Charting the Course: An Inclusive Process for Strategic Planning

Presenters:Cheryl Albrecht Associate Dean for Public Services, University Libraries, University of Cincinnati

Jane CarlinDepartment Head, College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning, University Libraries, University of Cincinnati

“It is a paradoxical but profoundly true and important principle of life that the most likely way to reach a goal is to be aiming not at that goal itself but at some more ambitious goal beyond it.”-Arnold Toynbee

Phase I Planning Structure and Process

•Dean formed Strategic Plan Task Force to determine process and a Steering Committee to produce the plan

•Consultant hired (Objectivity!)

•All-staff forums held to create mission, vision, and values

Phase II

Active Engagement of all Staff

•Appreciative Inquiry used to identify “what’s working,” “what needs to change,” and “what needs to stop”

•Steering Committee took ideas and proposed nine strategic directions

•Staff reached consensus on strategic directions

Phase II

Active Engagement of all Staff

•Steering Committee posted minutes and notes on Planning web site

•Final version of University Libraries Strategic Plan, 2003-2005, created and presented

Phase III Implementation

•Staff voted on five strategic directions to be acted on first

•Five task forces formed and given three months to work on specific action items within the five strategic directions

•Task forces shared draft reports with all staff and used their input to complete reports and recommendations to the Steering Committee

Phase III Implementation

•Public Services and Technical Services Implementation Teams formed

•Dean formed Strategic Planning Committee to lead completion of action items by appointing new task forces

•Staff assessed the planning process and gave input to be used in future planning efforts

Outcomes Planning Structure and Process

• Shared mission, vision, and values, as well as policies, procedures, and resources across all libraries

• Increased communication between departments and across University Libraries

• Heightened sense of ownership and responsibility of University Libraries’ successes and challenges by being a part of the decision-making process

Outcomes Planning Structure and Process

• Expanded quality-service and continuous-improvement measures

• Increased opportunities for leadership, involvement, and staff development

Sustaining the Momentum (Avoiding the Doldrums)

dol·drums  (d l dr mz , dôl -, d l -)pl.n. (used with a sing. or pl. verb) -A period of stagnation or

slump. -A period of depression or

unhappy listlessness. -A region of the ocean near the

equator, characterized by calms, light winds, or squalls.

-The weather conditions characteristic of these regions of the ocean.

“Even with the best of maps and instruments, we can never fully chart our journeys.”

- Gail Pool

Our approach to continuous improvement:

Excellence in Higher Education Program

• Institutionalizing the concept of continuous quality improvement

• Developing our own cadre of facilitators• Applying the Strategic Planning process at the

department/team level

Continuous improvement at the department/team level

• EHE provides a framework for continuous improvement and adapting our strategic plan at the departmental, group, or team level

• Establishes new patterns of communicating and working together

• Practical• Action/Results-oriented

The EHE Process

• Self-Assessment

• Prioritizing Areas for Improvement

• Consider “stakeholders”

• Identify high impact projects

What has the SP process meant to individual staff members?

• Introduced a new level of transparency to the workings of the library and its decision making process

• Made participation worthwhile with tangible/measurable outcomes

• Created a vested interest• Introduced new methods of workplace interaction

and communication

How has it changed the work environment?

• More team-oriented and inclusive• New ideas and approaches are not

ignored• Assessment is part of the workplace

and is viewed as a positive• Consensus building can be time

consuming

What three words would you use to describe the process?

Successful

Valuable

Inclusive

Planning the second time around

• Similar approach

• Shorter time frame -- staff know the drill!

• Utilizing internal facilitators

• Integrating with UC|21 -- UC’s strategic plan

“Continual improvement is an unending journey.”

-Lloyd Dobens and Clare Crawford-Mason, Thinking About Quality