Cost for a Nonprofit Strategic Planning Consultant: What To Expect

June 10, 2021 Renee Rubin Ross

When potential clients reach out to us about strategic planning, they have a lot of questions such as:

But there's one question everyone asks about strategic planning:

How much time and money does the strategic planning process take?

Benefits of strategic planning

If they're taking the time to have a conversation with us, they understand the benefits of a participatory strategic planning process, which include:

organizational clarity
alignment
focus

All of which lead to more effective work and increased opportunities for funding, collaboration, and partnership.

Preparing for the strategic planning process

In addition to knowing the benefits, they also understand that readiness for the strategic planning process involves assessing organizational capacity and program stability.

But they want to get to the bottom line – literally! Which makes sense, given the financial constraints that many organizations operate under.

A right sized approach to successful strategic planning

We suggest that organizational leaders think in terms of right-sizing their strategic planning.

What do we mean by this? We suggest taking the “Three Bears' Approach.”

The Three Bears' Approach for implementing strategic planning

Image description: 3 chairs, largest one is brown, middle one is orange, smallest is yellow.

If you recall, Goldilocks came into the bears' house and encountered three chairs – each one designed for a bear of a certain size:

The biggest chair is NOT a better chair. It's the one that fits the Papa Bear.

Likewise, the smallest chair is NOT a better chair, rather, it fits the Baby Bear.

The middle chair is NOT a better chair. It fits Mama Bear and is just right for Goldilocks.

Strategic planning is the same way.

How to create a strategic plan for your business or organization

There are a number of different paths for creating a new strategic plan

1. Start with your current strategy

At the simplest level (smaller chair), organizational staff and board members could begin a series of internal conversations to make current strategies more visible and build a vision together.

2. Conduct a strategic planning session with an experienced team member

The “middle chair” might be convening a strategic planning committee that would work through critical questions together, potentially with the support of a staff or board member who has experience in strategic planning.

3. Hire a strategic planning consultant to facilitate the process

And a larger chair approach would be hiring an outside facilitator to guide the process. Even that large chair has some “larger chairs” which might include more extensive data collection, an environmental scan or planning time.

How much time does it take to implement the strategic planning process?

Generally, we recommend that organizations allocate between 3 months (which would be fairly quick) to 9 months. During this time, organizational leaders will be devoting several hours weekly to the process. It's not a full-time process, but does require regular attention.

Process time considerations

The exact amount invested in strategic planning depends on factors such as:

how much data is collected
who will conduct the data collection
the size of the group participating in planning
the amount of planning time, such as a strategic planning retreat.

Some of this depends on organizational needs – does an organization already have a fairly clear mission or is there a need for a complete refresh? Answers to these questions will impact the time it takes for your planning effort.

How much does it cost to implement strategic planning?

The financial investment required for successful strategic planning depends on factors such as consultant fees, time allocated for planning, level of detail of the implementation plans, and time that will need to be allocated by the board and staff to weigh in to the strategic plan. Simply put, a more complex organization in terms of staffing and organizational budget will need a more detailed strategic plan, which will take more time to develop.

Strategic planning budget size considerations

Do we plan to hire a strategic planning consultant or conduct the project in-house?
What is the complexity of our organization, in terms of staff and program?
How much time do we need to invest in meeting throughout the strategic planning process?

Our biggest tip for successful strategic planning

Whether you hire a strategic planning consultant or use someone experienced in the planning process from your team, there's one more thing to say here:

We believe, in the spirit of Adrienne Maree Brown and Emergent Strategy, that the best strategic plans start small, are built at the speed of trust, and emerge from the people who are closest to the challenges being worked on.

Ready to create your own strategic plan? Here are 3 key steps

If your business or organization is ready for strategic action planning, to get started, consider the following:

1. Reflect: What kind of resources do you have to devote to planning?

2. Decide: Would it be more appropriate to:

hold reflective conversations on recent changes and organizational identity; or
have a committee reflect on recent changes and organizational identity, potentially by conducting surveys and interviews; or
work with a strategic planning consultant to guide organizational leaders in working through these questions together?

3. Work through challenges: If you're hitting resistance to strategic planning, take some time to reflect on this. What concerns are coming up?

Board and staff members usually want to know how much time they will need to spend on planning, how much it will cost, and what the benefits to the organization will be. So before beginning planning, it's important to reflect on what board and staff members want to achieve from the process: Why do we need to do this now and how will this planning process enhance our organization?

See this form in the original post

Get help from an experienced strategic planning consultant

If you have the funds to hire a strategic planning consultant, we recommend you do so!

An outside planning consultant is that person who can facilitate the process so that board and staff members can participate without having to lead it.

You'll be working with someone who has experience with a variety of organizations and can keep the process on track. For the duration of the process, strategic planning will add to your organization's workload - so it's helpful to have a dedicated person to shepherd the process.

Conclusion

In summary, strategic planning, whether you do the process with a consultant or on your own, does take time and money - our most valuable resources. But done right, a completed strategic plan expands energy.

An inclusive, participatory process, like those led by The Ross Collective, creates organizational focus and vision, leading to clarity and expanded energy for shared priorities.

Want to learn more about nonprofit strategic planning?

How to hire a strategic planning consultant that is an excellent fit
Who needs a seat at the table in planning?
Planning Questions: Who are we in the context of our community and environment?
Planning Questions: What do we do best and feel pulled towards?
Planning Questions: Given the questions above, what will we do now?

The Ross Collective