Are you trying to find the "silver lining" in this economic downturn? Does it make you feel like this song just doesn't apply during this crisis and that you need to "hold 'em" all? Is the much greater demand for services with less money available creating stress on staff and Board about what services, programs, events you can continue to provide? Crisis is opportunity! It is critical to remain calm. Envision and utilize a proactive, not reactive, process to decide which services, programs, and events are vital and must be kept, which can be changed - perhaps with some innovative partnerships - and which are no longer needed or can be done by another organization.
Get started with your analysis by focusing on 3 Key Questions
1. Is it Mission related and a core competency?
2. Is there an expressed need by users/customers/attendees (there is a demand for it and no one can or will provide it as well as we do, or at all, if we don't)?
3. Does it fit the organization's major strategies/goals or priorities for resources?
An objective process focused around these three priorities and utilizing objectively focused evaluation and decision criteria gets everyone to focus, buy in, share their perspective, and be a part of the future. It also can get an entrenched organization, with individuals on staff and/or Board who do not like change, to look at their organization and its programs, services, and events differently and see different paths. Of course, the organization must be willing to consider discontinuing services which are no longer needed or which have less "demand", regardless of whether they have always been offered. There can be no "sacred cows".
This process involves staff and other key stakeholders, where appropriate, with as many programs, services and events as the organization wants to consider. The questions asked should be open, not leading questions, so that you gather honest thoughts and ideas from your various "markets". When everyone assists in gathering the information from the various service users, payers, attendees, etc, they all have a new perspective on market demand and requirements that "spills over" to their work with the organization. This process generates other ideas for changes to services that will be kept.
The information and ideas gathered will yield many ideas on how to change services to be better positioned and ready for the future demand in your area. It will also serve as customer generated data to support discontinuing services, programs, or events that are no longer needed or that other groups can provide, freeing up resources for those services the organization must provide. It may also lead to partnerships, perhaps with those initially thought as unlikely partners, who provide complementary services or even the same types of services to the same or different customers.
Yes, in addition to enthusiastic renditions of that famous son, this current economic crisis can have beneficial results:
1. A menu of services, programs, and events that you are confident aligns with your mission and strategic priorities and meets current and future demands and needs.
2. New or deeper partnerships.
3. Perhaps some bandwidth for new or better services that were suggested by the various stakeholders.
And most importantly you will emerge from a rough time with increased focus and proven impact where your community needs you most.
