A simple strategic plan for a small charity

This guide is for boards and directors of small charities who keep hearing they should "do a strategic plan" and aren't sure what that means, or worry it will take a year and a consultant. A strategic plan is a short, shared agreement about where your charity is going over the next two or three years, and how you'll know you're getting there. After reading, you'll know when a plan is worth the effort, who to involve, how to take an honest look at where you stand, how to set a few goals you can measure, and how to turn the plan into next year's budget and work.

There's no legal requirement to have one. But the New York Attorney General's guidance on board accountability notes that "periodic review of an organization's structure, procedures and programs" helps boards decide "what is working well and what practices the organization might want to change." A simple plan is one way to do that review on purpose.

When you need one, and when you don't

A plan is worth it when:

• you're facing a real choice: grow, merge, add a program, or stop one;
• the board and staff disagree, or aren't sure, about priorities;
• a major funder or a new leader is asking where you're headed; or
• the last plan is out of date and nobody uses it.

You probably don't need a big process if you're in your first year, if your work is steady and everyone agrees on it, or if you're in a crisis that needs action this month. For a very new charity, our one-page plan template is enough.

Keep it small

The U.S. Small Business Administration describes a plan as "a roadmap for how to structure, run, and grow" an organization, and offers a short "lean" format for people who "plan to regularly change and refine" their plan. The same idea works for a small charity: a few pages you actually use beat a binder nobody opens.

A good small-charity plan fits on two to four pages:

1. Mission, in one sentence.
2. Where we stand now: a short, honest summary.
3. Three to five goals for the next two or three years.
4. How we'll measure each goal.
5. Who leads each goal, and the first steps.
6. What it means for money: costs and how you'll pay for them.

Who to involve

• The board owns the plan and approves it.
• The director and staff know what's really happening and will carry it out.
• A few voices from outside: people you serve, volunteers, a funder or partner. A handful of short conversations or a simple survey is enough.

Name one person to keep the process moving, often the chair or the director. A volunteer facilitator from another charity can help a board talk openly; you can ask for one through the Exchange.

Step 1: An honest look at where you stand

Spend one meeting on four questions. Many people call this a SWOT: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

• What do we do well? Programs, people, reputation, relationships.
• Where do we struggle? Money, staff time, systems, board engagement.
• What's changing around us that could help? New needs, partners, funders.
• What could hurt us? Losing a funder, rising costs, a key person leaving.

Use real information where you have it: your program results, your finances, and what the people you serve tell you.

Step 2: Choose a few goals

Pick three to five goals that matter most for the next two or three years. Fewer is better. Each one should:

• connect clearly to your mission;
• be something you can actually influence; and
• come with a way to tell whether you got there.

For example: "Serve 30% more families at our two food pantries by 2028," "Have three months of operating costs in reserve," or "Recruit three new board members with finance and fundraising experience." Our guide to program design helps you shape program goals.

Step 3: Measures, owners and first steps

For each goal, write down:

• how you'll measure it, and where the number will come from;
• who leads it, a named person, not "the board";
• the first two or three steps, with dates.

Step 4: Connect it to money

A plan that ignores money is a wish list. For each goal, estimate what it will cost and how you'll pay for it. Then build those costs into your next annual budget. Your plan also gives you the backbone of your case for support for donors and funders.

Step 5: Use it

• Approve it by a board vote and record it in the minutes.
• Share a short version with staff, volunteers and funders.
• Check progress at board meetings, perhaps one goal per meeting.
• Review it once a year, and update goals when things change.

Your strategic plan checklist

• We agreed why we need a plan now, or decided a one-page plan is enough
• The board, staff and a few outside voices were involved
• We took an honest look at strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats
• We chose no more than five goals, each tied to our mission
• Each goal has a measure, a named lead and first steps with dates
• The costs of the plan are in our budget
• The board approved the plan and checks progress at its meetings
• We review and update the plan once a year