Visual Strategy A Workbook for Strategy Mapping in Public and Nonprofit Organizations

This highly visual workbook is a step-by-step guide for individuals and groups to developing a strategy map. The workbook will make strategy visual and help users see patterns across mission, goals, strategies and actions while helping to identify areas of alignment and misalignment, and determine where elements are needed, missing or not useful in a strategic plan.

The book directly supports the following chapters in the main text, Strategic Planning in Public and Nonprofit Organizations, 4e:

Chapter 4: Clarifying Organizational Mandates and Mission
Chapter 5: Assessing the Environment to Indentify Strengths and Weaknesses
Chapter 6: Indentifying Strategic Issues Facing the Organization
Chapter 7; Formulating and Adopting Strategies and Plans to Manage the Issues
Chapter 8: Establishing an Effective Organizational Vision for the Future

The primary components of the book are an Introduction to Mapping and Strategy Maps followed by seven chapters with detailed examples, worksheets process guidelines and an articulation of the outcomes and deliverables that might or should be sought when using mapping in each scenario.

SUBSTANTIVE CHAPTERS:

2.    Getting Started. The chapter will include sections on: recognizing when mapping can be helpful, facilitation guidance, and logistics and supplies needed. The chapter will also include an introduction to the formalisms of mapping and general guidance on how to create a good map. Worksheets will help the reader create a personal strategic plan around something he or she wants to do personally or professionally.

3.    Clarifying Organizational Mandates and Mission. The chapter will emphasize how mapping can be used to clarify both the purpose of the strategic planning effort and also organizational purposes. The chapter will also emphasize that participants’ sense of the organization’s mission is like to change as a result of addressing issues and formulating strategies.

4.    Creating Strategies Out of an Assessment of Organizational Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Challenges or Threats. The chapter will show briefly how possible strategy elements can be drawn out of SWOC/T analyses

5.    Identifying Strategic Issues Facing the Organization and Figuring Out What Might Be Done About Them. The chapter will emphasize issues identification and management, with attention to questions of issue framing. This chapter and the next are in many ways the real heart of the workbook.

6.    Formulating and Adopting Strategies and Plans to Manage the Issues. The chapter will overlap some with the previous chapter, but in particular will emphasize pulling together ideas and information developed in Chapters 3 – 6.

7.    Establishing an Organizational Vision for the Future.  The workbook will show how to pull together purpose and key elements of strategies as a way of informing a vision of success for the organization.

8.    Summary and Conclusions.

Resource A. The Basics of Analyzing a Map

Resource B (perhaps). Action-Oriented Strategy Maps, Balanced Scorecard Maps, and Mind Maps – Comparisons and Contrasts.

Resource C. Where to Find Additional Resources

References.