As organizations reset their business strategies, strategic planning for 2020-2021 can no longer be the type that lasts for months or relates to a strategy that is fixed until the next annual review. The business context is changing too fast and too radically, and scenario plans, strategies and strategic plans need to streamline accordingly.

At a functional level, strategic planning defines the roadmap for executing the choices and actions required to meet strategic goals — which reflect the function’s contribution to the enterprise business model and goals.

A waste-free planning approach works from the beginning to quickly produce a clear, eff ective, measurable, communicable plan by focusing exclusively on the following key components: 1. A few metrics that define the function’s current and target end state 2. The most critical assumptions underpinning the plan 3. The key initiatives required to achieve the end state 4. A concise statement that distills and communicates the strategy Eff ective execution therefore rides on the following four imperatives.