Organizational Design and Planning Hacks for SSPs

Strategic Planning

Strategic planning is setting goals and objectives given the SWOT analysis, determining actions to achieve goals, and mobilizing resources to execute those actions as a part of an implementation plan. In the context of formal program planning and grant writing, goals differ from objectives in that goals are about long-term, “big picture” outcomes while objectives are shorter-term outcomes that are clearly measurable.

Outcome vs. Process Objectives

Objectives can be further broken down into outcome and process objectives.

Process objectives are those that describe the activities/services/strategies that will be undertaken as part of implementing the program.

Outcome objectives are those that specify the intended effect of the program.

SMART(IE) Goals

One of the most common frames for making goals and objectives actionable are SMART(IE) goals – that is setting goals that are:

Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Relevant/Realistic
Time-bound

The (IE) stands for issues that are frequently, but not always, a part of strategic planning goals:

Inclusion
Equity

As with all things harm reduction, these goals are further broken down into more incremental mini-goals along the way. Framing goals in this way can help you make not just a strategic plan but also an implementation plan – the plan for actually achieving goals.

Here are some examples goals and objectives for a harm reduction organization broken down as SMART(IE) goals:

Goal: Lower OD rates in Springfield, Example State (ES)

Process Objective 1: Create OD prevention and response training tailored to the needs of people who use drugs in Springfield, ES by September 30, 2022.

Process Objective 2: Train 300 people in Springfield, ES who use drugs and other proximate community members on OD prevention and response by June 30, 2023.

Outcome Objective 1: Lower incidence of OD in Springfield, ES by 25% by June 30, 2023.

These goals and objectives follow the SMART(IE) model – each is specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, has an objective time frame and one goal, process objective 2, includes equity and inclusion by ensuring services are primarily aimed at people who use drugs.

All Hacks in This Section

More Resources

Don’t reinvent the wheel

During our development Harm Reduction Hacks have collected together a large number of resources from around the web you can find these in our resource folder in Google Docs. We are also always looking for more so help us by suggesting any resources we may have missed.

Resource Folder

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External Resources

Collected from around the web

There are a number of external resources that contributed to the development of Harm Reduction Hacks. Here are a selection relating to this section:

Copyright

The hacks on this site are shared with you under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International licence. This allows you (with attribution) to adapt content for your own use, although we do ask you to then also allow others to have equal access to anything you develop. More details of this licence can be found on the Creative Commons website.

Disclaimer

We do not claim that this is an exhaustive set of strategies, shortcuts, or tips for running an SSP. What we do suggest is that Harm Reduction Hacks offers down-to-earth, practical information for being a better leader, starting and running an SSP, and providing syringe access services. We feel we can say this with confidence because the Hacks are based on interviews with, and the experiences of, literally generations of people who have been doing harm reduction work.

Please note that nothing in this guide should be construed as legal advice. Please consult an attorney local to your area to ensure your program is in compliance with all local, state and federal regulations that apply to your situation.