Strategic Planning: A Workshop for Small Towns | Winston-Salem
Location
WInston-Salem | The Historic Brookstown Inn
Date & Time
October 8 9:30 AM - October 9 4:00 PM
Event Type
AML Course
Event Details
Strategic Planning: A Workshop for Small Towns
A Comprehensive Training Workshop for Municipalities
Strategic planning can often feel overwhelming—especially for smaller towns with limited time, staff, and resources. This two-day, facilitator-led workshop from the North Carolina League of Municipalities is designed to change that.
Strategic Planning: A Workshop for Small Towns offers a practical, accessible solution for municipalities under 15,000 in population. Rather than just learning about strategic planning, participants will actively develop a 3-to-5-year Strategic Plan tailored to their town’s unique needs and priorities.
Led by experienced League staff, this hands-on session walks municipal leadership teams through a structured planning process using a proven, user-friendly template. Together, your team will identify key focus areas, define clear objectives, and outline actionable steps to move your community forward.
Unlike traditional trainings, this workshop delivers a tangible outcome: a working draft of your town’s Strategic Plan, ready to be refined, adopted, and implemented. In addition, participants will gain guidance on governance best practices for monitoring progress and ensuring the plan remains a living, effective tool for achieving long-term goals.
Strategic planning made practical, actionable, affordable and tailored to the real-world needs of municipal leadership.
What to Expect
By the end of the workshop, your team will have:
- A first-draft Strategic Plan tailored to your community’s needs and priorities
- Clearly defined strategic focus areas, objectives, and action steps for the next 3 to 5 years
- A better understanding of how to engage community members and stakeholders in refining and adopting your plan
- Knowledge of how to use governance tools and performance tracking to ensure ongoing success
- In addition to plan development, the session includes discussion of practical governance strategies to ensure the Strategic Plan is not only completed but also implemented effectively and updated as community needs evolve.
Required Participation and Registration Rate
Each participating municipality must bring at least three representatives, two of which must be elected officials. (For example, a mayor and two council members; or two council members and a manager; etc.)
The registration rate allows towns to bring up to five participants total. If you would like to bring more than five people, there is an additional rate per person.
Town Registration (up to 5 participants): $800
Each additional participant: $200
How to Register
Please only have one person from your town register! The person registering does not need to be one of the attendees. (For example, the Town Clerk can register on behalf of the governing board.)
Upon registering, NCLM will contact the registrant to receive the full list of attendees.
Capacity
Space is limited! Register now to reserve your town's spot.
Large and Mid-Size Town Eligibility
This offering is a streamlined workshop that, while comprehensive for smaller towns, is not designed to fully cover the complexities of large-city strategic planning.
If your town population is 15,000 or fewer, this workshop is for you.
If your town population is significantly larger than 15,000 and you are interested in this workshop, please contact us at learning@nclm.org. We will discuss your town's unique circumstances to see if this workshop would be beneficial for your strategic planning process. NCLM is presently developing a Strategic Planning workshop for large cities, so all municipalities will have access to Strategic Planning training soon!
Location:
The Historic Brookstown Inn
200 Brookstown Ave
Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27101
Times:
Wednesday, October 8: 9:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Thursday, October 9: 9:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Accommodations:
A hotel block with discounted rates is available for participants at the event venue, the Historic Brookstown Inn. Information on how to reserve your rooms is provided in the Confirmation Email sent upon registering for the event.
Food and Beverage:
A complimentary lunch will be provided to attendees on both days of the workshop. Morning refreshments (fruit, pastries, coffee) will also be provided. Water will be available throughout both days.
Advancing Municipal Leaders - Certification Program:
Participants will receive 6 AML credits through their participation in this workshop
Cost:
$800 per town (up to 5 participants included)
$200 for each additional participant
Contact:
Jack Cassidy, NCLM Learning and Development Program Manager
919-715-2923