The saddest thing I see with banks and credit unions is probably not what you'd think.

It's not a lack of passion for people, or even a disparate set of products that fail to match up with customer needs. In fact, banks and credit unions excel at both of these and they play a big role in creating a unique customer experience.

I could continue to list things, but you still wouldn't guess. Why? Because it's something we don't even think about it's so foreign to us.

The saddest thing is that planning - or in many cases, strategic planning - only happens once a year. And sadder yet, it rarely has an actual effect on the organization, despite the initial fervor presented during a yearly meeting or two.

Why is that? How did we decide strategic planning is worth the meeting, but not worth the follow-through?

Frankly, if you're not seeing results, it's probably due to an inherent lack of planning - namely, plan execution.

So, even if you have a strategic plan, as regulators seem to be pushing for more and more, you're probably missing these 5 things.

5 Things Your Strategic Plan is Probably Missing

1. Accountability

Anyone can make a plan. It's not that difficult. However, in order to make a good plan, there are a lot of facets involved. To keep momentum going and focus on the tasks at hand, someone has to be responsible for each task and take ownership of the overall objective. Without the plan having a tie from individual to outcome, there's hardly a chance of a successful result.

Most plans aren't successful because they don't specify accountability.

2. Measurability

You can make as many objectives as you want, but that doesn't mean they're going to come to fruition. Once an objective is set, it has to be tracked. Does your current plan have tracking measures set in place? Are they always consistently up to date? These are things any bank or credit union needs to know during the strategic planning process.

Most plans aren't successful because their objectives don't have measurability.

3. Playbook

In order to accomplish your plan, you need a playbook to chart the road to achievement. The playbook closes the gap between where you are today and the targets you want to get to. It's the action plan. For example, StrategyGPS™ automatically aggregates your initiatives into a unique Banker's Playbook™ for your bank, or CU Playbook™ for your credit union. Without a playbook to execute your objectives, you're bound to get lost in a pile of initiatives that go nowhere.

Most plans aren't successful because they don't have an actionable playbook.

4. Collaboration

There is little in life and business that can be successful without strong communication. The same is true for the strategic planning process. Your plan needs to be pushed forward by all stakeholders. That means you need an organized way to collaborate regularly and easily.

Most plans aren't successful because they don't have a means for collaboration.

5. Simplicity

There is a huge dark cloud surrounding the idea of strategic planning. A lot of that stems from strategy being described and carried out in complicated and disorganized ways. If your strategic planning process is weighed down by a lack of modern technology or confusing methods of tracking, your plan needs a serious tune up in order to have a chance at successful implementation.

Most plans aren't successful because they aren't supported by simplicity.

If your strategic planning software is missing any of these capabilities, click to see how StrategyGPS can help your bank or credit union confidently execute your plan.