Transcript How to Develop a Strategic Plan

The Office of Institutional Research
September 2011
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The process of an organization/unit
understanding its purpose and environment,
defining its direction, and describing those
actions that it will take to achieve its goals.
 Where it stands, where it wants to go, and how it will
get there
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Answers questions:
 "What do we do?"
 "For whom do we do it?"
 "How do we excel?"
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Helps organizations/ units allocate resources
(time, money, people) in an
effective/strategic way
Should build on and be guided by the
university’s overall mission, vision, values,
and institutional priorities, as well as the
academic plan
Time frame typically 3-5 years
Plan
Act
Do
Check
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Involve faculty, staff, and students at all levels
Use data as evidence on which to base
decisions
Look beyond immediate concerns of the unit
to keep the focus on future and goals
Include strategies to draw on strengths,
maximize opportunities while addressing
internal weaknesses and external threats
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Set priorities, so unit and university know where
to focus efforts and resources
Collaborate and integrate efforts and resources
of faculty within unit and across the university
Are updated and revised periodically to account
for changes
Foster teamwork, team decision-making, trust,
and a common understanding and shared
commitment to the mission and direction of the
unit.
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Consistent guidelines ease the planning
process and as well as the analysis and
integration of plans
Rolling 3-year plan. This year, FY2013-2015.
 Annual updates
 Tied to budget, planning matrix
 Budget the plan, not plan the budget
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Mission
 1-3 sentences that outline the purpose of
the unit and how the unit helps the
university achieve its mission.
 May also include vision and core values
▪ Vision
▪ How the organization will look in the future
▪ Core values
▪ Shared beliefs that provide a framework for decisionmaking
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The American University in Cairo (AUC) is a premier
English-language institution of higher learning. The
university is committed to teaching and research of the
highest caliber, and offers exceptional liberal arts and
professional education in a cross-cultural environment.
AUC builds a culture of leader-ship, lifelong learning,
continuing education and service among its graduates,
and is dedicated to making significant contributions to
Egypt and the international community in diverse fields.
Chartered and accredited in the United States and Egypt,
it is an independent, not-for-profit, equal-opportunity
institution. AUC upholds the principles of academic
freedom and is dedicated to excellence.
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Our vision is to be a world-class university
internationally recognized for its leadership
and excellence in teaching, research, creative
expression, and service.
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Excellence
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Diversity
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We are committed to exploring the challenges that confront Egypt, the region, and the world and
to using our intellectual and creative capabilities to address these challenges, serve our
communities, and have a positive and sustainable impact on development, business, the
environment, and society.
Integrity
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We seek to treat all individuals with dignity and fairness and to promote understanding and
respect for diversity of perspectives, traditions, and experiences.
Social Responsibility
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We continually strive to be among the best in all we do: in teaching, research, creative expression,
service to our communities, and service to each other in our daily interactions.
We believe that individuals are accountable for their actions, and, as members of a community,
our individual actions have an impact on others. We are stronger as a community when we reflect
on the consequences of our decisions and actions and we uphold the principles of academic
integrity, including fairness, accountability, and honesty.
Lifelong Learning
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We believe that the pursuit of knowledge, understanding, and personal and professional
development should continue throughout one’s lifetime.
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Mission
 The Office of Institutional Research (OIR) partners
with university officials to support effective decisionmaking that advances AUC’s mission. IR provides
timely, accurate, and relevant information and
analysis to external and internal constituencies.
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Vision
 The Office of Institutional Research will be recognized
throughout the university community as well as in
Egypt, the region, and internationally for its
leadership and innovation in planning, assessment,
research, and testing and for the quality of its work.
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Collaborating effectively with stakeholders both inside and outside
the university to increase the quality and efficiency of our services
Creating an environment that nurtures professional growth and
development
Fostering a culture of transparency, open communication, and
evidence-based decision-making
Producing high quality research and services responsive to the needs
of the AUC community and external stakeholders
Providing services characterized by personal and professional
integrity in adherence to the highest ethical standards in the field
Sharing best practices both within the university community and
internationally to contribute to the development of the field
Promoting the integration of planning, research, assessment and
testing as a core definition of institutional research
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Use the handout to write a possible vision
statement for your unit AND one possible
core value.
Discuss with your group.
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Environmental Scan
 Internal Analysis
▪ Strengths
▪ Characteristics which contribute to your unit’s ability to
achieve its mission
 What advantages does your unit have? What do you do better than
anyone else? What unique aspects can you draw upon that others
can't? What do people in your field/location see as your strengths?
▪ Weaknesses
▪ Characteristics which limit your unit’s ability to achieve its
mission
 What could you improve? What should you avoid? What are people
in your field/location likely to see as weaknesses? What factors lose
you students/faculty?
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Use the handout to describe several of your
unit’s strengths and weaknesses.
Share with your group.
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Environmental Scan
 External Analysis– political, technological,
socioeconomic, educational changes; examine
likelihood and impact
▪ Opportunities
▪ What opportunities might your strengths create? If you overcame
a weakness, would that create an opportunity? What interesting
trends are occurring? Changes in market/field? Local changes?
▪ Threats
▪ What obstacles does your unit face? What are competitors doing?
Is the technology changing? Changes in market/field? Local
changes?
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Use the handout to describe several possible
opportunities or threats.
Share with your group.
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Goals
 Where do you want to be at the end of the plan?
 Goals should be “big picture items”, high-level
 Not more than three to five
 Relate to university priorities
 For administrative and academic support units,
unit outcomes can be substituted for goals.
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Education for Citizenship and Service
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Research Reflecting Innovation and Impact
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AUC is a source of insight and inspiration in many fields, and we expect our faculty and students to
participate in scientific, scholarly or artistic production. We particularly emphasize those domains in which
there is the prospect of a tangible effect on the development of disciplinary knowledge or the enhancement
of societal welfare.
Outreach Enhancing Engagement and Access
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We believe that a sound education not only prepares students for professional success but also for
responsible citizenship and community engagement. The liberal arts tradition, with its emphasis on the
broad education of a common core curriculum and the experiential learning of rich extracurricular
programs, strengthens the curiosity and courage of AUC graduates, and promotes civic participation.
We are dedicated to serving communities in Egypt and around the world through extension and outreach
programs that bring University expertise and insight to a wider public, that profit from our convening
power, and that serve to inform and enlighten public discourse, enhance access to information and
knowledge, and enrich artistic and intellectual life.
Management with Sustainability and Integrity
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We are committed to managing the operations of the University so as to reflect and foster the values we
teach our students and expect in our faculty and wish to exemplify in Egypt. Our institutional practices
should exhibit a commitment to environmental, social and fiscal responsibility, and we should observe the
highest standards of integrity in the workplace and in our dealings with vendors, clients, and other
constituents.
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Goal
 Example (OIR): The university community is
provided with cutting edge research related to
higher education effectiveness and impact and best
practices in the region, especially in the area of
accreditation and research.
 Example (JRMC): The JRMC department will build
strong and ongoing linkages with JRMC alumni and
the media industry.
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Objectives
 Specific outcomes that are to be achieved. More
concrete and specific than goals
 Specific, measureable, achievable, realistic,
and time-bound (SMART)
▪ Time, money, quality, quantity
 Each goal may have several objectives.
 Example (JRMC): By 2012, establish an advisory
board of distinguished alumni and media industry
professionals.
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Strategies
 The specific actions your unit will take to achieve
your objective
 Example (JRMC):
▪ Faculty will nominate and select members.
▪ Faculty will hold annual meetings with the board
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Required resources
 Budget, faculty, staff, space
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Assessment
 How will you measure success?
 Key performance indicators/benchmarks for each
objective
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Use the handout to write down one possible
goal for your unit, one objective, and one or
more strategies for achieving objective.
Note the resources required, space
implications, and key performance indicators.
Share with your group.
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Involve all faculty/staff
Small units:
 Series of collegial, face to face meetings
 Review past plans, discuss accomplishments, SWOT
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Large units:
 Set up a planning team representing various majors, activities, and
staffing levels.
 Town-hall meetings or community forums can be helpful as well as
multiple small-group gatherings.
 A SWOT analysis can be sent out in an email, Google doc, surveys to
the group.
 Each colleague should have opportunity to comment on the plan draft
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May use templates (soft copies available)
Word or Excel
Compliance Assist integrated planning software
 This Fall , OIR will enter soft copies on S/W if
assistance needed.
 aucegypt.compliance-assist.com
Finalize plan, send copy to the Dean/division or
unit head, OIR
 Complete your budget, enter relevant
information in planning matrix, if selected for
investment
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Most important part of the planning process
 Shows commitment to planning
 Re-validates priorities and direction
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Similar to initial session:
 Internal analysis, external analysis – focus on
changes
 Review mission, vision, values
 Review goals, objectives, strategies, results of
KPIs, review KPIs, resources required
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OIR can provide:
 Consultation
 Training
 Meeting facilitation – SWOT, goal-setting
 Review of draft plans
 Other support including statistics and data as
needed.
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For more information or for assistance or
facilitation as you develop your strategic
plans, contact:
 Ann Boudinot-Amin at [email protected],
ext. 2232
 Alia Mitkees at [email protected], ext.
2215