4 Don't Let It Collect Dust
(Do Make Sure the Plan Gets Executed)

The worst strategic plan, of course, is one that sits in an unopened binder on the CIO's bookshelf.

Nationwide has a formal communication process for rolling out its three-year plan. All IT employees are required to read the plan, which is posted on an intranet, and are further required to satisfactorily complete a 10-question quiz about its contents. Many business-side employees read the document in its entirety too, and some go so far as to complete the quiz (although McKinnon notes, "We aren't quite sure what to do with their scores.")

At Nationwide, all IT projects are tied back to the strategic plan, and all projects of more than $250,000 are continually evaluated as they move forward to ensure that they are hitting their designated milestones. That is where the senior vice president executive sponsorship kicks in. Top leaders receive a monthly "stoplight" report with each project assessed as red, yellow or green depending on its progress. The color assigned to each project is the result of independent evaluation by three groups: the business-side group that requested the project, the finance group and the IT function's project management office. And those progress reports are discussed at a monthly meeting - which lasts only a half hour. "We only talk about the concerns - so if you're talking, it's not necessarily a pleasant thing," says McKinnon. With this follow-through, Nationwide makes sure its strategic plan is being turned into action.