Vol. 75, No. 11, November 2002

Creating a Business Plan

Managing Our Future

by Pat Ballman

Do Your eyes glaze over, as mine used to, when you hear the term "strategic planning"? I have come to realize that proper "strategic planning" is just good business planning. And that is what the State Bar is in the process of doing.

The Bar is in the business of being an association of and for its members. Because membership is mandatory, it has tried to be all things to all people. But no association, especially one composed of highly educated and independent professionals, can hope to satisfy every member all the time. It is neither good association policy nor good business.

Given the limited resources facing all membership organizations, the increasing competition for CLE dollars, the rising cost of technology without yet realizing its full benefits, and the increasing needs of its members, the Bar is faced with a decision. It can continue to try to fulfill all demands and go the way of such hallowed public service organizations as the Moose and the Lions clubs, or focus its mission, and provide real value to its members and the public.

Strategic planning, which is good, long-term business planning, provides the tools to succeed. Business planning gives major stakeholders the means to jointly envision the organization's future, identify agreed-upon goals, apportion limited resources to accomplish the agreed-upon goals, and measure the organization's success in achieving its goals.

The challenges facing the State Bar are many and always changing. Structurally, the Bar's volunteer leadership changes annually, and is divided among the officers, the Board of Governors, 25 sections, four divisions, and approximately 45 committees.

The fact that institutional memory largely resides with staff presents another structural challenge. While memos and minutes also provide a record, staff have a better memory of Bar activities because staff spend every working day implementing policies and programs. While this is inevitable in any organization where policy is set by an outside board of directors and managed by full-time staff, it creates a potential for conflict between staff goals and member goals.

Without a plan, this diffuse leadership can create wide swings in policies and programs from year to year. Programs can be created and expanded with little consideration given to any corresponding contraction or elimination of programs that provide minimal value. The organization also can fall prey to an especially persuasive leader who fervently believes in his or her vision of the future.While the leader's effectiveness can exhilarate the organization in the short run, the long-run impact can be expensive.

A long-term business plan, properly created and implemented, provides the tools to overcome these obstacles. Through strategic planning, Bar leaders agree on a mission. The plan enumerates the organization's goals to fulfill its mission and defines what the organization means by success. These measures of success provide yearly benchmarks as the organization moves toward its goals. Committees, sections, divisions, and others determine how each Bar entity will further the strategic goals through appropriate programs and projects. Periodic reviews of the plan keep it fresh by adjusting goals or objectives in response to changing needs or other outside forces. Because each Bar entity will develop its individual action plan and provide regular input to update the long-term plan, each member is a participant in the success of the plan and of the Bar.

The Bar's Strategic Planning Committee has worked all year to develop a sound strategic plan, which, when implemented, will ensure that all Bar programs and projects further our mission and goals. The plan was presented to the Board of Governors at its Nov. 8 meeting and will be available on WisBar when the November minutes are approved. By operating according to a sound plan, we can be sure that the Bar will not only survive, but thrive.

Wisconsin Lawyer