Halladay Education Group’s Inner Circle eZine Newsletter - March 23, 2007

Hi Inner Circle Member:

Happy Spring Equinox. My wife, our 2 kids and I spent the last few days down in the Seattle area for a mini-spring break. My son, Gresham (age 7), has been watching Red Lobster commercials on T.V. and had to find out how good their lobster meals really were at the Washington-based seafood restaurant chain. Well, there’s no influence like commercial TV to motivate buyers, so we headed south to the US (we’re literally right on the US border...as is 80% of Canada) for a little lobster-fest, shopping, and swimming in hotel pools. Though the traditional Pacific Northwest weather never strayed far from the liquid sunshine, we had a great time.

I’m a bit of a band-wagon Canuck’s hockey fan. This means that I jump on and off the bandwagon based on how well the Vancouver Canucks are performing in their standings. And right now they’re in first place in their division with the hottest goalie in the NHL, so I’m getting ready for a long play off run. Amazingly this can go right into June (ice and summer time just don’t make sense...oh well).

I’m always impressed by the continued interest by clients who are looking for help in starting their own school or to improve the operations and performance of their private school or non-profit. My clients come from North America, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Many find me through their Internet searches, while others are referred to me by word-of-mouth by other happy clients (and I thank you for your trust in my services).

I wish I could tell you about my updated website, but it’s about 99% there, and should be up by next Monday.

Enjoy today’s eZine,

Doug Halladay

President

Halladay Education Group Inc.
www.HalladayEducationGroup.com

http://www.HalladayEducationGroupInnerCircle.blogspot.com

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In This Issue

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1. Why Do You Need A Strategic Plan?

2. Starting a School – Organizing a Well-Functioning First Board

3. Inner Circle Thought of the Week (it’s actually quite good!)

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1. Why Do You Need a Strategic Plan?

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Many School and Non-Profit leaders ask me if their organization really needs a strategic plan. It can be a lot of work and expense to an organization, and can pull resources away from every-day operations. My simple response is, “would you build a house without a blueprint?” NO! Continuing on, here are a number of other compelling reasons why your organization needs a strategic plan and can be easily justified.

1. MISSION CHANGE:

The most compelling reason for undertaking a strategic plan, and the most difficult to deal with, is when the mission of the organization (its purpose) is brought under question. Any time you have thoughts of changing the basic mission of the organization you will have a need to initiate the strategic planning process.

2. ORGANIZATIONAL UNCERTAINTIES:

Schools and non-profit organizations have to deal often with changing circumstances around them and make adjustments less traumatic than changing their mission. Although the organization’s purpose may be clear, the environments in which they do business (internally and externally) change, calling for modifications in how they do things. The strategic planning process allows leaders to hypothesize, peer into the future, and bring to the surface the uncertainties, making more informed decisions on the ways of moving forward.

3. DECISION MAKING:

Boards, Principals, Heads of School and their staff all need an inclusive and understandable basis for day-to-day decision making. Decisions in governance and management are more consistent when made purposely, with full examination of possible future consequences, within the framework of a set of determined priorities, and in harmony with the perspective of all of the organization’s programs and levels of authority. Strategic planning can give decisions that foundation.

4. FUND RAISING:

Most schools and non-profits need to attract donated money. A successful fund raising plan rests on a realistic determination of the funding needed and a persuasive statement of why people should contribute support. These essentials emerge best from strategic planning. Comprehensive planning is one of the key marks of readiness needed when undertaking the commitment that a major capital campaign requires.

5. RESOURCE ALLOCATION:

All organizations must delegate their resources and constantly be watchful in expending their revenues and assigning personnel. Board members of non-profits have a fiduciary role in financial responsibility. The approved budgets are financial plans for the short-term; strategic planning enables boards to enact sensible resource allocation over longer periods of several budget cycles.

6. PERFORMANCE EVALUATION:

The criteria used to measure and evaluate how well an organization is doing are established through strategic planning. In deed, there is no way to tell whether an organization is achieving its purpose unless somewhere along the way those purposes are clearly stated. Hence, your strategic plan forces school leaders to deal with the ‘means’ and ‘ends’ of the organization and whether they have been achieved and to what degree.

7. ORGANIZATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS:

Schools function as a team – the board, the Principal, and the staff. The strategic planning process magnifies team effectiveness, revealing the focus needed to be put on leadership. Planning measures board commitment and the fulfillment of its responsibilities and the mission, board support and oversight of the staff, and any micro-management or invasion of the staff’s management and operational duties. It will pinpoint the need for change in board composition, executive leadership, the organization, or the procedures needed to achieve the goals of the plan.

If you would like more information about Strategic Planning call me at 1-604-868-0002 or emailinfo@halladayeducationgroup.com , or go to: http://www.halladayeducationgroup.com/services.php?sub=strategic#topheader me at

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2. Starting a School – Organizing a Well-Functioning First Board

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When you are starting your school and shifting from an initial Steering Committee to a structured Board, you need to ensure that your Governance Model is based on sound fundamentals. You need to understand right from the beginning the roles, boundaries, and terms of reference for your board and committees...the critical distinction from governance and the administrator’s role, management. Though the 2 parties must work in mutual synergy and have an open, trusting relationship, the role of the board must be kept clear and distinct from that of the staff. But what is the role of the Trustees:

1). FOLLOW ONE-VOICE PRINCIPLE:

The board members have the authority to speak in their governance capacity only when attending official board meetings. When the board does speak, it speaks with 1 voice, rather than multiple voices of the individual trustees.

2). SIZE AND COMPOSITION:

There is no right answer to the question of how large a board should be. However, there is 1 clear trend toward smaller boards and toward structuring the board according to needs identified by the organization’s strategic plan. Hence, you will need enough members to fill your initial board committees, understanding that non-board members can also serve on these committees. You will need diversity, knowledge, skills to understand and evaluate options, and skills in starting the school (e.g., lawyer, accountant, realtor, educator).

3. BOARD MEETINGS:

Meetings that are carefully structured and efficiently conducted will help trustees feel that their time is well spent and the board adds value to the organization. Focusing agendas on strategic issues rather than on “administrivia” and listening reports.

4). COMMITTEES AND TASK FORCES:

Subgroups of the board are critical to the successful implementation of the plan. However, for them to work well, each group needs to have a clear charge, and the board must resist the temptation to repeat committee discussions when their proposals reach the board. Additionally, the goals for the committees should be driven the strategic plan, with performance benchmarks laid out to be reviewed.

If you would like more information about Board Governance call me at 1-604-868-0002 or emailinfo@halladayeducationgroup.com , or go to: http://www.halladayeducationgroup.com/services.php?sub=online_assessments#topheader me at

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3. Inner Circle Thought of the Week

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Best newspaper headlines of years past.

1. Include Your Children When Baking Cookies

2. Something Went Wrong in Jet Crash, Experts Say

3. Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers

4. Drunks Get Nine Months in Violin Case

5. Iraqi Head Seeks Arms

6. Local High School Dropouts Cut in Half

7. Panda Mating Fails; Veterinarian Takes Over

8. British Left Waffles on Falkland Islands

9. Teacher Strikes Idle Kids

10. Bush Wins Budget; More Lies Ahead

11. Plane Too Close to Ground, Crash Probe Told

12. Miners Refuse to Work After Death

13. Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant

14. Stolen Painting Found by Tree

15. Two Sisters Reunited after 18 Years in Checkout Counter

16. War Dims Hope for Peace

17. If Strike Isn't Settled Quickly, It May Last a While

18. Couple Slain; Police Suspect Homicide

19. Man Struck by Lightning Faces Battery Charge

20. New Study of Obesity Looks for Larger Test Group

21 Kids Make Nutritious Snacks

Smile and enjoy your day.

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To your success,

Douglas Halladay

President and Founder
4316 Arthur Drive, Ladner, BC, Canada, V4K 2W8
P: 604.868.0002/F: 868.472.8737/Email: info@halladayeducationgroup.com
www.HalladayEducationGroup.com

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P.S. If you’d like more information about how Halladay Education Group can help you with the following services, please email info@halladayeducationgroup.com or call us at 604-868-0002:

- Start a School

- Strategic Planning

- Board Governance Workshops

- Head of School Searches and Evaluations

- Coaching for Chairs and Heads

- Institutional Assessments

- Markets, Recruiting, and Admissions

- International Development Projects

P.P.S. WOULD YOU LIKE TO RECEIVE MY ECOURSE ON STRATEGIC PLANNING FOR PRIVATE SCHOOLS AND NON-PROFITS?

So far, more than +100 educators and non-profit leaders have signed up for my complimentary 10-part email mini-eCourse entitle, "Strategic Planning: The 10 Steps to Success." If you're not one of them, do it now. It provides a clear overview of the fundamentals needed to develop your own strategic plan and many secret short-cuts to ensure that you’re on track.

Sign up here by emailing the following address and putting in your subject, “Sign me up for the 10-part Strategic Planning mini-eCourse”:

info@halladayeducationgroup.com