The Value of Employee Participation in Strategic Planning

Abstract

A strategic planning and measurement planning project was undertaken by an 800-employee Maintenance department of a major Canadian gas transmission company to establish a stable direction and performance guide. Employee morale was so diminished from six years of constant reorganization and downsizing that the newly appointed vice-president was skeptical that the department would be able to meet its new goals unless a highly participative process was used. The project therefore was designed to use an input-reaction process between employees and managers to create a shared vision, strategic plan, and measurement system. Past projects of this nature had involved management personnel only and often goals were not achieved because few employees felt motivated by the “top-down” directives. This process produced a motivating vision, a highly doable performance plan, and a well-accepted measurement system within the allotted project schedule.