Stand at the front door of your organization what do you see as you look outside? What are the opportunities and the obstacles "out there" that have the potential to affect your business or agency or institution's success?

Do you need a fortune teller to find out? Not really. What you need to do is engage in environmental scanning. It is a simple technique of paying attention to the present to discern signs of the future. To ensure that you take a 360 degree view of your environment, we suggest using the STEP approach to identify those obstacles and opportunities. You need to look at these changes:

Social
What changes are happening in society in general and in your particular world? Depending on your business, you might examine demographics or population changes (for example, the aging of the baby boomers); or the impact of cultural diversity (the increased presence and power of minorities); or the growth of worldwide terrorism. How will these changes affect the products and services you provide?

Technological
How have new technologies or scientific discoveries affected the way you do business? Think about e- mail and the cell phone. What was it like before these business tools came onto the market? What is it like now? What will be the next generation of cell phones? What other technologies are coming down the pike? How will they enhance or hinder your future products or services?

Economic
What economic changes are occurring? How will this item affect businesses and consumers? For example, a social service saw many changes including possible inflation, the growing gap between the rich, the middle class and the poor and less foundation funding. One of the key implications for this agency was the need to expand its services. Employment or job search programs were added for a growing group of people who are not "making it" financially today.

Political
What are the changes in local, state, national and international politics? Will the recent mid-term elections in the United States have major or minor implications for your business or agency? How will new or revised laws or changes in regulatory systems impact your organization?

The Critical Questions
After you have completed your environmental scan, then examine the information and answer these critical questions:

• How might these trends affect our organization in the next one to three years or perhaps the next five to ten years?
• Are there opportunities out there that we should be exploring? What are they and how can we leverage them?
• What obstacles exist that may hinder our success in the future? What are they and how can we manage them?

No, you don't need to be a fortune teller to see the future. By paying attention to the present, what is happening today, you can discern signs of the future.

The value of environmental scanning is two fold: First, it develops a common perception of internal and external forces or trends that are affecting your organization. Second, it pinpoints obstacles and opportunities that have the potential to impact to affect your business or agency or institution's success

Here are resources to help you build powerful leaders and powerful organizations / have powerful leaders at all levels: Coaching 4 Results, Planning 4 Change, Speaking 4 Impact,  W.O.W.W. Tools.

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Copyright 2006-2008, Marcia Zidle. Will you have a bright future? Are you ready to make your organization stand out in the crowd in competing for customers, clients, funders or community awareness? Contact us and let us show you how to make that happen.

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