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Strategic Management: <br /> <br />Developing and Realizing a Strategic Vision <br /> <br />t is more important to do the right things than to do <br />things right. This is a piece of wisdom that often has <br />been repeated. While both emphases are important, <br />focusing on issues and challenges that are most im- <br />portant to your community or to your organization <br />is dearly a key to success. As with most such adages, <br />the advice is more easily given than followed. <br /> Unfortunately, the "right things" to focus on are not al- <br />ways apparent. But strategic management can help. Strategic <br />management combines strategic planning with the imple- <br />mentation and evaluation of progress. It is a tool for identi- <br />fying the right things to do, focusing a community or orga- <br />nization on those things, measuring progress, and <br />continually adjusting plans and strategies to achieve a com- <br />munity's or organization's vision. <br /> The strategic management process involves four key steps <br />(see Figure 1): <br /> <br />28 <br /> <br />1. Assess the current situation. <br />2. Make decisions and develop strategies. <br />3. Implement the decisions and strategies. <br />4. Measure progress. <br /> <br />Step 1: Assess the Current Situation <br /> <br />Too often, strategic plans are developed without a complete <br />understanding of current strengths, weaknesses, issues, and <br /> <br />OCTOBER 1997 <br /> <br /> <br />