Before Your Next Nonprofit Strategic Plan: Build the Capacity to Act

On my first day as executive director of a regional nature center, I found a typewritten note outlining the responsibilities of the position. It was a long list. There was much less guidance about how to carry it out.

I remember sitting with that note, trying to understand where to begin.

The organization was facing a six-figure deficit, a difficult leadership transition, and more work than its small team could reasonably manage. Then COVID closed our doors and disrupted the programs, relationships, and revenue we depended on.

There were days when I felt very much alone. I cared deeply about the mission and wanted to be useful, but I was still learning the organization while making decisions that could not wait.

Looking back, I can see how much pressure I put on myself to have the answers. I can also see how much better the work became as staff, board members, and I developed a shared understanding of what needed attention—and what we could realistically accomplish together.

Over six years, we moved from financial distress toward greater stability, strengthened the organization, and created opportunities to invest in its future. The progress took time. It depended on people bringing their experience, commitment, and willingness to work through difficult questions.

That experience changed how I think about leadership and nonprofit strategic planning.

A plan becomes useful when the people responsible for it understand the organization well enough to make sound commitments—and have the support to carry them out.

What I Learned About Planning

During my tenure, I worked with plans that asked more of the organization than we could deliver. I also experienced a planning process whose ambitions were difficult to translate into daily work.

The intentions were good. The connection between the vision and our operating reality needed more attention.

We became better at planning as we became better at understanding ourselves: our finances, our responsibilities, our strengths, and the limits of our capacity. We learned to choose priorities more carefully and to recognize that every new commitment required time, money, and someone able to follow through.

I came to appreciate that a retreat can help people find direction. The months afterward determine whether that direction becomes progress.

You do not need to resolve every organizational challenge before planning. You do need enough clarity to make responsible choices.

For boards and executive leaders preparing for their next strategic plan, I would begin with four conversations.

1. Understand Your Financial Health and Organizational Capacity

Before committing to new goals, establish a clear picture of the organization you have today.

Can you rely on your financial reports? Do you understand cash flow, available unrestricted funds, and existing obligations? Does your staff have room for additional work? Are facilities and systems supporting the mission, or consuming time and resources you have not fully accounted for?

These questions can be uncomfortable, especially when people have been working hard to hold things together. Approach them with curiosity and respect.

A capacity assessment should help people understand what the organization can sustain, where it needs support, and which problems deserve attention first.

Ask together: What can we responsibly commit to with the people, resources, and systems we have?

2. Clarify How the Board and Executive Will Work Together

A strategic plan creates commitments for both governance and management.

The board needs to understand its role in setting direction, approving resources, supporting the executive, and reviewing progress. The executive needs clarity about authority, expectations, and the decisions that require board involvement.

That understanding matters particularly in a small nonprofit, where people often serve in several roles and the boundaries can become blurred.

Have the conversation before uncertainty becomes frustration. Agree on how decisions will be made, what information the board needs, and how concerns will be raised.

Ask together: Are we clear about who decides, who carries out the work, and how we will support one another?

3. Choose Priorities—and Make Room for Them

Mission-driven organizations rarely lack worthwhile ideas. Choosing among them is harder.

Consider what your organization does especially well, what your community needs most, and what you can realistically sustain. Select a small number of priorities that deserve concentrated effort.

Then address the question that is often missing from strategic planning: What will we stop, reduce, or postpone?

If every existing responsibility remains and every new initiative is added, the plan can become another source of strain. Making room for priorities is part of leadership.

Ask together: Which few commitments matter most, and what will we change to give them a fair chance of success?

4. Give Each Priority a Practical Path Forward

For each priority, identify an accountable person, the resources required, meaningful milestones, and a way to recognize progress.

Agree on a regular review schedule. Use those conversations to learn what is working, identify obstacles, and make decisions while there is still time to adjust.

Funding changes. Staff members leave. Facilities need unexpected attention. Community needs evolve. A useful plan helps an organization respond thoughtfully as circumstances change.

People should be able to raise a concern or acknowledge a delay early, while there is an opportunity to help.

Ask together: Who owns the next step, what support do they need, and when will we review progress?

You Do Not Have to Carry Every Answer

One of the most valuable lessons I took from those years was learning to seek perspective sooner.

Experience helped me recognize patterns. It also helped me become more comfortable saying, “I need another perspective on this.”

Leadership can feel lonely, particularly when the organization is under pressure and others are looking to you for reassurance. A trusted colleague, board partner, mentor, or outside adviser can help you sort through the situation and decide what deserves your attention.

You may still face difficult choices. Having someone thoughtful beside you can make those choices clearer and the responsibility more manageable.

Today, that is the perspective I bring to my work with mission-driven organizations. I listen carefully, help leaders examine the realities in front of them, and share what experience has taught me.

I want leaders to be able to appreciate what they are learning while they are still doing the work—to recognize progress, understand their own limits, and find some satisfaction along the way.

The difficult beginning is part of my story. So are the people who helped, the progress we made, and the judgment I developed through the experience.

You do not have to learn every lesson the hard way. Bringing experienced help into the conversation early can give you perspective, help you avoid costly missteps, and prepare you to take the reins with greater confidence.

That is what I want my consulting work to accomplish. I share what I know, help you work through what needs attention, and leave you better equipped to lead. The sooner you can move forward without me, the better I have done my job.