Strategic Planning

We believe that nonprofit strategy at its best is about making smart strategic choices as the world changes around us and then taking action on those choices in real-time. Browse these resources to learn about our revolutionary approach to nonprofit strategic planning, including fresh perspectives, practical steps, and engaging processes that can help your organization move quickly from analysis to action and achieve sustainable impact.

Getting Started

The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution - Our popular book bringing a new perspective to nonprofit strategic planning for a rapid-response world

What is Strategy? - Use the Strategy Pyramid to explore the three levels of nonprofit strategy.

Principles for Strategy Development - A concise overview of five principles building organizational capacity for strategic thinking and acting on an ongoing basis

Play to Win: The Nonprofit Guide to Competitive Strategy - Our ground-breaking book on how nonprofits can successfully compete in order to advance their missions

Digging Deeper

Identity Statement - Learn how an Identity Statement incorporating the defining elements of your organization sets the stage for strategy development

Strategy Screen - The Strategy Screen is a powerful tool that makes decision-making criteria explicit and supports strategic thinking and acting

Get Back to Basics with the First Principle of Strategy Development: Part 1 of 2 - A brief article on the first steps of a successful strategy process

Build on Your Organization’s Strengths When Developing Strategy: Part 2 of 2 -  A brief article on leveraging competitive advantage

Business Model Risk Self-Assessment Questions - developed to accompany La Piana's April 2018 Learning Link Special Edition newsletter on tax policy

Using Real-Time Strategic Planning to Evaluate Partnerships - A brief article on how to evaluate whether a collaborative strategy is the right strategy

Don’t Neglect Investing in Your Message -  A brief article on the importance of nonprofit messaging, with tips for crafting a communications plan

Grand St. Settlement Case Study – An in-depth look at one organization’s experience developing strategy, and then bringing that strategy to life

Serving the Latino Community: Getting Beyond Translation - A brief article encouraging a strategic, not reactive, response to demographic shifts

Due Diligence Done Well: A Guide for Grantmakers - A practical guide developed in partnership with Grantmakers for Effective Organizations

Tool for Assessing Startup Nonprofits: A Due Diligence Supplement - A resource for evaluating very new organizations