Action planning

Action Planning

Now you will bring together your organization's statement or purpose and the information use analysis you generated in Step 2, the cost estimates you calculated in Step 3, the worksheet in Step 4 about how specific Internet features can help you do your job, and the Dreaming worksheet that you just worked on. Exercises 5 and 6 will take you through the process of using these resources to set goals and develop your action plan. The chart on the next page shows how all these various steps come together in the development of an effective action plan.

What Is an Action Plan?

An action plan specifically outlines how you intend to achieve a goal or set of goals. A well thought out action plan can help organizations plan ahead when implementing projects. It can help them get the resources they need and make the necessary changes in the way they currently do things. Ideally, an action plan is developed by the people who will be implementing it. It is approved by the people or body that normally gives the final go-ahead to proceed with a project. This could be a board of directors, a company president, a supervisor, or a group of peers in a team environment.

The information that an action plan contains is far more important than the way it looks or the specific document format used to present it. Action plans can be produced in many different formats. It is important for the people developing the plan to choose a format that makes sense to them. The box on the following page shows the basic elements of an action plan.

You may already have a procedure for developing an action plan, and you may want to use it or a version of it that works best for you. Remember that action plans can be used to look ahead at all kinds of things. In this case, though, we are looking specifically at developing goals and determining how the Internet can help achieve them.

One of the strengths of an action plan is that it helps you think realistically about each of the "must have" elements. You cannot have a complete action plan without thinking about how much a specific step will cost, how much time it will take to accomplish, who will do it, and how you will know if you have accomplished the task.

USING THE EXERCISES TO DEVELOP YOUR ACTION PLAN


Another useful thing about an action plan is that you can change it as work progresses, as your access to resources changes, or as other circumstances of the project change. No action plan is set in stone—it is meant to be a practical guide that reflects the current realities you are facing at a specific point in time. So if you find that work is progressing more quickly than you originally thought it would, or you are spending more money on a specific part of the project, you can modify your action plan to reflect that change.



The West African Enterprise Network, formed in 1993 to promote economic growth in West Africa, developed three realistic, pragmatic goals related to the Internet: improve the availability of trade information to its members, strengthen the capacity of its information center, and increase its members' Internet connectivity.

Exercise 5: Developing Action Goals

How can you use the Internet to help your organization achieve its purpose? This exercise helps you set goals and decide on projects.

Now is the time for your dreams to meet reality. Take another look at the Information Use Analysis you did in Step 2 and the Dreaming worksheet that you just developed. Refer to your comments on the worksheet entitled How Can the Internet Assist Us in Our Jobs?

Next, think of specific ideas from each of these worksheets that you could realistically implement in your organization. Keeping in mind the resources of your organization (as well as your ability to acquire additional resources, possibly by combining efforts with another organization, creating grant projects, etc.), think of several ideas that you would like to implement to bring you closer to your dreams. Use the Action Goals worksheet to write several specific projects or action goals that you think your organization could realistically accomplish and that would contribute to achieving its overall mission.

The goals for HEALTHLINK 2000's action plan are on the worksheet on the next page. In this example, HEALTHLINK 2000's goals correspond to the steps outlined in this manual. The goals challenge the staff without creating impossible expectations. The goals are small and realistic, but very important. They are also logical in terms of where HEALTHLINK 2000 is now, and they contribute to the organization's mission. Moreover, they create a solid foundation for expanded uses of the Internet in the future.


post by santan...29th...july......