Implementation: It is important to create a strategic plan that won’t sit on the shelf—the plan needs to be put into action. The strategic plan sets goals for three to five years. To implement these goals, you need to determine what needs to be completed this year, this quarter, and this month, and then identify who is responsible for overseeing that process. This process can take the form of an operational plan or action plan, both of which accomplish the same thing. It is up to the organization to determine the best path for their needs. For the remainder of this chapter, this process will be referred to as an action plan. The strategic plan should be implemented through projects and systems-building initiatives.

Keeping on task is critical for successful implementation. The Project Management chapter within this guide will offer direction. It will be critical to develop Key Progress Indicators (KPIs) within the action plan and track progress, which can be done through a variety of methods. Examples of dashboards and scorecards are provided below. Having outward-facing reporting will keep your partners engaged. Review of the action plan and KPIs should be completed at least monthly.

Successful implementation is dependent on team buy-in and the collective understanding of the identified goals, objectives, and strategies. It is important to remember that a strategic plan is a tool to help an organization succeed. For tools to be successful, people need to know how to use them effectively. Dedicate time during your leadership and staff meetings to review the strategic plan and the action plan. Periodic progress reviews should be incorporated at least monthly into your leadership meetings. In addition to keeping your internal team engaged and focused on implementation, periodic reviews may also help keep your community partners engaged and committed. Outward-facing dashboards and scorecards are useful in this regard (see examples below); these tools can help keep the broader partner community in the loop. As part of implementation, community partners should be involved in meetings on at least a semiannual or annual basis to provide feedback and assess the plan’s progress. This feedback loop promotes the concept of continuous quality improvement discussed below.

Continuous quality improvement: It is critical to monitor implementation. If your strategies don’t produce the results you were expecting, changes need to be made. While the strategic plan should be updated every three to five years, the underlying strategies and actions should be reviewed and modified on an as-needed basis. By putting tracking and project management into place with the objectives and the strategies, you can determine if you are making progress toward meeting your goals. Input is needed from the team focusing on implementation and the community partners that participated in the plan’s development.

Dashboards and Scorecards. Providing a visual picture of progress is a great way to support implementation and continuous quality improvement. A simple scorecard can be developed listing the goals, objectives, and strategies with the responsible party or owner, due date, and status.

Some entities have also created more complex tracking systems.

Examples Dashboards

• Wisconsin created a performance system on its website Wisconsin Key Performance Indicators: Key Performance Indicators that shows the KPIs the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families developed to measure performance and track progress toward meeting strategic goals and missions.
• The city of San Francisco developed a Safety Net Scorecard to track performance on its services.
• Vermont created a dashboard of its Early Childhood Action Plan that includes indicators of progress.