An actionable plan focuses on specific key objectives linked with the overall strategic priorities and needs of the organization over the next twelve (12) to twenty four (24) months. An example of a key objective may be increasing representation of People of Color (POC) in your Marketing department to support the overall business priority of increasing market share in that market segment.
Align on the strategic priorities
The first step is to ensure the overall key goals and priorities are well defined and understood across the organization. What do you hope to achieve this year? Are you looking to increase market share in a specific segment? Or are you planning to develop new and innovative products to expand margins? If you are a nonprofit organization, you may want to broaden your reach to a new group of potential beneficiaries or attract more volunteers.
Assess your current state
Once you have alignment on the strategic goals, you can assess your current state with respect to key factors such as your employee experience, processes, policies, benefits, and strengths and weaknesses. The assessment helps you identify opportunities for quick wins, and areas in need of improvement to enable you to define realistic key objectives.
Develop the plan
After assessing your current state, the next step is to develop a set of actionable objectives and associated timeline that support those goals. This plan should include specific dates for your DEI objectives to be achieved.
Implement the plan
Once you have developed the plan, it’s time to communicate the key objectives and to engage the whole organization in specific actions to achieve them. This may require making some changes to your organizational structure or policies. Most importantly, you need to keep the lines of communication open and solicit feedback from employees.
Evaluate and adjust
It’s important to periodically evaluate the effectiveness of your plan and make adjustments as needed. By regularly assessing your progress, you can ensure that your plan is on track and identify any areas that need to be updated through your journey.
