{"id":1095,"date":"2020-01-17T20:29:05","date_gmt":"2020-01-18T02:29:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/meitlercom.flywheelsites.com\/?p=1095"},"modified":"2020-01-31T16:15:55","modified_gmt":"2020-01-31T22:15:55","slug":"planning-missteps","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/meitler.com\/2020\/01\/17\/planning-missteps\/","title":{"rendered":"Planning Missteps"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I recently read an article in a digital publication called \u201cLadders, Inc.,\u201d<\/em> an information\/news source focusing on a wide range of work, career and management-related issues.  What piqued my interest is that it shared missteps to avoid in developing a comprehensive growth plan, obviously a topic that warrants a read by a planning consultant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were five key missteps in planning that in my experience with strategic planning with Catholic schools over the years capture what can quickly derail or unravel even the \u201cbest laid schemes of mice and men\u201d<\/em> as Robert Burns once shared.  For consideration:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. Not including the right people in the planning process. <\/strong> Engagement is the key to success so those most impacted by a plan should have an opportunity to share their insights and concerns and ultimately, take ownership for their future.  For us in our Catholic world, subsidiarity is incredibly important so those in our school communities believe they are heard and taken seriously. In our work, this includes faculty and staff, parents, students, pastors, alumni, community leaders, supporters and friends. <\/li>
  2. Failing to consider the people and their culture early in the process. <\/strong> We often share what we refer to as our unofficial tagline \u2013 \u201cif you\u2019ve seen one Catholic school, you\u2019ve seen\u2026.one Catholic school.\u201d  Understanding that each school community has its own history, traditions, culture, and interpersonal dynamics (and yes, even politics) is an essential first step in any planning process. Tailoring a planning process to that distinctive culture and life of a school warrants adaptability over a template-based planning process.<\/li>
  3. Making bold statements and eye-catching goals without essential data.<\/strong>  One of the hallmarks of a good plan is the data that provides its foundation and from which wise decisions can be made. Understanding community and Catholic demographics, enrollment and financial trends and projections, sources of students and enrollment management data are all critical in assessing the vitality and sustainability of our schools. It\u2019s one thing to be bold, it\u2019s another to be well-informed.<\/li>
  4. Opting for big-picture, ambiguous goals and objectives rather than more tactical ones. <\/strong> We were once challenged that some planning goals we presented were \u201cnot aspirational enough.\u201d  In our experience, aspiration is important, but most school leaders are looking to address challenges they are facing and sometimes being tactical and more focused is the right call.<\/li>
  5. Not allowing enough time to have a plan develop. <\/strong> There are times when we are asked to lead a planning process where school administration and board members will develop the plan during a weekend retreat or in a month of meetings. Building a comprehensive three- to five-year plan takes time \u2013 time to gather and analyze the necessary data (#3 above), engage the right people (#1 above), and better understand the culture and hopes of the school community (#2 above). As we tell folks \u2013 we can do it fast, or we can do it right.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Effective planning is an art and a skill that takes time, patience and a willingness to envision how our schools can be more focused and innovative in their academic efforts and allows schools to achieve their mission \u2013 to bring the children closer to God in holiness, wisdom and understanding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Tom J. Heding<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    I recently read an article in a digital publication called \u201cLadders, Inc.,\u201d an information\/news source focusing on a wide range of work, career and management-related issues.  What piqued my interest is that it shared missteps to avoid in developing a comprehensive growth plan, obviously a topic that warrants a read by a planning consultant. There […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":1109,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nPlanning Missteps - Meitler<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/meitler.com\/2020\/01\/17\/planning-missteps\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Planning Missteps - Meitler\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I recently read an article in a digital publication called \u201cLadders, Inc.,\u201d an information\/news source focusing on a wide range of work, career and management-related issues.  What piqued my interest is that it shared missteps to avoid in developing a comprehensive growth plan, obviously a topic that warrants a read by a planning consultant. 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