonprofitConsulting.com   You will find free resources you can download, including a Breakthrough Strategy Workbook that you can download at no cost.  You can also check out my book, Mission Impact:  Breakthrough Strategies for Nonprofits, and buy it if you are interested.  And you can follow Sheehan Nonprofit Consulting on Facebook.