New Book Offers Nonprofits Revolutionary Approach to Strategic Planning



A new book by award-winning author and thought leader David La Piana offers nonprofits a fast track to strategic planning. "The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution: Real-Time Strategic Planning in a Rapid-Response World" is the result of four years of foundation-funded research by La Piana Associates, Inc. on effective strategy formation.

"The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution" was written to help nonprofits reliably and efficiently produce powerful strategies -- patterns of behavior that will enhance their organization's success. The ultimate goal is to help nonprofits increase their capacity to be more strategic in thought and action on a day-to-day basis.

"Strategic planning should make the organization more 'strategic' -- that is, better able to meet the challenges of a dynamic environment," explains La Piana. "Experts stress that the most important outcome of strategic planning is to instill strategic thinking in the organization which leads to strategic action by management. Ironically, true strategy formation is not a role traditional strategic planning plays very often."

"The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution" presents planning as a cyclical, ongoing process called Real-Time Strategic Planning. This process has four main phases. Phase one asks an organization to answer the question "who are we" The organization clarifies its business model, identifies market trends, and articulates its competitive advantage. Finally, these elements help the organization create a memorable identity statement that grounds future strategy decisions.

Phase two involves creating a strategy screen. This screen enables an organization to quickly sort emerging strategies, eliminating those that are beyond its reach, outside its mission, or counter to its values. "The screen is critical," says La Piana. "Nonprofit staff are great at coming up with creative options -- but terrible at choosing among them."

The third phase looks at the question "where do we go next" and includes readying the organization to identify Big Questions. Big Questions are the strategic challenges or opportunities organizations face: for example, opportunities to restructure or merge, to adopt new technologies that streamline client care, or to change infrastructure.

The last phase looks for answers to the question "how do we get there" Using its strategy screen, the organization develops, tests, and quickly implements new strategies, sorting the successes and failures rapidly.

With each cycle the organization gets better at internalizing systems that keep it sensitive to its clients and environment -- ready to turn on a dime. The focus is on consistent and continuous assessment and adjustment.

The surprise for many nonprofit executives is that the majority of the Real-Time Strategic Planning process can be conducted in as little as a day. To that end, the book includes a compact disc with complete directions (a facilitator's guide) for leading a Real-Time Strategic Planning kick-off session. It also includes more than two dozen tools that organizations can use to continuously think and act strategically.

Conscious that many funders require a copy of the organization's strategic plan, the author also explains how to convert the results of Real-Time Strategic Planning into a standard plan.

"We're not throwing out the baby out with the bath water," adds La Piana. "Traditional planning helps the organization come together around a common vision and surface many opportunities. It is still an excellent first step for organizations that have never been rigorous about strategy. The process we've developed uses some of the standard tools of traditional strategic planning. But we've turned it on its head, focusing on action rather than on planning."

La Piana and his team of consultants piloted the Real-Time Strategic Planning process with more than thirty organizations and have engaged an additional thirty clients in the process over the past two years. "Nonprofit executives -- especially those who have been around the block a few times -- are pretty jaded about strategic planning. Our experience is that they love the final outcome of this process. Because the plans happen fast, the actual implementation begins right away, capturing the group's enthusiasm. These strategies don't wind up on the shelf. They wind up as real-world change."

About the Author

David La Piana is founder and president of La Piana Associates, Inc. (http://www.lapiana.org), a consulting firm specializing in solutions to the strategic issues faced by nonprofit organizations and their funders. A popular speaker, David is the author of many books for nonprofit leaders, including "The Nonprofit Mergers Workbooks" (Parts I and II) and "Play to Win: The Nonprofit Guide to Competitive Strategy."

About the Publisher

Fieldstone Alliance (formerly part of the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation) publishes practical books with a focus on nonprofit effectiveness, funder effectiveness, and community building. We also provide in-depth consulting expertise to help funders, nonprofits, collaboratives, networks, and intermediaries with organizational assessment, management planning, stakeholder analysis, and implementation of capacity-building efforts to increase results and impact. Web visitors will find many free reports on a variety of nonprofit and community development issues. You can also read back issues of their e-newsletter, "Tools You Can Use" which contains free management tools or ideas from their books. Visit: www.FieldstoneAlliance.org.

About the Book

The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution: Real-Time Strategic Planning in a Rapid-Response World (http://www.fieldstonealliance.org/productdetails.cfmSKU=069657)

by David La Piana

$32.95 (Discounts are available on bulk orders.)

7" x 10" softcover, 208 pages

ISBN 978-0-940069-65-7

Includes a CD-ROM with tools, worksheets, and a facilitator's guide.

To order, visit www.FieldstoneAlliance.org or call 1-800-274-6024.

Review Copies

A review copy of this (or any other) Fieldstone Alliance book is available for the asking! Contact Becky Andrews.

Contact Information

For the publisher:

Becky Andrews, Marketing Manager

Fieldstone Alliance

651-556-4503

bandrews @ FieldstoneAlliance.org

www.FieldstoneAlliance.org

For the author:

David La Piana is available for interviews and can be reached by e-mail at lapiana @ lapiana.org or through his web site at La Piana Associates, Inc. (http://www.lapiana.org).





New Book Offers Nonprofits Revolutionary Approach to Strategic Planning