Planning

Planning is beneficial to community radio stations in many ways.

The main aim of planning is to maintain a positive relationship between the community radio station and its listeners and volunteers. Specifically, planning enables a community radio station to:

• become proactive rather than reactive — to clarify community radio station purposes and direction
• initiate and influence outcomes in favour of the community radio station
• exert more control over its destiny — to decide where it wants to be in the future
• adopt a more systematic approach to change and reduce resistance to change
• improve financial performance and use resources effectively
• increase awareness of its operating environment (for example, competitors, government policy, threats)
• improve organisational control and coordination of activities
• develop teamwork. 

Planning - The Basics

Ask yourself – what will your station be in a year or two? What might it sound like? What will it be like for the volunteers?

Developed by the Community Media Training Organisation.

Planning - Stakeholders

Developed by the Community Media Training Organisation.

Planning - Community of Interest

How to involve your community of interest in your station's planning activities.

Planning - Business Plan

Community organisations and businesses that do their own planning save a lot of time and learn a lot about their organisation/business in the process. In a community radio station, if you conduct your own business planning rather than outsource it, you will feel a greater sense of ownership over the plan and will be more likely to refer to it as you go about your business managing the station. It is likely you will also save money, which makes good sense for the majority of community radio stations!

Developed by the Community Media Training Organisation.

Planning - Sustainable Planning

Strategic plans, operational plans and individual performance plans. Where does the planning end? It doesn’t. The more you plan, the more you will achieve. Planning, monitoring and evaluating should become part of your routine at work.

Developed by the Community Media Training Organisation.