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The Strategic Planning event, if done constructively, is always confronting, argumentative and need we say, political. Various processes take different approaches, but no matter which process you have used to tackle your direction setting you now have a list of Initiatives that need to be rolled out.

It is not unusual that the Initiatives list is extensive. As a general rule, it would be quite easy to generate a list of at least a hundred issues for consideration in your business or division. Quite often strategic and tactical issues get thrown into the same pot, different understandings and different interpretations of what strategy is can lead to a large bucket of "To-Do's".

The Problem with 'To-Do' Lists

The problem with having a bucket of To-Do's is that in most cases, nothing gets done.

The more issues there are, the less focused and the less impressive your rollout and results will be.

If you haven't already done so, your list needs to be culled to a manageable size to allow successful implementation. What is a manageable size is up to the size and scope of your operations; however, at a strategic level, a range of six-to-ten issues should be manageable to successful implementation and completion.

Three Ways to Rank Your Initiatives

Culling your Initiatives to a manageable level can be done in a number of ways. Having a decision filter as espoused by Decision Processes International is a good first step.

Further, some prioritising step must take place if you haven't already addressed this during your Strategic Planning Process. Depending on your strategic paradigm, the filtering process will vary.

You can rank your initiatives in terms of:

#1. Their relevance to your strategy

Some initiatives will have a high level of alignment to your future direction and others will be less important. Rank them on a scale of one to ten.

#2. Their Priority

Are they urgent or not? Can they wait? Rank them High, Medium or Low.

#3. Timescale

The timescale could be: Short-, Medium- or Long-term.

With clarity on your priorities and initiatives, you can accomplish your project efficiently and effectively.