Presented by our partner,  IdeaEncore,a nonprofit resource center and a community of people who exchange information, provides insightful, easy-to-consume information shared by leaders in the nonprofit sector.

Ready to turn 2012 into your organization’s best year yet? For many, the first step is to start (or revise) planning. A comprehensive, well-reasoned operational or strategic plan can make the difference between getting by and reaching your goals. Your nonprofit colleagues have shared these resources to help:

Not so sure about planning? Read The Bridgespan Group‘s free paper Business Planning for Nonprofits: What It Is and Why It Matters for a breakdown of what’s in a plan and some tips on getting started.

Download Montana Nonprofit Association’s free Q&A -What to Include in Your Plan gives you a simple list of what to include in a comprehensive organization plan.

For more resources Montana Nonprofit Association likes, browse the planning section  of their IdeaEncore-powered online resource library.

Use Nonprofit Enterprise at Work‘s (NEW) The Board Room -Assessment & Strategic Planning ($5) to get your board of directors involved in developing a strategic plan.

Community Solutions Planning & Evaluation shared a free flow chart How Strategic Planning and Evaluation Intersect that will help you visualize the objectives of organizational planning.

Use this Template: Strategic Plan Control Spreadsheet from Executive Service Corp of Cincinnati to guide you through the implementation of your organization’s plan.

Check out one of 2011′s most popular resources, Nonprofit Management Services‘ The Six-hour Strategic Plan ($5).

If you hit an impasse in the planning process and need a little inspiration and humor, take a break with a compilation of Morrie Warshawski’s Favorite Planning Quotes, collected from his LinkedIn Group

If you have experience with organizational and strategic planning, why not help the nonprofit community by sharing your templates and examples on IdeaEncore?