Do you involve employees in strategic planning? Most people think that strategy is a leader’s responsibility and not everyone else’s. An employee once told me, “CEOs do strategy; we do the everyday work.” This mindset couldn’t be further from the truth, but it’s prevalent.

When you involve employees in strategic planning, good things happen. First, people begin to understand that strategy is something they do every day and execute it in their daily tasks and project work. Second, they become more engaged in the process because they can ask questions and have a voice.

In this week’s episode of Reflect Forward: Advice From a CEO, I share how we involved our employees in strategic planning this year and the results. Hint: outstanding. We tried something new so every employee could weigh in before we finalized the strategic plan and the feedback was fantastic. We received some excellent ideas to integrate, and everyone appreciated being part of the process.

I also offer tips on thinking and going about strategic planning and ways to involve your employees throughout the process. Vision, buy-in, feedback, discipline, and focus are critical when developing a strategy.

You can follow these tips, even if you aren’t a CEO and your executive leadership doesn’t involve employees in the strategic planning process. Nothing stops you from reviewing company streety with your team members, getting their opinions and feedback, and engaging them in the process from a team perspective. Great leaders know how to get the best out of their teams and how you lead your team matters. Even if it’s different than how executive management leads, don’t be afraid to try this process. Your employees will appreciate the effort.

Question of the Week

This week’s question comes from a friend who asked, “What are you reading now?” I wanted to share this question because I am reading a different type of book. The Premonition: A Pandemic Story by Michael Lewis is a fascinating look at why the world, especially the United States, was so ill-prepared for the Covid-19 pandemic. I’ve learned much about how public health departments and the CDC work. The stories are well told and it’s very insightful. I highly recommend it.

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