Beginners guide to Strategic planning
Project Overview
Project: Beginners guide to Strategic planning
Duration: 1.5.2019 – 31.3.2020
Reference Nr. 2019-1-DE04-KA105-017740
Grant Amount: 31,960 EUR
Donor: JUGEND für Europa, German National Agency for the Erasmus+ programme
What's About
This project aims to empower NGOs and youth workers with the skills and tools for strategic planning to improve their efficiency, sustainability, and responsiveness to local community needs. Many partner organisations were newly established or lacked updated strategic plans, which are vital for ensuring long-term success and social impact.
Through participatory methods, the project supported six partner organisations in developing tailor-made strategic planning documents, aligning each with their vision, mission, and evolving community contexts. This participatory process also promoted stronger teamwork, communication, and ownership among stakeholders.
The project promoted understanding of strategic planning as a tool for impact, and provided youth workers with practical planning skills, frameworks, and guidance on leveraging the Erasmus+ programme to achieve strategic goals.
Partners on this project:
Youth Power Germany e.V. (DE)
DRUSTVO ZA OPOLNOMOCENJE MLADIH – MOC MLADIH (SI)
Youth Power International LTD (UK)
CENTAR ZA JACANJE CIVILNOG DRUSTVA (RS)
INSTITUT ZA RAZVOJ MLADIH MAGISTERPAX MOSTAR (BA)
YOUTH POWER/UNG KRAFT (SE)
Empower youth workers and NGO teams in strategic planning through a focused training course.
Produce 6 organisational strategic plans to guide partners’ long-term development and mission delivery.
Strengthen partnerships and foster international collaboration for future Erasmus+ projects.
Equip youth workers with practical tools for assertive communication, teamwork, and planning.
Promote reflection and learning via Youthpass and the 8 Key Competences framework.
The Goal
Project RESULT
The project was implemented through two core activities and intermediate local planning workshops:
Activity 1: Training Course
5 participants from each partner organisation (managers, field staff, beneficiaries, donors/stakeholders).
Introduced to strategic planning tools and frameworks.
Each organisation developed an initial version of its strategic plan.
Local Planning Workshops were held in each country after Activity 1. where trategic plans were presented, reviewed, and adjusted to meet specific organisational and community needs.
Activity 2: Evaluation Meeting
2 participants per partner organisation.
Evaluated the impact and challenges of local planning workshops.
Shared outcomes and finalised strategic planning documents.
Developed recommendations for NGOs embarking on similar planning processes.
Other achivements:
6 completed strategic planning documents, one per partner NGO, co-created with local stakeholders.
NGOs involved strengthened their capacity in planning, project alignment, and partnership-building.
Practical tools and methods for strategic planning shared among 30+ youth workers and NGO staff.
Gender-balanced and inclusive teams (at least one participant with fewer opportunities per organisation).
Participants developed greater organisational commitment, improved understanding of their NGO’s mission, and stronger skills in project design and resource management.
Strategic planning process enhanced NGOs’ ability to prioritise resources, improve internal coherence, and effectively engage donors and community stakeholders.
Positive impact on the target groups, as plans were revised to better meet beneficiary needs.
Organisations reported increased motivation, team cohesion, and ability to adapt to changing environments.
→ Access our Resources segment to read/download the material developed within this project
Von der Europäischen Union finanziert. Die geäußerten Ansichten und Meinungen entsprechen jedoch ausschließlich denen des Autors bzw. der Autoren und spiegeln nicht zwingend die der Europäischen Union oder der Europäischen Exekutivagentur für Bildung und Kultur (EACEA) wider. Weder die Europäische Union noch die EACEA können dafür verantwortlich gemacht werden.
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.