strategic planning for networks
DESCRIPTION
Strategic planning. You know you should be doing more of it. But the way you normally do it requires lots of up-front time to do and lots of follow-up time to get buy-in. And frankly, you have trouble with the buy-in part. All that trouble, minimal follow-through.Great strategic planning processes are lightweight and participatory. This is nice-to-have for organizations, and it's critical for networks, where you don't have the benefit of hierarchy to influence its behavior. Networks will do what they do.In this Leadership Learning Community webinar, I describe how to do strategic planning for networks. I draw heavily from my experience leading the open strategic planning process for the Wikimedia movement, which drew over 1,000 participants and led to a movement-wide shift in focus on increasing reach and participation in developing countries. I share how you can leverage these types of processes for both your network and your organizationTRANSCRIPT
Strategic Planning for Networks
Eugene Eric Kim <[email protected]>Blue Oxen Associates
March 22, 2011
About Me
Principal, Cofounder of Blue Oxen Associates
About Me
Leadership Learning Community Board Member
Principal, Cofounder of Blue Oxen Associates
About Me
Collaboration!
Leadership Learning Community Board Member
Principal, Cofounder of Blue Oxen Associates
About Me
Collaboration!
Leadership Learning Community Board Member
Principal, Cofounder of Blue Oxen Associates
Wikimedia Strategic Planning (2009-2010)
1. Wikimedia's Challenge
2. Strategic Planning
3. Strategic Planning for Networks
1. Wikimedia's Challenge
2. Strategic Planning
3. Strategic Planning for Networks
279Language Versions of Wikimedia Projects
Wikimedia Foundation+ 30 independent chapters worldwide
#5 website in the world350 million visitors
#1 website in the world920 million visitors
40 employees 20,600 employees
$10,000,000 revenue $23,000,000,000 revenue
Source: comScore, Wikipedia (April 2010)
100,000Active Contributors Around the World
A Slice of the Community
In 2009, Wikimedia was aglobal movement with a vision...
Imagine a world in which every single human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge.
That's our commitment.
... but no collective strategyfor achieving this vision.
Strategic Planning for Networks?
How do you develop a movement-widefive-year strategy in a completely open,
collaborative way (the wiki way)?
1. Wikimedia's Challenge
2. Strategic Planning
3. Strategic Planning for Networks
Where are we now? Assessment
Where should we go? Visioning / Goal-Setting
How should we get there? Planning
Only 5% of the workforce understandstheir company's strategy.
Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton. The Strategy-FocusedOrganization. Harvard Business School Press: 2000.
The Plan Is Not the Point!
The Real Goal Is Activation
The Real Goal Is Activation
Alignment Around GoalsMatters Most
1. Wikimedia's Challenge
2. Strategic Planning
3. Strategic Planning for Networks
Networks Are People...
Networks Are People and Relationships
Working Wikily
Working Hierarchically
Centralized
Firmly controlled
Planned
Proprietary
Transactional
Downward communication
Working Wikily
Decentralized
Loosely controlled
Emergent
Open, shared
Relational
Two-way conversation
Courtesy of the Monitor Institute
Strategic Planning for Networks?
How do you develop a movement-widefive-year strategy in a completely open,
collaborative way (the wiki way)?
Decentralized
Emergent
Relational
Loosely controlled
Open, shared
Two-way conversation
Strategic Planning for Networks?
How do you develop a movement-widefive-year strategy in a completely open,
collaborative way (the wiki way)?
Five Key Principles
1. Focus on questions
2. Create a space
3. It's all about people
4. Model transparently
5. Fail forward fast
1. Focus on Questions
Why focus on questions? I thoughtwe wanted to figure out the answers!
Why focus on questions? I thoughtwe wanted to figure out the answers!
1. Focus on Questions
Generative Questions
Why focus on questions? I thoughtwe wanted to figure out the answers!
1. Focus on Questions
Generative Questions
• Participation• Strategic Thinking
Why focus on questions? I thoughtwe wanted to figure out the answers!
1. Focus on Questions
Generative Questions
• Participation• Strategic Thinking
• Ownership• Activation
2. Create a Space
Where will your network do its work?
What will make your space inviting and compelling?
2. Create a Space
Where will your network do its work?
What will make your space inviting and compelling?
3. It's all about People
Who do you want to participate?
How many participants should you target?
How will you bring people into the process?
3. It's all about People
Who do you want to participate?
How many participants should you target?
How will you bring people into the process?
"If you want to get something done, ask a busy person."
Patrick CollinsCIO, Hewlett Foundation
3. It's all about People
Who do you want to participate?
How many participants should you target?
How will you bring people into the process?
90 / 9 / 1 Rule
3. It's all about People
Who do you want to participate?
How many participants should you target?
How will you bring people into the process?
90 / 9 / 1 Rule
Our Targets:700 (1 per project) / 70 / 7
2. It's all about People
Who do you want to participate?
How many participants should you target?
How will you bring people into the process?
90 / 9 / 1 Rule
Our Targets:700 (1 per project) / 70 / 7
What We Got:1,000 / 100 / 20
3. It's all about People
Who do you want to participate?
How many participants should you target?
How will you bring people into the process?
Ask!
3. It's all about People
Who do you want to participate?
How many participants should you target?
How will you bring people into the process?
Ask!Build Relationships
4. Model Transparently
How do you leave room for deliberation aboutprocess while also making forward progress?
How do you leave room for deliberation aboutprocess while also making forward progress?
4. Model Transparently
Sharing control, not giving it up
How do you leave room for deliberation aboutprocess while also making forward progress?
4. Model Transparently
Sharing control, not giving it up
Do-acracy — Put a stake in the ground
How do you leave room for deliberation aboutprocess while also making forward progress?
4. Model Transparently
Sharing control, not giving it up
Do-acracy — Put a stake in the ground
Be open to change
5. Fail Forward Fast
How will you know if your process is "right" or not?
5. Fail Forward Fast
How will you know if your process is "right" or not?
Assume it's not. Design for the best case, learn, and adapt.
5. Fail Forward Fast
How will you know if your process is "right" or not?
If you're not screwing up,you're not trying hard enough.
5. Fail Forward Fast
How will you know if your process is "right" or not?
Assume it's not. Design for the best case, plan, and adapt.
Five Key Principles (redux)
1. Focus on questions
2. Create a space
3. It's all about people
4. Model transparently
5. Fail forward fast
Questions?
For More Information
Eugene Eric Kim / Blue Oxen [email protected]
@BlueOxenAssoc / @eekim on Twitterhttp://blueoxen.com/
http://eekim.com/
These Slideshttp://www.slideshare.net/eekim/strategic-planning-for-networks
http://bit.ly/network-strategic-planning
Wikimedia Strategyhttp://strategy.wikimedia.org/
CreditsThanks to Kristin Cobble of Courion Group, Rebecca Petzel, and H. Jessica Kim for their valuable feedback on this presentation and for being thought partners — along with Diana Scearce and Heather McLeod Grant of the Monitor Institute and the entire staff of the Leadership Learning Community — on networks.
Thanks to all of the Wikimedians who participated in this wonderful little experiment, especially Sue Gardner, Erik Moeller, and Philippe Beaudette of the Wikimedia Foundation.
Many thanks to Amy Wu Wong <http://wordsdesign.com/> for the design of this presentation as well as her delightful sketches.
Attributions
Slide 11: Photographs from Wikimedia Commons by Goldmund100 (GNU FDL), MichaelDiederich (CC-BY-SA 2.0), Lisarlena (GNU FDL), Serenity (GNU FDL), THWZ (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Timur Mamadrzaev (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Alexanderps (Public Domain), Yumolives (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Rovdyr (GNU FDL), Василий Меленчук (Public Domain), Airon90 (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Wuselig (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Maderibeyza (GNU FDL), Ragesoss (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Nikita (Public Domain), Ragesoss (CC-BY-SA 3.0), Ziko (CC-BY-SA 3.0), JCornelius (CC-BY-SA 2.0)
Slides 19-22: Photographs from Flickr by Royal New Zealand Navy (CC-BY-ND 2.0)
Slide 26: Working Wikily slide from Monitor Institute's "The Power of Networks" <http://www.slideshare.net/workingwikily/the-power-of-networks>
All other photographs by Eugene Eric Kim / Blue Oxen Associates (CC-BY-SA 2.0)