Following a sexual harassment scandal and the subsequent departure of it's two Directors, the largest theater company in Toronto, Canada has hired a new executive who says that one of her top priorities is to develop a strategic plan.
Good enough I suppose - new management wants to put its stake in the ground and define the organization's future. I am presuming that in the selection of this new director, the board agreed that revisiting the theater's direction was indeed a priority. Yes, a strategic plan is a 'going forward', marching orders so-to-speak statement by the board, the owner, to its staff about the future. Yes, staff need full engagement in the planning process - their knowledge of the day-to-day and the field are essential to helping inform the board in its thinking and decision-making. But again, the resulting plan must be a product of the board's - a document that holds the board accountable for pursuit of mission and is then implemented by staff.
This distinction about who owns a strategic plan and what is the process matters for every organization facing this not-so-easy-if-it's-done-correctly and essential task of a nonprofit board. Best to the new ED of the theater company and equally "best" to the board.