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We design and facilitate inclusive, effective strategic planning processes specifically for public sector and civic organizations.

Two women participating in dot voting activity at Farmer's Market Pop-Up Event for Hayward's Strategic PlanWe believe that the process of strategic planning is just as important as the product. We also know that process must be adapted for the unique challenges and opportunities of our public sector partners, especially the need to get things done efficiently while including everyone.

Developing a vision and translating that strategic direction into specific priorities and work plans provides an opportunity to create deep alignment and trust to support collaboration across teams and organizations. Ultimately, our proven Strategic Roadmap model creates a direct line-of-sight between what staff and stakeholders do on a daily basis and how it achieves the overall vision.

Our stakeholder-driven approach to strategic planning leads to tangible, improved outcomes:

  • We collect and integrate client and stakeholder input throughout the process.
  • By regularly engaging stakeholders and cultivating ownership of the process, we identify and address cultural elements so they don’t impede strategic execution.
  • A refined vision or mission backed up by an actionable work plan that clarifies how staff priorities achieve an organization’s greatest purpose.
  • You build staff understanding and ownership of the strategic roadmap process so that you can carry the work forward, with or without our support.
CivicMakers strategic planning process
Our strategic planning process

The steps in our strategic roadmap process typically include:

  1. Discover & Assess. What have past planning efforts looked like? Who needs to participate and how? What is the project timeline and work plan?
  2. Mission & Vision. What is your primary purpose? What do you hope to accomplish over the next three to five years (or longer)?
  3. Priorities & Projects. What are the critical priorities and projects that will achieve your vision?
  4. Metrics & Enablement. How will you measure success? What obstacles need to be addressed for staff to be successful?
  5. Implement & Monitor. What organizational rhythms will keep you accountable for delivering on your plan?

At every step, we find ways to incorporate ongoing engagement with internal and external audiences to ensure stakeholders are aligned, or, if not, what tradeoffs need to be resolved to find alignment.

We’ve successfully employed this strategic roadmap process for annual Board and Council retreats and city-wide strategic plans, as well as more specific contexts such as smart city action plans and program-level planning efforts.

Explore our strategic planning work