Course 1 - The Initial Agreement

The Plan for Planning — Setting Your Strategic Plan Up for Success

Many nonprofit leaders have experienced the frustration of a strategic planning process that consumes months of hard work, only to end up sitting on a shelf. It doesn't have to be this way.

In this introductory course, you will learn how to lay a strong foundation for an effective, engaging, and action-oriented strategic planning process. You will discover how to assemble the right leadership team, establish clear ground rules using an Initial Agreement, and set your organization up to build a roadmap that actually drives lasting impact.

What You'll Learn:

• Demystifying Strategic Planning: Understand why traditional planning fails and how to make yours effective and engaging.

• Team Alignment: Identify who needs to be at the planning table (and how many people to include) to avoid burnout and decision gridlock.

• The Initial Agreement: Learn how to set clear team expectations around communication, commitment, confidentiality, and conflict resolution before you begin.

• Next Steps: Get your team ready for environmental scanning and deep organizational insights.