In contrast to traditional strategic planning where the plan is developed in a day, put on the shelf and dusted off again in three years, agile strategic planning is a continuous loop that involves developing a long-term direction, goals and strategy and updating them on an annual basis, coupled with  quarterly reviews of progress, and monthly tracking of completed actions that mark progress toward achieving the goals and ultimately the vision. Agile strategic planning does indeed, require more work on the part of organizational leadership, and the organization as a whole, but the likelihood of achieving the desired results is also much greater when active steps are taken to actualize the vision.

The foundation of agile strategic planning is the organization’s purpose, its mission, and values, which all contribute to the vision. When getting ready to implement the “agile” part, revisit those decisions to make sure they are aligned. Then with a clear vision in hand, start at the vision end and walk the future back in actions until it reaches today.  That is, define the actions that are needed during the entire planning horizon to accomplish the vision and the major goals that must be achieved, within what time frame.  Divide the actions into an annual plan, quarterly plans to guide movement toward the goals, and monthly plans to guide the work.