Horticulture Centre of the Pacific Strategic Plan 2014–17 · HCP Plan doc.PRINT_Layout 1 14-02-21 11:06 AM Page 2. HCP STRATEGIC PLAN 2014 – 2017 environment for students, volunteers,

Strategic Plan2014–17Strategic Plan2014–17

Horticulture Centre of the Pacific

HCP Plan doc.PRINT_Layout 1 14-02-21 11:06 AM Page 1

From our Board President and Executive Director

On behalf of the Board and staff of the Horticulture Centre of the Pacific (HCP), we are pleasedto present the HCP’s strategic plan for the four year period, 2014 – 2017.

The HCP is at an exciting point in its 35 year history. Our Pacific Horticulture College hasestablished an enviable reputation for the quality of its accredited horticulture programs and hasgrown to the point of needing to expand classroom space. Our community education programs arerenowned for their quality and innovation and 2013 was a record year for the number of classesand participants. The Gardens at HCP have never looked better and 2013 saw the opening of ourBonsai Garden, the largest in Canada and already very popular with our visitors. Nourish Bistrowith its healthy and creative menu has become the ‘in’ place for lunch, dinner and afternoon tea.

2013 saw the opening of the new 3,000 square foot, $1.5 million Couvelier Pavilion. ThePavilion, which replaces the glasshouse destroyed by a fire in February 2011, will play a major rolein the future financial sustainability of the HCP. It will be a major source of revenue as an eventrental space for weddings, special family events and corporate and community events, as well asprovide additional classroom space.

Our original founders in 1979, envisioned the HCP as an international centre of horticultureeducation. The foundations are now well established for the HCP to achieve that vision. We willbe greatly strengthening the ways we serve our community, through expanded programs thataddress important issues such as food security, connecting people, especially children to nature,promoting conservation and the protection of biodiversity.

We would like to express our thanks to the Board, staff and volunteers who made such valuablecontributions to our strategic planning process. This is an important agenda for the HCP and ourcommunity and we hope you will find this strategy both exciting and worthy of your support.

Ron Cox Roger Charles Board President Executive Director

A Message


H C P S T R AT E G I C P L A N 2 0 1 4 – 2 0 1 7

environment for students, volunteers, visitors,and members.

The HCP’s Pacific Horticulture College(PHC) is the only private not-for-profit postsecondary institution in British Columbiaaccredited by the Province to providehorticulture education.

With its small class sizes set in an unique‘living classroom’ of gardens and conservationpark, the PHC is consistently rated as one ofthe premier schools for horticultureeducation. In addition, to its accredited

horticulture programs, the HCP provides awide range of horticulture related programsto our community. These include programs forschools and families that help connectchildren to nature and enable them to learnthe importance of our natural environment toa healthy, sustainable world.

The HCP provides over 30 communityeducation classes, from the ever popularMaster Gardener Program to food production,composting, pruning, and dry stone wallbuilding to cooking.

The Horticulture Centre of the Pacific(HCP) is a not-for-profit society registered inthe Province of British Columbia. Situated onthe Saanich peninsula of southern VancouverIsland, the HCP is dedicated to the provisionof high quality horticulture education topeople of all ages, locally, nationally andinternationally.

With 41 hectares (103 acres) of gardens,woodlands and wetlands located within 15minutes of downtown Victoria, The Gardensat HCP provides an unique learning

Who we are...


Our World is ChangingAll organizations in the 21stcentury are faced with arapidly changing world.Standing still is not an option;and this is particularly true fornot-for-profit organizationsthat must continuously striveto remain relevant to theircommunities.

The main challenges facing theHCP which our strategy mustaddress, include:

Search for Relevancy Many not-for-profits, including public gardens, are re-evaluating the role they play in their communities andexploring ways to increase their relevancy. The HCPrecognizes that its current programs focus too narrowlyboth in terms of subject matter and the segment of ourcommunity we serve. By increasing our relevancy to ourcommunity, we will better serve our community and inturn increase the community’s awareness and support forthe HCP.

Trends in Volunteerism Both demographic trends and the busy modern urbanlife are having significant effects on the future ofvolunteerism. While the large cohort of retiring babyboomers provides a large potential for volunteers, there isa greater expectation to be involved in meaningfulvolunteer work and to be able to plan their volunteertime around their busy schedules. This trend suggeststhat organizations such as the HCP, where volunteersmake a significant contribution, must adapt to this newreality.

Restraint in Government Spending All levels of government, in response to budget pressures,are reducing funding available to the not-for-profitsector. The HCP must adapt to this reality by furtherdiversifying its sources of funding. It must also betterunderstand the governments’ funding priorities andwherever feasible, design programs that will align withthose priorities.

Urban Gardening and FoodSecurityThere is an increasing interest in local food security, thequality of our food and being able to grow food foroneself. The HCP recognizes this trend and hasdeveloped a number of popular programs on foodproduction, e.g. Year Round Harvest and the BackyardOrchard. The HCP, with its expertise and large land baseis well positioned to play a leading role in educating ourcommunity on urban gardening and food security.

Increased Interest in‘Reconnecting’ with NatureIncreasingly, urban dwellers of all ages are seekingopportunities to reconnect with nature. Parents areincreasingly seeking ways for their children to appreciateour natural environment and learn about the importanceof healthy ecosystems to a sustainable world. The HCPis well positioned to play a major role in our communityto help people of all ages connect with nature.

Increased Competition for DonorsThe decrease in government funding for the not-for-profit sector has greatly increased the competition fordonors. To successfully appeal to donors in ourcommunity, the HCP must increase our relevancy to thecommunity and enhance our fundraising capabilities.


The Horticulture Centre of the Pacific has a vision to bean internationally recognized centre of horticultureeducation and a botanical garden. Internationalrecognition is important as it allows the HCP to beranked against the best education institutions in theworld – and we believe we can only be the best bycomparing ourselves to the best in the world.

Becoming a botanical garden will further enhance ourcapabilities, global reputation and credibility andstrengthen our educational programs by embracing globalbest practices in education, conservation and research.

Our MissionThe HCP will achieve its visionby effectively executing itsmission of:

Providing an inspiring natural learning environmentin which visitors and students can learn responsiblehorticulture and conservation practices and theimportance of plants to a sustainable world.

Reaching out to our community and the world withinnovative education programs that connect people,especially children, with plants and nature and increaseawareness of the importance and fragility of our naturalenvironment.

Developing, cataloguing and displaying a richcollection of plants that demonstrates the rich heritage ofplants that can be grown in our climate and contributesto the protection of biodiversity.

Demonstrating responsible stewardship of ourconservation lands through our sustainable managementpractices, habitat restoration and education programs.

Providing high quality, accredited education forhorticulture professionals by responding to the needs ofthe horticulture industry and our students throughinnovative programs.

Engaging in research with partners in plant sciences toexpand our knowledge of native plants and theirimportance for biodiversity and sources of food.

Core ValuesThe HCP’s core values reflect thebasic principles that guide howwe operate and interact withour stakeholders.

StewardshipThe HCP has stewardship responsibility for the 41hectares of land under its management. As such, theHCP manages these lands in an environmentallysustainable manner to ensure future generations willbenefit from their beauty and natural biodiversity.

Leadership and InnovationThe HCP provides leadership in the community byproviding relevant and innovative horticultural educationprograms that meet the needs of our students, thehorticultural industry and our community.

Collaboration and PartnershipsThe HCP is committed to developing strongpartnerships with our community; collaboration is afundamental way in which we conduct our business,allowing us to build stronger ties with our partners andmore effectively achieve our vision.

Respect and IntegrityThe HCP treats its visitors, staff, students, volunteers andmembers with respect and sensitivity. We employ highethical standards, practicing honesty and fairness in everything we do.

TeamworkThe HCP values the individual, but understands that success is the result of everyone working together as a team.


Our Vision“We will be an internationallyrecognized botanical gardenand a respected centre oflifelong learning, conservationand research.”

The maintenance of the gardens andconservation park at HCP is supported bya loyal and experienced group of over120 volunteers that come weekly tomaintain their gardens.


Strengthen Our Financial Sustainability

The first priority for the HCP is to ensure its long termviability and health by improving its financialsustainability. It is only with a strong financial foundationthat the HCP will be able to make the neededinvestments in programs and infrastructure to serve ourcommunity. There are four main elements to the HCPattaining financial sustainability.

1. Increase our income generationcapabilities:

• Increase our college enrollment through increasedmarketing

• Expand our community education offerings

• Expand our fundraising efforts, including corporatesponsorships

• Expand contracted education services, e.g. FirstNations and overseas students

2. Ensure the success of the newly builtCouvelier Pavilion as a strong source ofincome:

• Hire a Director of Sales and Marketing (done)

• Provide an appropriate marketing budget

• Focus on high revenue generating events

3. Keep a close control on our operatingexpenses:

• Ensure all financial obligations are met

• Continuously seek operating efficiencies

4. Increase financial reserves by $100,000by 2017 towards a final target of$250,000 by 2020

1Strategic Focus Areas The HCP has identified four keyareas of focus for the next fouryears: 2014 – 2017. These are theareas in which we will focus ourenergies and resources toadvance our strategy.

Strategic Focus Areas The HCP has identified four keyareas of focus for the next fouryears: 2014 – 2017. These are theareas in which we will focus ourenergies and resources toadvance our strategy.

Enhance Our Relevancy to the Community

The HCP seeks to enhance our relevancy to ourcommunity by better leveraging our strengths to addressissues of community concern. By building on ourstrengths of:

• Our educational experience and capabilities

• Our horticultural and conservation expertise

• Our 41 hectare land base and location

• Our community minded staff and volunteers

We will broaden and deepen our relevancy to andsupport from our community through programs thataddress such issues as:

• Food security, including urban food production

• Connecting our communities, especially families andchildren, to nature

• Habitat protection and restoration

• The influence of climate change on our ecosystems

• The importance of biodiversity to a sustainable world

2



Strengthen and Broaden Our Educational Focus

Education is the core mandate of the HCP. Thestrengthening and broadening of our educationalprograms is critical to both enhancing our relevancy toour community and increasing our income. There arefive elements to our educational strategy:

1. An Overarching Educational Perspective We will look at all of our activities from an educationalperspective to ensure everything we do is designed tosupport our educational strategy and objectives. Thisincludes everything from the design of our gardens, howwe deal with garden waste, to the food served atNourish.

2. National and International Perspective Greater Victoria is a small market for horticultureeducation and the growth potential is limited. The HCP has had some success in attracting students fromacross Canada and internationally. Victoria’s climateprovides an attractive destination for students, and theHCP plans to increase our marketing focus beyondVancouver Island as a means to increase our revenue andenhance our international reputation.

3

Capacity BuildingFramework

(McKinsey & Company)

3. Customizing Programs Being a small, flexible organization, the HCP is able toquickly develop programs to meet the specific needs ofour community and customers. For example, we candesign programs for schoolchildren in response to theneeds of teachers and their curriculum and develop FirstNations’ food production programs to respond to theirspecial needs.

4. Adapting and Adopting As part of the worldwide botanic garden network, we willhave increased access to innovative programs. We willseek to adopt or adapt the best education programsavailable worldwide rather than build every programfrom scratch.

5. Corporate Sponsorships We will actively promote the value of our programs tothe business sector and seek out sponsorships that willhelp us fund and promote expanded program offerings.

Organizational CultureCore Values, Beliefs & Behaviour Norms • Performance Orientation or Performance Culture

Strategies

Clear, coherent medium to long term strategyActionable • Linked to Aspirations

Goals & Performance Targets

Aspirations

Mission, vision, goalsClear, bold, succinct, focused

Compelling, inspiring, energizing

Organizational Skills

Human Resources

StaffVolunteers • Partners

Board

Systems &Infrastructure

TechnologySystems • ProcessesSpace & Equipment

Organizational Structure

Roles & ResponsibilitiesWork Groups

Board & CommitteesAccountability

Program Development

Program Management

Marketing

HR Management

Roles & Responsibilities

Work Groups

Board & Committees

Accountability

Increase Our DeliveryCapacity

The successful implementation of our strategy willrequire the HCP to increase our capacity to deliverprograms and services. The Capacity Framework belowwas developed by McKinsey & Company to define theseven essential elements of capacity building in not-for-profits.

The HCP will use this Capacity Framework tocontinuously evaluate our capacity and focus on theareas requiring strengthening.

• Undertake an organizational review to ensure we arestructured to effectively support our strategy

4


A New Business ModelThe HCP started life as a volunteer-driven,not-for-profit society whereby volunteersraised funds, built the gardens andinfrastructure, and managed the day-to-dayoperations. The organization has beengradually transitioning to a moreprofessionally run business. Over the past 5years, the HCP and our Executive Directorhave worked hard to adopt good businessgovernance, practices and procedures. This isalways a challenging proposition for not-for-profits given their limited resources.

The HCP has been looking for a provenbusiness model that will help position us forgrowth and relevancy into the future. Wehave selected the Botanic Garden Model,which has been implemented by over 700botanic gardens around the world. In 2014,the HCP will join the Botanic GardenConservation International (BGCI) based inKew, England to gain access to this globalnetwork of gardens and its businessexpertise.


The HCP will implement its strategyby incorporating our vision, mission,core values and strategic focus areasin each area of our business:

• The Gardens and Conservation Park at HCP

• Education

• Events, Rentals and Visitor Services

• Membership, Volunteers and Staff

• Marketing and Administration

The Gardens andConservation Park at HCP

The HCP’s strategy will be implemented in the Gardensand Conservation Park through:

Increased Business Approach As the HCP has grown it has shifted from an informallymanaged to a formally managed organization. This hasinvolved hiring more staff and instituting business-likepolicies, processes and standards. The Gardens at HCPwill continue to evolve with:

• Increased responsibility of the Gardens & LandsManagement Committee for planning and standards

• Increased staff for gardens maintenance

• Development of 5 year garden management plan

• Improved operating processes and standards

• Enhanced volunteer development program andsupport

1Implementing Our Strategy

Improved Visitor Experience

The HCP will strive to constantly improve the visitorexperience:

• New, attractive garden entrance and landscaping andlighting to improve access and safety

• Improved directional and interpretive signage

• Improved mobility features, e.g. pathways and stairs

• Interactive learning features through technology, e.g. mobile apps

• Implement visitor feedback process

Increased Education Focus An educational focus will be placed on the garden’s 5 yeardevelopment plan to increase the learning value of thegardens:

• Increased focus on the needs of families and schools,e.g. children’s learning garden

• Develop tablet and smart phone learning applications

• Improved interpretive features

• Better integration of the conservation park

Enhance Support for Events To support events in the garden:

• Assess infrastructure needs for large events, e.g. Art &Music in the Gardens and small events, e.g. tai chi inthe garden

Support for Research and Conservation• As part of the botanic garden model, identify andcultivate research partnerships

• Identify infrastructure needs for research, e.g., officespace, lab, research plots

Sesquicentennial ProjectIdentify, plan and develop a special project for Canada’s150 year celebration in 2017, for example:

• Interpretive nature trail around the lake

• Children’s learning garden

• Ethnobotany trail


The HCP has diverse sources of fundingfor its operations, with only 15% comingfrom government. Government plays amajor role, however, in funding the HCP’sspecial and capital projects.


Education

The HCP’s strategy for our education programsincludes:

Pacific Horticulture College (PHC)

1. Accredited Programs The HCP’s Pacific Horticulture College providesprovincially accredited programs for students looking fora career in horticulture as well as horticultureprofessionals wishing to upgrade their qualifications.Our strategy will grow our student enrollments andrevenue by:

• Prioritize the marketing of our College programs

• Attracting local, national and international studentsthrough our new HCP website

• Implementing a part time arborist program by 2015

• Building a new classroom and lab in 2015

• Implementing a second intake of the 10 monthprogram in 2016

• Implementing a 2 year program in 2017

2. Community Education The HCP provides over 30 community educationcourses annually, from the 10-month long Year RoundHarvest to the weekend dry stonewalling course. Ourstrategy will grow the community education courses andenrollment by:

• Assigning priority to the development and marketingof community education courses

• Leveraging our marketing relationship with SaanichParks and Recreation

• Creating programs for seniors

• Seeking corporate sponsorships

2 Implementingour Strategy

The HCP’s Pacific Horticulture Collegehas attracted students from manycountries, including the United States,South Africa, France, Germany,Argentina and England.

100% of graduates of the PacificHorticulture College are successful atfinding employment or starting theirown businesses.



Other Educational ProgramsThe HCP operates three program areas outside PHC:

1. Programs for Families, Childrenand Youth

The HCP has a number of programs for school childrenincluding the popular Junior Master Gardeners Program.Programs for families, children and youth are a majorstrategic focus for the HCP and we will expand ourprograms and enrollments by:

• Establishing relationships with local Parent AdvisoryCommittees

• Identifying teacher champions in local schools

• Customizing programs to meet the curriculum needsof teachers

• Developing corporate sponsorships for children’sprograms

• Adopting and adapting successful programs fromother botanic gardens

2. First Nations’ Food Program Following on the success of the food productionprogram for the Quatsino First Nation and the proposedSiem Lelum House community garden for First Nations’youth, explore the development of a program that can beprovided to First Nations across the Province:

• Participate in the Siem Lelum project in Victoria

• Sponsor a First Nations’ food conference at the HCPto identify needs and the level of support

• Develop and pilot a food production program for First Nations

3. Pacific Rim Student Program Attracting international students to study at the HCPincreases the HCP’s reputation and credibility as apremier institution for horticulture education. It is also aprofitable source of income as overseas students pay apremium to study in Canada. The HCP will partnerwith other organizations, e.g., Canadian Youth HostelAssociation.

• Confirm interest in Pacific Rim countries, e.g. Chinaand Japan (under way)

• Develop overseas partners, e.g. universities (underway)

• Define and conduct a pilot project to confirm its viability

Events,Rentals&Visitor Services

The HCP’s strategy will be implemented in the areas ofevents, rentals and visitor services by:

New Events The HCP’s Arts and Music in the Gardens held on thesecond weekend of August, attracted 2,000 visitors in2013 and is the HCP’s major fundraising event. TheHCP is exploring new events, including:

• A Victoria Flower and Garden Show in 2015

• A Children’s Harvest Festival

Couvelier Pavilion The success of the Couvelier Pavilion as a major sourceof income will be critical to the future success of theHCP.

• Increase marketing e.g., new website, businessmagazines, tradeshows, chamber of commerce

• Provide an appropriate marketing budget

• Focus on providing a first class experience for customers

• Learn from customer feedback

Enhanced Visitor Services The HCP will strive to continually improve services forour visitors, including:

• Guided tours of garden & conservation park

• Improved parking

• Increased activities in the garden, e.g. yoga, tai chi,painting

• Interpretive/learning centre

3

Under a five year management agreementwith the Municipality of Saanich, the HCP isrestoring and maintaining Saanich’s 10 acreOuterbridge Park with a core group of 12dedicated and hardworking volunteers.


Members, Volunteers and Staff

The HCP’s strategy will be implemented in the areas ofmembership, volunteers and staff by:

Enhanced Membership Strategy Members are important ambassadors to our communityand an important source of donations. The HCP needsto increase and broaden our membership to help usachieve our financial goals and increase communitysupport.

• Research best practices in membership developmentand implement an improved membership program

Enhanced Volunteer Program Members are an important source of expertise andsupport for the HCP’s operations. Moving to a botanicalgarden model will open up new volunteer needs andopportunities.

• Revise the volunteer program to include broader roles,enhance recruitment and retention of volunteers

• Implement improved orientation and trainingprogram

Staff Development and Recruitment• Undertake a review of the HCP’s organizationalstructure to ensure it is well aligned with the StrategicPlan 2014-2017

• Implement a staff development program

• Hire additional staff for garden maintenance and eventcoordination, as finances permit

4Nourish Bistro Nourish Bistro, owned and operated by HayleyRosenberg, provides healthy, innovative cuisine forvisitors to the Gardens at HCP. The patio is a favouritespot for lunch or dinner with its beautiful garden setting.Nourish and the HCP collaborate on providing visitorservices, including cooking classes. Our collaborativestrategy with Nourish includes:

• Expanding the restaurant space and seeking a liquorlicense

• Introducing more food related events, e.g. cookingseries

• Increasing theuse of producefrom the HCPgardens,includingnative plants

• Increasingjointmarketingactivities

Arts & Music in the Gardens, held inAugust, is a popular event in Victoria. In2013, over 2,000 visitors wanderedthrough the gardens appreciating thework of 65 artists while listening to awide variety of live music. The HCP works with the Garth Homer

Society to provide opportunities foradults with developmental disabilitiesto build self confidence and a senseof accomplishment by volunteering inour gardens.

Implementingour Strategy



Marketing and Administration

The HCP’s strategy will be implemented in the areas ofmarketing, administration and finances by:

Enhance Marketing• Provide an appropriate marketing budget for the CouvelierPavilion

• Implement a new website with strengthened marketing focus

• Make better use of social media for marketing

• Provide increased marketing support for College programs andcommunity education courses

Improve fundraising• Enhance our fundraising capacity

• Implement a corporate sponsorship program

• Re-introduce a planned giving program

• Executive Director to focus more time on fundraising

Improve Operational Processes and Controls• Complete documentation of operational processes and controls

• Complete a gardens management manual

5

In 2011, the HCP was approached by theQuatsino First Nations on northernVancouver Island to develop and deliver aprogram of growing food in greenhouses.This was a very successful project.

In 2013, the HCP welcomed 20,000visitors to the gardens from around theworld. We expect to see significantgrowth in visitors due to the opening ofthe Couvelier Pavilion, our botanicgarden status and the growingattraction of Nourish Bistro.


Officers of the Board

Ron Cox, President

Larry Phillips, Vice President

Laurie Hardy, Secretary

Gordon Gunn, Treasurer

Simon Wade, Past President

Directors

Ed Chwyl

Gail Gabel

Larry Macintosh

Brian Russell

Hugh Stephens

Ex Officio Members

Roger Charles, Executive Director

Councillor Vic Derman, Saanich Liaison

Executive Team

Roger Charles, Executive Director

Lisa Ballinger, Director, Sales & Marketing

Linda Petite, Head Gardener

Jo Ann Braidwood, Financial Administrator

Amanda Price, Volunteer Coordinator

Pacific Horticulture College

Anne Drummond, College Director

Laura Biggs, College Administrator

Jane Tice, Manager, Community Education

2013 Board of Directors



2014 Business Plan

Financial Goals

1. Increase revenue to meet our program expansion objectives

2. Meet our debt repayment obligations

3. Reduce our accumulated deficit

4. Enhance our fundraising capacity, including a corporate sponsorshipprogram

Gardens at HCP Goals

1. Join Botanic Gardens Conservation International

2. Develop a five-year development plan for the gardens andconservation park

3. Identify a project & develop a plan for Canada’s 150th in 2017

4. Develop research partnerships to support our strategy

Infrastructure Goals

1. Increase onsite parking

2. Build a new entrance to the gardens and complete the landscapingaround the Couvelier Pavilion

Education Goals

1. Plan an arborist program for 2015

2. Implement a seniors program

3. Develop a strategy for and expand school programs

4. Implement a pilot First Nations’ Food Program

5. Implement a pilot Pacific Rim Student Program

6. Increase enrollment in accredited programs

7. Increase enrollment in community education programs

Events, Rentals & Visitor Services Goals

1. Conduct a feasibility study for a Victoria Flower & Garden Show

Marketing and Administration Goals

1. Implement a new website with enhanced marketing features

2. Complete the documenting of internal processes & controls

Members, Volunteers & Staff Goals

1. Implement an enhanced volunteer program

2. Publish a book on the history of HCP for 35th anniversary

3. Implement a staff development program

4. Complete a review of the HCP’s organizational structure

2014 will be a year to stabilize the HCP’sfinances and build the foundation forthe future. These high level strategicgoals for 2014 will be translated intomore specific goals and targets in ourdetailed 2014 Business Plan.


Contact us

505 Quayle Road, Victoria, BC Canada V9E 2J7

Tel. 250.479.6162

www. hcp.ca

Connectingpeople withplants since1979


Documents

Horticulture Centre of the Pacific Strategic Plan 2014–17 · HCP Plan doc.PRINT_Layout 1 14-02-21 11:06 AM Page 2. HCP STRATEGIC PLAN 2014 – 2017 environment for students, volunteers,