A Strategic Look at the Strategy of Planning

Putting Strategy in Its Place

The strategy involved in planning begins with an understanding of how to reach goals. 

1. The goal is the main “big thing” you want to accomplish. 

2. A strategy is the path you take to achieve a goal. 

3. Built into your strategy will be objectives. 

4. The tactics you use to reach each objective are the tools that make it happen.

Example: Planned Weight Loss

Think of it this way. Say your goal is to lose weight.

Goal: Lose 20 pounds in 4 months

Strategy: A mix of diet and exercise.

Objectives:

• Research (which food, which gym)

• Purchase a gym membership

• Buy smaller dinner plates

• Empty cupboards of high-calorie snack foods

• Replace previous foods with diet-approved items

Tactics:

• Stick to the new diet

• Exercise at the gym

Take note! Gym memberships and smaller plates are objectives framed in your strategy. Gym memberships and owning smaller plates won’t help you lose weight. It is the actual tactic of eating less and exercising that enables you to reach your goal.

Strategy in Action on the Worksite 

The strategy of planning can be helpful across the board, even with minor, bothersome complications. Say you’ve spotted a problem in the field. Once you identify an issue in your construction company's systems, you can set a goal to address it.

Let’s say you have a crew that arrives at the jobsite only to discover they’ve left the yard with some of the necessary tools and a few pieces of essential materials left behind.

And, this isn’t the first time.

You’ve spotted the issue – inefficiency.

Goal: Increase field employee efficiency by X% regarding necessary tools and materials on all projects within X months of X year.

Strategy: Discover and implement methods to ensure that each vehicle leaving the yard is stocked and well-equipped for every job.

Objective: Develop systems and checklists to ensure that each vehicle leaves the yard prepared for every job daily.

Tactics:

• Establish the correct chain of command regarding who is responsible for each step of stocking company vehicles. 

• Be transparent with employees regarding costs and lost opportunity costs resulting from inefficiency.

• Introduce suitable incentives for superior performance.

• Provide easily accessible checklists.

Often, as you take the steps toward your goal, you discover unforeseen problems. You can meet the challenges, even change path more easily, if you’ve already outlined the goal, strategy, objectives, and tactics. Yes, that means documenting the procedures. 

Document the Strategy

The strategy of planning is likely something you already use in one way or another. The approach of planning involves processes for reaching goals, even if they haven’t been formalized. Yet, if you do document the procedures, you’ll be better able to notice missing pieces. You’ll also be better at following through and taking corrective action.

Manage the Strategy of Planning

The strategy of planning can be streamlined (and documented) by using the proper software. When you can make informed decisions with real-time visibility through the use of a cloud-based solution, you remove multiple obstacles while gaining insight. 

The SaaS that the team of The Profit Constructors recommends for seeing: 

• Project profitability

• Budget status

• WIPs

• Job costs

• And more

Is Knowify.

Putting Knowify to work in your construction business means strategy, objectives, and tactics are already in place (taking the guesswork out of the planning), allowing you to move forward or course-correct on projects as needed. 

Want to put the strategy of planning to work for you with a top-notch accounting and advisory team that “gets” Knowify? You’ve come to the right place.  

Ambitious Construction Contractors look to The Profit Constructors to provide advocacy in dealing with:

• Clients and customers

• Employees and subcontractors

• Vendors and service providers

• Governmental entities 

Working with The Profit Constructors gives Construction Contractors the means to organize their operations in ways that help them:

• Remain informed

• Avoid hassles

• Reduce risks

• Be future-ready

Ready for action? Or want to know more? Contact us today to schedule a complimentary discovery call. 866-629-7735