Virtual Program:
Facilitating Strategic Planning in Nonprofits

Great Planning Facilitators Can Customize the Planning Process

One of the biggest complaints about strategic planning is that it produces plans that sit untouched, collecting dust on shelves. One of the biggest reasons is that the planning process did not suit the nature and needs of the organization. Instead, the process suited the limitations of the facilitator.

There is no one model of planning to use all the time with every nonprofit everywhere. A great facilitator knows several different models and how to customize each as needed. She knows how to cultivate strong participation of planners and how to guide them to robust strategic thinking. She knows how to bring them to consensus to produce relevant and realistic plans.

A great nonprofit strategic planning facilitator has more than people skills and knows more than process skills. She also knows how nonprofit organizations work, the major functions within them and how they are connected. That knowledge ensures a planning process that is based on sound strategic thinking about the realities inside and outside of the organization.

This highly accessible, state-of-the-art program guides and supports you to develop strong strategic planning facilitation skills and organizational skills to produce relevant and realistic strategic plans that get implemented. To understand what we consider having strong knowledge in nonprofit facilitation, see the topics in this program’s
Syllabus.

"Even our most seasoned leaders gained valuable new insights. The way the material was organized and presented helped attendees understand how to work with groups more effectively in designing strategic planning to meet their unique needs."
Kevin Witt, CCD, UMCRC

Benefits to You

Audiences for This Program

This program is for highly motivated people, working inside or outside of nonprofits, who seek to develop strong strategic planning facilitation skills, in addition to increased people, organizational, systems and consulting skills, for example:

• Facilitators who want to want to add nonprofit organizational skills to their process skills
• Board members or employees who want to facilitate high-quality strategic plans for their organizations
• Experienced nonprofit leaders who are considering consulting as their next career
• Funders who want to select high-quality facilitators for their grantees

You do not have to come to the program with a current planning project in order to greatly benefit from this program.  You can also be working on a planning project, even a project that is already into the middle- and end-phases of the planning process.  In those situations, the program's peer coaching group process still focuses on wherever you are in the planning process.  

From This Program, You Will Be Able To:

As a result of completion of this program, you will be able to:

• Customize the planning process to ensure relevant and realistic plans for your nonprofit clients
• Guide planners to ensure careful preparation from which to develop their strategic plans
• Cultivate full participation of planners to produce plans with strong commitment and ownership
• Stimulate strategic thinking that is grounded in realities in and around the nonprofit
• Contribute, as needed, to discussions about the nonprofit’s governance and management practices
• Guide planners through discussions, debates and healthy conflict to fully supported decision-making
• Ensure planners produce a strategic plan document that is practical, useful and easy-to-reference

Abundant Sources for Your Learning During the Program

1. Virtual methods of access to content, coaching, peer exchange and sharing
2. Vast range of practical guidelines, tools and templates for facilitating nonprofit strategic plans, including from texts written by CDI faculty, such as Field Guide to Nonprofit Strategic Planning and Facilitation and Strategic Planning in Nonprofit Organizations
3. The program includes nine virtual modules, each of which includes:
   1. Self-scheduled 1-2 hours of readings from the text and recommended articles (see the Syllabus of topics)
   2. 90-minute, virtual seminar among participants and faculty, to discuss and reflect on the content from the readings
   3. 90-minute, virtual peer coaching group meeting among participants and faculty, to coach each member on applications of the readings
4. Ongoing peer coaching exchange in private group emails among participants and faculty between meetings
5. Comprehensive Learning and Development Journal to cultivate deep reflection and learning from all modules in the Program

For more information about each of these sources and the unique philosophy of learning in this program, see About CDI. (We also can provide this as in-house program for your organization.)

1. Completed the pre-assessment near the beginning of the program
2. Actively participated in each of the virtual seminars in the program
3. Actively participated in the peer coaching group meetings in the program
4. Reasonably participated in the private group emails among members and faculty
5. Submitted your Learning and Development Journal to faculty for private review (your Journal will not be shared with anyone else)
6. Completed the post-assessment near the end of the program

Program’s Highly Affordable Fee

1. Consider the substantial savings to you because the program does not involve the typically significant travel expenses to attend a multi-day, face-to-face workshop.
2. You might qualify for a 20% discount if a you are a current member of one of our partnering organizations. Please email info@ConsultantsDevelopmentInstitute.org to inquire if your specific membership organization qualifies you for your discount. Be sure to mention your membership organization in your email.

Contact Us Now

• Email info@ConsultantsDevelopmentInstiitute.org and we will respond promptly.