‘Tis the season… as we are now well into Q4, and we see the winter holidays approaching, many of us are working on our nursing strategic plans. Perhaps you’ve traditionally used the hospital or system strategic plan and added “Nursing” to the title and shared it at your next Nursing Leadership meeting.
This year, I encourage you to take a different approach; involve your front-line teams more directly. Use your Shared Governance to gather perspectives from the team members who provide daily patient care. Rather than simply presenting the plan, ask questions that ensure alignment with your team’s needs and engage them in the plan’s execution.
Remember, a strategic plan is not a document to be filed away.
It should be a living, breathing “map” that steers your team over the year, with tactics adjusted as necessary based on progress.
When, where and how we create, share, implement, and review our plan can significantly impact its success. Keep it simple and focused. Allow your plan to prioritize what’s most essential for your team’s growth over the next year. What two or three top goals will bring your organization closer to achieving its vision and mission?
Focus on Vision Before Tactics
One of the most impactful shifts I’ve made in strategic planning is changing my mindset. Rather than diving into tactics – how we will achieve our goals- I start by defining our vision, our destination. “Beginning with the end in mind” allows us to clearly envision what success “looks like” or “feels like,” and it unites our teams under a common purpose. Once the vision is clear, our teams can align their strategies to reach that outcome. Even better, they will help define how we measure success and identify indicators for when we’re off track. This approach builds accountability and ownership among team members, making them ambassadors of the plan’s goals as they share it with others.
To ensure this alignment, create space for genuine bi-directional dialogue, where everyone feels comfortable contributing their opinions. Strong leaders foster a culture that welcomes differing views and discourages “pluralistic ignorance” – the tendency to go along with an idea without openly discussing concerns. By creating a safe environment for dissenting opinions, we can produce a stronger plan that feels “owned”: by everyone involved, driving greater dedication and success.
The Art of Asking Smarter Questions
In their Harvard Business Review article,
“The Art of Asking Smarter Questions,” Barsoux et al. (2024) emphasize that leaders should use a variety of questions: Investigative, Speculative, Productive, Interpretive, and Subjective to uncover hidden barriers and ensure full team engagement. Investigative questions, such as the “5 whys” probe deeply into causes, helping identify overlooked solutions.
Speculative questions take what we learned from our investigative questions to the next level. “What else…” or “What can we do differently?”
Productive questions are some of the most important in terms of executing on our plans. “How will we measure progress” or “How will we know if we’re off track,” or even “What behaviors will we expect to see if the staff understand this goal?”
Interpretative questions follow up on the first three by connecting, “How does this information align with our daily work?” Interpretive questions, like, “Does this align with our Mission?” connect back to our core values,
while Subjective questions, which address emotions, ensure team buy-in. We understand that while we make decisions with our heads, our hearts must be aligned to achieve our goals. Subjective questions allow for us to check in, “How does this plan feel to you?” or “Did we ask the correct questions, what did we miss?” and “Do you feel this is a plan that will drive to this outcome?” These questions allow team members to feel heard and emotionally aligned with the plan.
Real-World Example of Daily Engagement
During a recent hospital visit, I observed one of their daily unit huddles, and reviewed several different huddle boards across the units. Each huddle board included a “Strategic Focus” section that aligned directly with the hospital’s nursing strategic plan. Every staff member I spoke with understood this language and could articulate what they were doing to achieve the plan, as well as any barriers they were encountering. For this hospital the strategic plan wasn’t “extra work” or a side project. It was seamlessly integrated into their daily routines, with space to celebrate successes and address challenges. This approach can ensure that everyone, from leadership to front-line staff, is actively engaged in achieving strategic goals.
An Inclusive Approach to Strategic Planning
Strategic planning is one of my favorite topics, maybe because I’m a little bit of a “strategy nerd” but I like to think that it is because a great leader once showed me how strategic planning can be a collaborative and inspiring journey. They used the analogy of a cross-country road trip, where the CNO sets the destination and the vision but involves the whole team in planning the route. There are endless ways to get to the same destination – scenic routes, the northern route, the southern route. Every person in the “car” (or on the team) has a say in stops, snacks, music, and other essentials. If we don’t consider everyone’s needs, the trip won’t be as great as it could be if everyone was fully included
From the CNO to the CNAs and environmental services, everyone impacts the journey, each with their own vital role in getting from Point A to point B. Use this analogy with your team to introduce the strategic plan, perhaps even with a quick small group activity, “plan your road trip” to get team creative ideas flowing. How will you keep your team engaged daily in achieving your nursing strategic plan and ensuring you reach your destination energized and excited by the journey.
Reference:
Barsoux, J., Bourgeouis, L., & Dalsace, F. (2024) The art of asking smarter questions. Harvard Business Review, 102(3), 45-55.
