Working Draft Strategic Plan
Working Draft Strategic Plan November 7, 2014
Prepared by: Tecker International, LLC 301 Oxford Valley Road Suite 1504B Yardley, PA 19067 www.tecker.com
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Introduction The CAFES Strategic Plan is a work in progress. This Working Draft Plan serves as a record of strategic thinking to date. It documents areas of emerging consensus and areas where choices have been identified. Its primary purpose is to serve as a basis for consultation with key stakeholders to refine statements about organizational identity and direction before strategy to achieve the desired outcomes and conditions is discussed.
Working Draft Core Ideology
Core Ideology Core ideology describes an organization’s consistent identity that transcends all changes related to its relevant environment. Core ideology consists of three notions: core purpose, mission and core values. Core purpose describes the organization’s reason for being. The mission describes who we are, what we do and how we do it. Core values are the enduring principles that guide the behavior of the organization. Working Draft Core Purpose: 1. To empower a dynamic and innovative collaborative learning community to make a positive and practical difference in the health and well being of society 2. Provide, sustain and inspire dynamic and collaborative learning that makes positive and practical contributions to society.
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Working Draft Mission Statements: Option 1: CAFES makes a positive difference (or meaningful impact) in society by: 1. Educating and empowering well-‐prepared, socially conscious and career-‐ready students to be leaders 2. Educating and empowering socially conscious students to excel in life • Pioneering innovative partnerships in applied research and interdisciplinary Learn By Doing among students, teacher scholars and the public and private sectors; and • Attracting and engaging faculty, staff, students and employers committed to the exceptional value of Learn by Doing Option 2: CAFES: • Pioneers innovative approaches to applied research and learning though organization changes that encourage interdisciplinary learning • Prepares students to be socially conscious and career-‐ready • Attracts and engages faculty, staff, students and employers committed to the exceptional value of Learn by Doing Option 3: • CAFES provides leadership through education, innovation and service in the Learn by Doing tradition
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Working Draft Core Values: Option 1: Learn by Doing Demonstrated by hands on, student centered, interdisciplinary education and an approach to continuous improvement Excellence Demonstrated through a collegial community that pursues responsive scholarship, innovation, leadership and service Knowledge Demonstrated by scientific integrity, responsiveness to the environmental industry and societal needs through dedication to fostering lifelong learning Student Success Demonstrated by students who are prepared to contribute to the diverse needs of society Option 2: Integrity: Demonstrated by the highest possible ethical standards and accountability for good stewardship
Relevance: Demonstrated by responsiveness to societal needs, dedication to fostering lifelong Learn by Doing and a culture of leadership Passionate Professionalism: Demonstrated by respectful collaboration in collegial community in the pursuit of excellence in teaching and learning, resulting in meaningful research and scholarship
Working Draft Envisioned Future
Envisioned future conveys a concrete, yet unrealized vision for the organization. It consists of a big audacious goal (BAG) ― a clear and compelling catalyst that serves as a focal point for effort, the intersection of what a group is passionate about, what they do best, and what they can marshal the resources to accomplish. The vivid description describes how the world could be different for key stakeholders as a result of Cal Poly CAFES achieving its vision for the future. Tecker International, LLC 301 Oxford Valley Road, Suite 1504B • Yardley, PA 1906 7• (215) 493-‐8120 • Fax (215) 493-‐8125 • www.tecker.com
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Working Draft Vivid Description We envision a world where: • CAFES attracts and retains the best and brightest professionals in instruction, research and administration • CAFES faculty and students engage in undergraduate teaching and research • CAFES faculty and staff maintain a high level of interest in sustainability and excel in collaboration with industry and community • CAFES faculty is supported with adequate technology and professional development and have the necessary equipment and teaching tools to excel at their jobs • CAFES faculty demonstrate a high degree of collegiality and focus on developing value-‐ added graduates • CAFES graduates are highly sought after in the workplace for their outstanding practical problem solving skills • CAFES students enjoy a well-‐rounded, holistic, hands-‐on education • Industry recognizes CAFES graduates as the most work-‐ready and capable • CAFES students who utilize Learn by Doing are prepared to engage in a global economy and have a vision for the future as well as the tools to enjoy well-‐rounded careers • CAFES graduates have an affordable education due to improved external partnerships and resources • CAFES collaborates with industry in applied research, outreach and continued professional development • Industry looks to CAFES graduates as their premiere source for agriculture, food and environmental professionals • Stakeholders benefit from CAFES public and private partnerships • CAFES industry partners value the relationship and have rewarded CAFES by sustaining and expanding Learn by Doing • The people of California take pride in the significant benefits they derive from the CAFES polytechnic education and the resulting stewardship of agricultural and natural resources • CAFES graduates provide a significant contribution to the state’s economy • CAFES will provide the guidance and Learn by Doing that is necessary for its students to make contributions to their respective agricultural, food, environmental and recreational services, industries, communities, and society as a whole • One in 50 of the world’s population is being fed by companies led by CAFES graduates • CAFES is recognized as a peer benchmark in research endeavors and has an international reputation as a leader in the area of sustainable natural resources
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Working Draft Environmental Scan
Conditions, Trends, and Assumptions. Statements developed by the group will help to purposefully update the strategic plan on an annual basis. Because the outcome-‐oriented goals that will form the basis of the long-‐range strategic plan will be based on the vision of the future that appears in this section, an annual review of this vision will be an appropriate method of determining and ensuring the ongoing relevancy of the goals.
Demographics: Current Conditions: 1. Cost of living makes it difficult to attract and retain staff Trends: 2. Population shift (rural to urban) 3. Increased desire for green and healthy lifestyles Assumptions about the Future: 4. Increased competition for students 5. Population will increase and diversity will increase 6. Globalization of business and education
Business/Economic Climate:
Current Conditions: 1. Faculty have too much of an academic focus and lack practical application in industry 2. Misalignment of faculty service requirements with community needs/outreach 3. Ambiguity of faculty knowing community needs and vice versa Trends: 4. Less internships and less community interaction opportunities due to lack of outreach from university to community 5. As technology increases there is a lack of relevant training for students Assumptions about the Future: 6. There will be increasing skill development training through reciprocal connectivity and training between industry and faculty, staff and students
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Legislation/Regulations Current Conditions: 1. Legislation and regulation create new challenges and opportunities for Cal Poly CAFES Trends: 2. Increased influence of special interests and the vocal minority conflicting with institutional knowledge 3. Increased focus on food safety issues 4. Decreased public funding causing increased need for other funding sources from students and external interests, including industry, non-‐profits, and other government agencies Assumptions about the Future: 5. Critical resource issues will drive policy 6. The One Health initiative will continue to drive change in legislative and regulatory arena to promote sustainability Technology & Science
Current Conditions: 1. Natural resource limitations Trends: 2. Increase in technological and scientific advances 3. Increase in teaching technologies and learning 4. Increase in policy driving science and technology solutions (local to global) 5. Increasing consumer perceptions/acceptance of changes Assumptions about the Future: 6. Environmental limitations will drive technology tools and economics will drive science and technology
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Politics and Social Values:
Current Conditions: 1. Less state support for higher education 2. Parents and students are examining the value of higher education Trends: 3. Increased resource limitations lead to more focus on sustainability and interdisciplinary education Assumptions about the Future: 4. Awareness of food, agriculture, environment and resource protection that will continue to drive policy 5. Globalization and localization will continue 6. Decisions are made with more activism and less science 7. There will be a switch from credentialing to competency
Higher Education:
Current Conditions: 1. Infrastructure challenges such as a lack of research labs, the urbanization of Cal Poly CAFES’s agriculture land and the cost of maintaining current infrastructure 2. Major changes in academic structure Trends: 3. Costs are increasing while funding is decreasing, causing more time to be spent on finding funding 4. Due to high GPA requirements, ethnic diversity is slowly increasing while cultural diversity is decreasing 5. There is a decrease in the natural resources of water, land forests and rangeland Assumptions about the Future 6. Learn by Doing will see a unit reduction as the cost increases and it is lab intensive
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CAFES Working Draft Goals
The following represents draft long-‐range goals for the next three to five years. These goals are outcome-‐oriented statements that represent what will constitute the organization’s future success. The achievement of each goal will move CAFES toward the realization of its vision. Goal 1 Students: CAFES graduates will be lifelong learners, prepared and confident to achieve personal, professional and economic success in a global society. Goal 2 Faculty and Staff: CAFES will attract and retain exceptional teacher-‐scholars and staff. Goal 3 Industry and Community: A mutually beneficial relationship will exist between CAFES, industry, and the community. Goal 4 Leadership: CAFES will be recognized as a local, regional, and global leader in innovative sustainable agriculture, food, and environmental sciences.
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WORKING DRAFT GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
Goal 1 Students:
CAFES graduates will be lifelong learners, prepared and confident to achieve personal, professional and economic success in a global society.
Draft Objectives: 1. Increase ability to think critically, problem solve, and be self-‐motivated 2. Increase communication skills 3. Increase professional development 4. Increase learning resources and refine current learning processes
Goal 2 Faculty and Staff:
CAFES will attract and retain exceptional teacher-‐scholars and staff. Draft Objectives: 1. Increase faculty and staff compensation 2. Increase faculty and staff morale 3. Increase support for teacher-‐scholar model 4. Increase diversity
Goal 3 Industry and Community:
A mutually beneficial relationship will exist between CAFES, industry, and the community. Draft Objectives: 1. Increase communication (relevant interaction) between the university and industry/community 2. Increase skill development through reciprocal connectivity between industry and faculty/staff 3. Increase the quantity of high quality, industry relevant work ready graduates
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GOAL 4 Leadership: CAFES will be recognized as a local, regional, and global leader in innovative sustainable agriculture, food, and environmental sciences. Draft Objectives: 1. Resources for innovations (time, space and $) 2. Increase recognition process and source(s) 3. Increase contribution to the public good 4. Increase strategic contributions to: • Education • Learn by Doing • Innovation
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STRATEGIC ISSUES Strategic Issues are overriding issues of strategic importance that cut across multiple goal or outcome areas. They address key questions that CAFES‘s leaders must ask and answer, illuminating choices of strategy that the organization must make and the challenges that will need to be overcome in moving toward future goals. They articulate the questions that will need to be asked and answered by CAFES over the next three to five years. They require study and thoughtful conversation and are not easily or quickly answered. The result of those discussions will be an adjustment or affirmation of the strategy as it unfolds. The following strategic issues were identified throughout the strategic planning sessions to date: • The geopolitical, social and economic environment is changing quickly, resulting in increasing risk and uncertainty; how can we prepare our students be more adaptable to change? • How do we assure Learn by Doing remains relevant as technology continues to evolve? • How can we sustain Learn by Doing amid current cost pressures? • How will we address admissions policies that are too narrow and diversify the CAFES student population? • How can we address income disparity and assure students can afford a CAFES education? • How can we attract and retain quality faculty and staff in a high cost of living area with the current CAFES salary constraints? • How do the limited natural resources in California, especially land and water; impact the CAFES curriculum? • How can CAFES balance a need for a greater reliance on industry and other diversified outside funding sources without detrimentally impacting academic integrity? • How does CAFES meet the demand for more hands-‐on distance learning? • How will CAFES create teaching models that are responsive to how different generations learn? • How does CAFES empower students to embrace global citizenship? • How do we address the low morale among the CAFES workforce? • How does CAFES address the principals of the One Health Initiative and their influence on sustainability, limited natural resources and interdisciplinary studies? • How does CAFES assure Learn by Doing remains recognized as an institutional cornerstone? Tecker International, LLC
301 Oxford Valley Road, Suite 1504B • Yardley, PA 1906 7• (215) 493-‐8120 • Fax (215) 493-‐8125 • www.tecker.com
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How can CAFES address the importance of diversity at all levels?
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How can CAFES assure the competency of the CAFES agriculture degree is recognized?
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How can CAFES meet the increasing need for transparency (food safety, big data, etc.)?
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What does CAFES need to do to broaden teaching for innovation?
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How can CAFES leverage the agriculture industry to become a venture capital opportunity?
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What can CAFES do to improve interdepartmental communication and move towards a more interdisciplinary curriculum?
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How can CAFES integrate applied research and critical thinking skills into Learn by Doing?
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How will CAFES adapt to climate change?
Tecker International, LLC 301 Oxford Valley Road, Suite 1504B • Yardley, PA 1906 7• (215) 493-‐8120 • Fax (215) 493-‐8125 • www.tecker.com
