Where are we now?

In any review of strategic direction it is vital that council has a clear understanding of the current situation.

This involves looking internally to council's purpose as well as its strengths and weaknesses. It also requires analysis of the external environment and the issues faced by council and the community to identify opportunities and threats.

Key steps

• Step 1.1 Identify who should be involved
  
  
  • Step 1.1.1 Select within council
  • Step 1.1.2 Select within the community
• Step 1.2 Review council's mission and guiding principles
  
  
  • Step 1.2.1 Review the mission
  • Step 1.2.2 Review the guiding principles
• Step 1.3 Assess local and regional issues - Environmental Scan
  
  
  • Step 1.3.1 Meet legislative requirements
  • Step 1.3.2 Conduct an environmental scan
• Step 1.4 Conduct a SWOT analysis (optional)
  
  
  • Step 1.4.1 Agree on critical issues
  • Step 1.4.2 Assess internal strengths and weaknesses
  • Step 1.4.3 Assess external opportunities and threats
• Step 1.5 Compile a list of strategic options

Recommended resources

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Step 1.1 Identify who should be involved

Step 1.1.1 Select within council

Section 229 of the LGA is clear that preparation of the corporate plan is a significant responsibility of councillors. On the other hand, Section 1131 provides that the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is responsible for managing and overseeing the administration of the local government and its corporate plan.

In practice, the CEO also has a primary role in preparing the corporate plan and, together with other senior officers, provides information and advice about the feasibility and likely cost of the options being considered by council.

Strategic planning is a team effort. It involves all levels and functional units of a council - the CEO, senior executive, middle managers, supervisors and employees. The size of the team will vary with the size and complexity of the council as well as the leadership style of the CEO. Ideally, the plan will be developed in conjunction with staff who actually carry out the day-to-day activities.

A strategic planning team can serve as the coordinating and overseeing body for the planning process. The specific duties and responsibilities assigned to the team will depend on the unique needs and desires of the organisation.

Checklist 3 - Select planning team members

To assist in selection of team members, ask, do the team members -

• Represent diverse areas and interests?
• Include both budget and planning staff?
• Have knowledge about activities within their division or program?
• Know the impact of their division or program activities?
• Have the authority to discuss and propose components of the plan?
• Have knowledge of, and interest in, the long-term direction of council?
• Have the time and energy to commit to the strategic planning process?
• Bring relevant skills to the process?
• Have problem-solving, analytical and writing skills?
• Demonstrate that they are open to new ideas or differing viewpoints?

For a checklist of team participants in the planning process, refer to Toolbox 11 - Checklist - Planning teams ( PDF 43 kB).

Clearly, smaller councils will not have a workforce that includes all of the categories of participant suggested in Toolbox 11. Often it falls on the CEO to provide advice to council on a range of areas including budgets, information technology, human resources and legal considerations and some CEOs may be tempted to prepare the whole plan on their own.

Despite these real limitations and where planning tasks are not able to be delegated to council officers, the appropriate expertise may need to be sought externally. For example, by collaboration with specialist consultants, government agencies, local government associations and regional forums.

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1.1.2 Select within the community

In the planning cycle diagram in these Guidelines, Community Engagement is illustrated as the central "hub" for all planning activities. As local government is directly involved in the lives of people on a day-to-day basis, it is vital that the community is involved and informed at all stages of the planning process commencing with the review of strategic direction.

Councils need to adopt their own methods for involving the community in their planning process. Many councils have formalised these arrangements in their Community Engagement strategies. For example, Redland Shire Council has a Community Reference Group, Maroochy Shire Council has a Community Task Force, and Noosa Shire Council has established Community Sector Boards.

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Step 1.2 Review council's mission and guiding principles

The mission² sets out why an organisation or agency exists (its purpose), what it should be doing and for whom it does it.

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Step 1.2.1 Review the mission

The mission is all encompassing and rarely changes. At this stage of the planning cycle, council can take the opportunity to ensure that its mission statement accurately reflects council's ongoing role as an organisation striving to fulfil its commitment to the community's vision.

The mission statement sends out the message that council's strategic direction will be formulated with the community's needs at the forefront. The mission statement answers the question, What is our purpose?

Checklist 4 - Refine the mission statement

Councils seeking to refine their mission statement can be guided by the following questions:

• Does the mission clearly state why council exists?
• Is it clear enough for all staff to see how they contribute?
• What needs or problems are council expected to address?
• Why are public resources devoted to this endeavour?
• What functions or services are, or should be, provided by council for the community and other stakeholders?
• What mandates - constitutional, legislative, executive, judicial or other - have been vested in council?
• Is council carrying out all mandates or authorised programs?
• Does it answer who we are, what and for whom we do what we do, and why it is important?

For useful examples, refer to Toolbox 10 - Reference - Mission statements ( PDF 55 kB)

The mission statement needs to be formulated in a way that makes it easy to be quoted, referred to and remembered. There is little value in having a statement that is not shared throughout the community and the organisation. When council reviews its mission, it is not simply an exercise in "getting the words right". Instead, it is an opportunity to reaffirm council's intent and commitment to the vision.

This requires a collaborative effort between councillors and staff who may formulate the draft statement. Input and feedback from the community is essential.

Once adopted, it is vital that council takes steps to communicate the mission to all staff so that it becomes a core part of their everyday activities.

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Step 1.2.2 Review the guiding principles

In addition to a Mission Statement, many Queensland councils include a statement of values in their corporate plans. Value statements set out the basis for ethical behaviour and decision-making by elected members and council officers. In recent times, many agencies have adopted the term "guiding principles" to describe the core values and philosophies that underpin how they conduct themselves in carrying out their mission.

For example, all public servants in Queensland are regulated by the Public Sector Ethics Act 1994 (PSE) that requires each agency to develop and implement a Code of Conduct for its staff consistent with the following five ethics principles:

• Respect for the law and system of government
• Respect for persons
• Integrity
• Diligence, and
• Economy and efficiency

The Mackay City Council corporate plan 2001-2005 includes the following statement:

Guiding principles:

The guiding principles are the "core values" upon which council decisions are made and actions are taken. Councillors and staff of Mackay City Council are committed to the following principles as a guide to all decisions and actions:

Like the mission statement, the guiding principles represent a long-standing commitment from both elected members and council officers alike.

The following examples of values are indicative of those used in Queensland councils:

Examples of guiding principles include:

Activity 1 - Confirm the guiding principles

Councils that may be considering changes to their current values statements (guiding principles) can use the following questions:

Checklist 5 - Confirm the guiding principles

Are the guiding principles:

• Consistent with the mission statement?
• Able to be embraced by elected members and council officers?
• Indicative of the beliefs that underpin the decision-making process?
• Able to be reflected in council policies and actions?
• Compatible with an annual assessment of the extent to which they were applied?

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Step 1.3 Assess local and regional issues - Environmental Scan

Step 1.3.1 Meet legislative requirements

The LGFS requires councils to include information about their role in a number of specific areas and to give due consideration to the scope for regional cooperation between local governments to respond to local and regional issues. These requirements are pivotal to the corporate planning provisions as they mandate councils to determine responses that will have an impact on council and its community, both now and in the future.

Refer in these Guidelines to Section 2.2 - Local Government Finance Standard 2005 (LGFS) - at a glance that sets out the minimum requirements for local governments when preparing and adopting a corporate plan, budgets and associated processes.

Refer to Section 3.2.4 Disaster Management - corporate planning functions for information on the Queensland Disaster Management Planning Guidelines for Local Government published by the Department of Emergency Services.

The areas nominated in Section 30 of the LGFS - Matters to be considered for identifying local and regional issues, can generally be termed "Growth Management Strategies" or "issues plans". These typically have a medium-term outlook (8 years) as indicated in the diagram at Section 3.1 - Defining strategic timeframes. An exception is the housing policy area that only requires a response if relevant. Many councils will have additional strategies covering topics of local interest such as transportation, catchment management, foreshores etc.

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Step 1.3.2 Conduct an environmental scan

Environmental scanning is a process of systematically assessing those factors that present opportunities for improving service delivery or present major obstacles to carrying out the mission. It requires a continuous gathering and analysis of internal and external data available to an organisation from a variety of sources.

For guidance in data gathering, refer to Training Kit 1 - Identifying local and regional issues.

To be effective in their corporate planning, councils need to not only meet, but go beyond, legislative compliance. This can be achieved through an external and internal assessment, commonly referred to as an Environmental Scan. Environmental scanning is an ongoing, continual process that sets the stage for council's strategic direction, from which the corporate plan, operational plan and budget flow.

At this stage of the planning cycle, opportunities exist to concurrrently identify proposals and strategies for both the local government corporate plan and the IPA planning scheme. For more information, refer to Section 3.2.1 Integrated Planning Act 1997 (IPA).

Environmental scanning requires analysis of such things as funding issues, new program opportunities, changing regulations or emerging needs in populations. The point is to gather information that is helpful to the planning process and assists you to prioritise and select the most important issues that need to be addressed.

Process overview

An environmental scan precedes a SWOT analysis³ and involves four key steps:

Activity 1 - Gather data

Effective strategic planning is based on gathering and analysing data. Gathering published data can assist local governments to assess current and future local issues.

The value of the data is greatest when:

• It relates to your strategic direction
• The collection process has been carried out consistently over a reasonable period of time
• The information is available at a reasonable price, and
• The agency collecting the data is committed to maintaining the data set into the future.

The types of information councils may seek are:

• Demographic data and trends
• Activity or service volumes and trends
• Unit costs, service usage patterns and trends
• Comparison of performance data to other states or comparable agencies
• Results of recent initiatives
• Potential savings to state agencies, and
• Legal ramifications of non-compliance with laws, standards, certification requirements, etc.

When considering the types of information that may assist council at this stage, it is useful to ask:

• What has influenced council activities over the past five to 20 years?
• What can council learn from past events to get better results in the future?

Individual local governments or regional associations of local governments may choose to collect data using their own customer or resident surveys. This data can be useful to determine the community’s satisfaction with the council’s activities or to gain information about current issues or future direction.

Queensland local governments can also make use of a range of statistics through recognised sources.

Useful websites:

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data covering a range of areas and issues including housing, population, ecological development and primary production at: www.abs.gov.au.

The Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) surveys that can be used in the planning process. For more information, visit their website at: www.lgaq.asn.au.

Other information can be sourced from ALGA - State of the Regions Report 2003-2004. http://www.alga.asn.au/publications/index.php?id=978946047809701fa079be2e639c2d59 (accessed 7/10/04).

Australian Government, 2003. Local Government National Report. - 2002-2003 Report on the Operation of the Local Government (Financial Assistance) Act 1995: www.dotars.gov.au.

Activity 2 - Identify customers/stakeholders needs and expectations

The expectations of individuals and groups in any community are not constant and need to be reviewed on an ongoing basis. Community profiles are a useful tool and contain information on such areas as the community’s history, heritage, demographics, culture, growth, industry, geography and economic status.

Community profiles are available from the Planning Information and Forecasting Unit (PIFU) in the Queensland Department of Local Government, Planning, Sport and Recreation. Visit the website: www.lgp.qld.gov.au.

Aim to be inclusive

Many communities contain individuals or groups who are organised, knowledgeable, politically connected and articulate. While adding value to the planning process, their voice can be loudest and care needs to be taken to ensure that it does not dominate the views of the general community or particular groups or individuals.

It is important to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to participate and particular attention may be required for groups that may be excluded or under-represented such as:

• Children and young people
• Women
• Older people
• People with disabilities
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
• Homeless people, and
• People from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

In the process of determining the needs of the community, consider those who:

• May be affected by particular proposals
• Have previously been involved in the planning process
• May be aggrieved if their views are not considered, and
• May be able to contribute local knowledge or expertise.

In addition to community profiles, it is useful to compile a picture of council’s customers, and their expectations. Prepare a diagram, dot point list or a matrix to provide a starting point for the planning team to assess how well council is meeting their needs and to determine how to meet needs that may evolve in the future.

Refer to Template 3 - Map - Customers and stakeholders ( PDF 68 kB) to consider options for recording their needs and expectations.

Activity 3 Identify external issues

Taking the customer and stakeholder needs into account, identify local and regional issues that need to be considered in preparation for the next Corporate Plan and budget period.

Checklist 6 - Identify external issues

Key questions for consideration by council are:

• What is going on around you that impacts on your ability to carry out your mission?
• What major issues, conditions or problems in the external environment are relevant to the delivery of council’s products and services?
• What conditions could affect or alter key elements of the environment?
• What trends, events or developments are likely to impact on you?
• What forces will influence you in the next five, ten, 15 or 20 years?
• What is holding you back or propelling you forward?
• How well do current resources meet existing and future needs?

Use the format in Template 4 - Checklist - External assessment ( PDF 21 kB) to compile a listing of all known issues that may need to be considered in a SWOT analysis.

Activity 4 - Identify internal issues

Taking the customer and stakeholder needs into account, identify internal issues that need to be considered in preparation for the next Corporate Plan and budget period.

Checklist 7 - Identify internal issues

• Key questions for consideration by council are:
• How successful are council’s processes, products and services for meeting customer and stakeholder needs?
• What is the public perception of council’s products and services?
• How well do council’s programs and activities support one another?
• What programs or activities are expected to grow or decline?
• Does the council workforce have the capacity to meet or exceed expectations?

Use the format in Template 5 - Checklist - Internal assessment ( PDF 18 kB) to compile a listing of all known issues that may need to be considered in a SWOT analysis.

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Step 1.4 Conduct a SWOT analysis (optional)

SWOT analysis⁴ is a tool for assessing the internal Strengths and Weaknesses of an organisation or agency in conjunction with the external Opportunities and Threats.

For guidance in conducting a SWOT analysis, refer to Training Kit 2 - SWOT analysis.

At this stage of the Planning Cycle the SWOT analysis can be used to assess critical issues faced by council as illustrated in the following diagram:

Information from these sources can then be analysed using the SWOT framework. In a broad sense, the SWOT analysis can comprise five major categories and can be compiled using the following matrix:

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Step 1.4.1 Agree on critical issues

Each council will have their own list of critical issues that they face from time to time. In this review of strategic direction, the number of issues identified during the process may, at first glance, seem daunting. A key to identifying critical issues is to assess them in terms of their importance to achieving council's vision. More specifically, it is helpful to consider the issues in terms of their impact on the desired outcomes from existing council programs or strategies that are contained in the existing Corporate Plan.

In a general sense, the most critical issues for council to deal with may often be self-evident because they have, for example, been raised by members of the public, attracted media scrutiny, or been identified by council as ongoing issues that have reached a stage when the community requires a response or action. Many issues may be readily identified because they have been included in existing council programs or strategies.

Critical issues can significantly affect a council's direction and can potentially drain the available resources, often at the expense of other priorities. In order for council to prepare appropriate strategies, issues need to be described in terms of their importance, their impact, and the consequences of not dealing with them.

Use the format in Template 6 - Worksheet - Identify critical issues ( PDF 79 kB) to agree on the issues of most importance for council to consider in a SWOT analysis.

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Step 1.4.2 Assess internal strengths and weaknesses

An effective SWOT analysis identifies internal strengths and limitations of a council, as well as the external threats and opportunities. Internal assessment evaluates council's capacity to respond to the critical issues and includes a review of resources, organisational structure, programs, mandates and policies that support or hinder the achievement of desired results.

As a starting point, it is useful to revisit core program or business activities⁵. Review the primary functions of the program - the products and services the program was created to deliver, and the outcomes these were intended to achieve. How effective have these products and services been?

Checklist 8 - Assess strengths and weaknesses

To carry out this part of the SWOT analysis, consider each critical issue and write down the answers to these questions:

Strengths

• What advantages do you have?
• What do you do well and why?
• What relevant resources do you have access to?
• What do others see as your strengths and why?
• What notable past accomplishments would assist you with this issue and how?
• How can strengths be built in to the planning process?

Weaknesses

• What do you do badly and why?
• What could you improve and why?
• What should you avoid and why?
• What notable failures can you learn from?
• How can you improve program coordination?
• Which of your weaknesses seriously threatens your operations?
• What are the implications for council’s capacity to act and why?
• How does your Corporate Plan accommodate change?

Consider these questions from your own informed point of view and from the viewpoint of the people you deal with. Be realistic and try not to underestimate your capacity to respond to the issue, particularly based on past results. Be honest and practical in your responses and see each question from your own and others' viewpoints.

For an example of strengths and weaknesses identified by a Queensland council in response to program assessment, refer to Case study 5 - SWOT analysis - Broadsound Shire Council ( PDF 56 kB).

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Step 1.4.3 Assess external opportunities and threats

The external assessment paints a picture of the environment in which your council is operating and how that environment can shape the challenges faced by council during the period covered by the corporate plan. A useful approach is to consider your strengths and ask whether these open up any opportunities. Alternatively, consider which weaknesses you need to eliminate or overcome to open up opportunities.

Useful opportunities can be found in such factors as:

• Changes in technology and market forces
• Changes in government policy
• Changes in social patterns, population profiles and lifestyle changes, and
• Local events.

Checklist 9 - Assess opportunities and threats

To carry out this part of the SWOT analysis, consider each critical issue and write down the answers to these questions:

Opportunities

• Where are the opportunities facing your council?
• What positive trends are you able to use to your advantage?
• What opportunities exist for improving program coordination?
• What can be done to take advantage of regional collaboration?
• How can weaknesses be overcome?

Threats

• What constraints or obstacles do your council face?
• Are community needs and expectations exceeding your capacity? What needs and how?
• What changes place pressure on your council?

For an example of opportunities and threats identified by a Queensland council in response to program assessment, refer to Case study 5 SWOT analysis - Broadsound Shire Council ( PDF 56 kB).

Use the format in Template 7 - Worksheet - SWOT analysis ( PDF 12 kB) to list the details of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for each critical issue together with strategic options.

The detail of a SWOT analysis is not required to be included in the Corporate Plan. However, a summary may appear as an appendix to the Operational Plan for each program under review.

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Step 1.5 Compile a list of strategic options

Using the information from the SWOT analysis worksheets, list the potential strategies or actions that need to be considered in the next planning stage.

It is possible during this data gathering and analytical process that further issues may be identified that were not clear at the commencement of the SWOT analysis. This is to be expected, as planning is not an entirely linear process and the ideas that are discussed during the process will naturally prompt further discussion and refinement.

As a check, it is useful to revisit the council's programs and core activities in light of the strategic options that have emerged and ask - How will these contribute to improved products and services?

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Footnotes

² Strategic management, Hill, CW and Jones CR, Houghton Mifflin, New York 2001

³ An assessment of the internal Strengths and Weaknesses in conjunction with external Opportunities and Threats

⁴ For information on SWOT and other management techniques, refer to www.mindtools.com

⁵ Brisbane City Council - Strategic planning and budgeting guidelines

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