System Planning Organizations (SPO) are stand-alone agencies (or dedicated resourced embedded within an existing agency) whose primary responsibility is to take on the day-to-day operations and community lead as a systems planner. SPO’s can be sector specific (ex: homelessness) or created to bridge the gap across sectors.

In short, through system’s planning, the SPO’s function is to improve social outcomes by mobilizing broad stakeholder groups towards common goals, objectives and outcomes, facilitating shifts towards data-driven systems and culture, enhancing coordinated access to services and of service providers, and aligning investments and funding for maximum communal impact.