Equity-Centered Strategic Planning for Nonprofits: A Conversation with Evoke Collective

Completing a nonprofit strategic plan is a real milestone, but too often, the finished document ends up on a shelf. It reads well, looks polished and impressive, but leaves teams without the practical direction they need to stay aligned day to day. The toughest moments, when resources are tight, tradeoffs are unavoidable, and priorities compete, are exactly when a plan should help leaders decide what to pursue, what to pause, and what to say no to. 

At Kairos, when we see organizations struggle to communicate with confidence, clarity, and consistency, it’s often a symptom of something deeper: the strategy isn’t clear enough to guide decisions and messaging.

A strong strategic plan is a living framework. It helps your organization define what matters most, communicate priorities with confidence, and build the habits that turn strategy into action, especially in moments of uncertainty and change, as in the current landscape.

In this blog post, Kairos spoke with Evoke Collective’s Gina Airey and Rachel Hamburg about what effective nonprofit strategic planning looks like in practice, how to incorporate systems-change thinking, and why equity must show up in both the process and the plan. Together, they represent more than 35 years of social sector experience.

From your perspective, what differentiates a truly effective strategic plan from one that sits on a shelf?

Rachel: A strong nonprofit strategic plan is built for implementation, or what we call “strategic doing”. That starts with a collaborative planning process that fosters early engagement, especially from the people responsible for carrying the work forward. Practical tools also matter, including a clear scorecard, implementation milestones, criteria for future decisions, and quarterly checkpoints. Our plans include all those tools because only when teams make space to review progress and adapt together can the plan stay alive long after it’s approved.

Gina: We say that for our strategic plan, there’s no shelf. When plans are truly effective, it’s because both the planning and the doing are intentional, collaborative, and values aligned. We help clients develop quarterly sessions that support accountability and adaptability. We call these “Lookouts,” based on the turnout on a mountain road where you can momentarily pull off to gain perspective: Where have we been? What did we learn? Will we keep climbing this mountain, and how?     

Many nonprofits are shifting to systems change work. What does it take to build that thinking into a strategic plan?

Rachel: Systems change work requires context. A nonprofit strategy can’t focus solely on the organization; it should also reflect how change occurs across a broader ecosystem. That means aligning internally on a shared understanding of impact and identifying where the organization has leverage. A Theory of Change can help clarify that role. We have observed that nonprofit strategic plans often center on the organization, but it’s not about you. We orient leaders toward the vision they hold for those they serve and advocate for. With that approach, our clients step back and name how they will work in collaboration and coalition with a range of partners.

Gina: Systems change strategy starts with imagining the future you’re working toward and thinking backwards, not just reacting to what’s broken today. That kind of forward-thinking vision makes it possible to plan for transformation, rather than just maintaining your organization’s status quo.
The first step is often to allow ourselves to dream about systems that would truly work for individuals, families, and communities. Seeing the limitations of current systems is easy; analysis is easy. But conjuring a new reality requires giving ourselves permission to dream. We can be so used to contorting ourselves within the current constraints. So, we help clients restart with new assumptions about a world that works.   

Can you share an example of an organization whose direction or strategy was fundamentally changed by integrating a systems lens?

Gina: In one recent strategic planning process with a startup nonprofit, a systems-change lens helped shift the organization from focusing solely on direct services to embracing advocacy as a core strategic priority. The planning process created space to name the societal mindsets and assumptions that keep inequity in place and then to reimagine what’s possible. At first, they were reluctant to lean into systems change advocacy, but when they named the conditions that kept the unjust experiences in place, they were emboldened to set goals to influence policies and systems based on data and stories from their services.

Rachel: This is often where nonprofit leaders feel a breakthrough: realizing that meeting immediate needs and driving long-term systems change aren’t competing priorities. With the right strategy, they reinforce each other.

How should equity show up in both the planning process and the resulting plan?

Rachel: Equity can’t be an add-on. If equity isn’t present in how you plan, it won’t show up meaningfully in the plan. We ask clients: who will be critical to successful implementation of the plan? Then we co-design roles for all to model new ways of collaborating internally and externally. They practice developing an anti-racist culture in real time. Bringing more voices into decision-making and making room for principled disagreement helps build trust, co-ownership, and accountability.   

Gina Airey: When making strategic choices, we guide leaders to set goals that embed equity within not only programs and long-term impact, but also in everyday culture and operations. Many nonprofits still operate in a highly hierarchical way that diminishes the wisdom and perspectives of staff and volunteers at all levels. How you engage a range of folks in planning helps to model new ways of collaborating internally.

Finally, what’s one piece of advice you’d give to a nonprofit leader preparing to embark on their next strategic plan?

Gina: It’s not about creating the document. With the right facilitative approach, you can truly shift the course of your organization and your potential impact. Prepare yourself to stretch as a leader seeking collective answers to compelling strategic questions.

Rachel: Strategic planning works best when leaders participate thoughtfully while sharing power. Be willing to accept that this process is iterative; perfectionism slows progress. The goal is a plan that supports real action, learning, and adaptation over the long term. It’s impossible to craft a plan that’s built to last: build one that’s built to respond and evolve. 

For more information on Evoke Collective, visit www.theevokecollective.com.