From the outside in, a chamber of commerce looks like somewhere big things happen without much effort. You and your fellow businesses serve the community without breaking a sweat … right? If you’re on the inside, though, you know this is anything but the case. The good news is, a little bit of planning can enhance membership growth and impact significantly, all while making your job easier. This step-by-step guide will help you get started with the basics of chambers of commerce strategic planning so you can streamline your schedule, staff, and service. What is strategic planning? Strategic planning is when an organization defines its major directional goals in order to inform the rest of its decision-making, from finances to programs to staff and resource allocation. The strategic planning process allows you to set priorities, use your capital wisely, and delegate with precision. If you are currently on the board of a chamber of commerce, or if you’re thinking of starting a new chamber of commerce, it behooves you to think carefully about the direction you want to take. Planning and foresight are critical components of leadership, and it’s worth every minute of your time to get them right. Benefits of strategic planning for chambers of commerce The good news is, strategic planning leads to many benefits for your chamber, including: Improved decision-making. Enhanced member engagement and satisfaction Better resource allocation Long-term sustainability and growth Increased community impact How is a strategic plan different than a business plan? But, you’re thinking, we already have a business plan. How is strategic planning any different? Isn’t that redundant? The truth is, while chambers of commerce strategic planning might sound like a fancy term for business planning, it’s so much more. A business plan is a relatively short-term document, describing what you’re doing now and in the near future to make your organization tick. That’s important, but it’s not the same as strategy. A strategic plan is a long-term vision for the future. It includes your major goals for growth and impact, expansion, staff, and more. Only with a strategic plan can you ensure your business plan is really doing the trick. Preparing for strategic planning The key word here is “strategic,” which means jumping in feet-first isn’t the ticket. Instead, you should take a concerted step-by-step approach that starts with your team, employs analytics, and clarifies your mission and vision. Assemble a strategic planning team First and foremost, identify the key members to include in the planning team. That includes board members, staff, and volunteers. If your current board is too small for the size of your chamber of commerce, or if you need a fresh infusion of ideas, it might be time for a round of board member recruitment. Once you have people in place, outline the roles and responsibilities of each team member. Conduct a SWOT analysis A SWOT analysis is critical at the outset. It stands for: Strengths: Identify the internal strengths of the Chamber. Weaknesses: Recognize internal weaknesses. Opportunities: Highlight external opportunities. Threats: Examine external threats. Once you’ve identified all of these, you can use them to inform decision-making. Define your mission and vision Mission and vision are critical. While many organizations put them in their business plan, others take a more cut-and-dry approach initially. If you didn’t do it upfront, it’s time to define them now. Mission statement: Craft a clear mission statement that reflects the chamber’s purpose, such as how you’ll help your small town create more commerce. Vision statement: Develop a vision statement that outlines the long-term goals and aspirations of your organization, complete with what the future looks like when you’ve fulfilled them. Setting goals and objectives If you don’t know where you’re going, you can’t hope to end up there. That’s why, before you create your plan, you need to establish your aims. Goals and objectives help prove that you have accomplished what you set out to do. Not only is that a good tool for you to determine course corrections for next year, it’s important to show your donors and members that what you’re doing works. Establish SMART goals First up in setting goals via chambers of commerce strategic planning: make them SMART. That means: Specific: Ensure goals are specific and clearly defined. Measurable: Make goals measurable to track progress. Achievable: Set realistic and attainable goals. Relevant: Align goals with the chamber’s mission and vision. Time-bound: Assign a timeframe for achieving each goal. If you put every goal and objective through this filter, you’ll do a much better job creating ones you can actually achieve. Prioritize objectives Next up, take those well-crafted goals and prioritize them. First, rank objectives based on importance and urgency. Then, allocate resources effectively to meet prioritized objectives. Developing action plans Now that you’ve got your preparation and goals nailed down, it’s time to figure out what to do. These are the concrete, measurable steps you will take to achieve your objectives, grow your membership, and increase your impact on businesses and the community. Create detailed action steps Your action plan should be detailed and time-based. It should include networking events, conferences, and any other big activities. It should also include day-to-day tasks, fundraising goals, and clear delegation. Among the main action steps are: Tasks and activities: List the specific tasks and activities needed to achieve each goal. Responsibilities: Assign responsibilities to team members for each task. Timelines: Develop a timeline for completing each task. Budgeting and resource management Budgeting is no one’s favorite task, but it’s critical to nail down and stick to a budget that works for your chamber. Your budget should include financial planning – the main categories needed to implement the strategic plan – as well as resource allocation, e.g. determining how resources (time, money, and personnel) will be allocated. Implementation and monitoring Once you put your plan into action, the monitoring needs to start right away. Otherwise, you might miss important details required to make your plan succeed. Alternatively, you could fail to notice factors that obstruct it. Either way, you need to keep a close eye on implementation. Here’s how it works. Launch the strategic plan Before launching, you need to communicate the plan to all stakeholders and then provide the necessary training to staff and volunteers. You must also establish the key performance indicators you will use to measure progress. Monitor progress and performance As soon as you’ve launched, it’s time to start monitoring. That means conducting regular reviews and updates of the strategic plan. Where needed, you’ll need to change direction. Evaluating and adjusting the plan Monitoring naturally leads to analysis. At least, it should. Make sure you have people on your team, as well as the right tools, to help you analyze your activities and their success. Assess outcomes As you reach important milestones, you should evaluate the outcomes of the strategic plan against the set goals. Gather feedback from stakeholders and the community at the end of each quarter and year, as well as at the culmination of big projects or fundraisers. Make necessary adjustments When needed, make adjustments. These come in two forms: Adaptation: Adjust the strategic plan based on evaluation results and feedback. Continuous improvement: Emphasize the importance of continuous improvement in strategic planning, then live by that motto. Common challenges and how to overcome them Several challenges exist that might get in the way of your chambers of commerce strategic planning. Think: Resistance to change Limited resources Lack of member buy-in Inflexible planning You can avoid these roadblocks by intentionally cultivating a culture of open-mindedness, creativity, out-of-the-box thinking, and flexibility. Remember: A chamber of commerce involves many people. You might think something is working, but other team members disagree or the data doesn’t bear it out. Make sure to embrace all possibilities to make the most of your team, your funding, and your potential. Best practices for effective strategic planning If you want your chambers of commerce strategic planning to achieve your goals and objectives, a few best practices will help you get there. Engage stakeholders throughout the process Use data and research to inform decisions Regularly review and update the strategic plan Foster a culture of continuous improvement Communicate the plan and progress to members and stakeholders It might take extra time, but it’s well worth it to run every step and course correction through the lens of these best practices before taking action. Final thoughts At the end of the day, chambers of commerce strategic planning isn’t so much difficult as it is technical. Taking careful steps toward your goals will help you get there, and bring you all kinds of benefits along the way. However, that will only happen if you get started. At risk of overusing a (very true) cliché, there’s no time like the present to design or refine your strategic planning efforts. If you’re not sure where to begin, it’s time to connect with MemberClicks. All you have to do is get in touch today!