[Alicia Evans is the Project Manager - Leadership Programs with Rural Ontario Institute who is helping oversee the implementation of an innovative leadership program in rural Ontario.  Read on for her summary of the terrific Steps to Leadership program.]     

When money is tight, the first disposable “luxury” is often leadership development. 

But when it comes to our rural organizations and communities, leadership is what drives development. 

People who engage and add value to the important discussions in our communities are the individuals who will grow local business, volunteer in local organizations and provide community-based solutions.  Rural community leaders are those who ask “what is the next step for this community?”  before taking steps with informed confidence.

Steps to Leadership is offering organizations and communities in rural Ontario the opportunity to build the next generation of leaders and provide current leaders with relevant skill-building opportunities through a series of accessible program opportunities and resource tools. 

Now into the fourth year of a five-year collaborative initiative of the Rural Ontario Institute, 4-H Ontario and Foundation for Rural Living, with funding provided in part by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Agricultural Adaptation Council, the Steps to Leadership program package has been offered in seven rural communities across Ontario.  Over the next year, seven additional communities throughout the province will have the opportunity to access the programs and supports in partnership with the Steps to Leadership collaborative.   

The need for leadership and capacity building in our rural communities is growing. 

Changing demographics is putting stress on existing leaders … and a shortage of emerging leaders is on the horizon.  Even in these challenging economic times, it is important to invest in the future of our communities by building and supporting the next generation of leaders.   

For more information about the program, including how Ontario’s rural communities can partner with Steps to Leadership to offer local, affordable and quality leadership development programming, please visit www.stepstoleadership.ca.

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Expectations are notoriously difficult to manage. 

For better or worse, I encounter this all the time in my line of work … where terminology such as ”community economic development” or “rural revitalization” cause blank stares, at best, or total misinterpretation, at worse.

Expectations are toughest to manage when people don’t know what to expect.    

So, when dealing with stakeholders on projects, programs or initiatives, how can you successfully manage the expectations of others?

1. Consult with stakeholders.  What are their expectations?  Are they realistic?
2. Clearly set expectations.  Know your role – and the roles of others - in the initiative.  Trust the team you are working with and be willing to act in a collaborative coaching/leadership role.
3. Agree to roles, accountabilities and expectations.  Let folks add value where they can, knowing what is expected of them.  This creates focus.
4. Communicate, communicate, communicate.  Figure out the preferred method of contact and keep people informed as to what you’re doing and why.  This helps keep expectations in line with changing circumstances.
5. Cultivate a project/team identity.  Create a positive atmosphere for discussing and sharing information.  This also helps create common understanding of each other’s personal objectives and agenda.
6. Manage the plan.  Reaching project milestones = reaching expectations.  Ensure they are reasonable and achievable.  
7. Anticipate problems and resolve quickly.  This keeps project progress in line with expectations.  Keep informed and try to address issues as they arise, not when things blow up.  Don’t be afraid to ask a Steering Committee (or other such structure, if possible) for guidance.
8. Get naked.  That is, hide nothing and deliver no surprises.  When everyone knows the situation, everyone knows what to expect.  Make appropriate information available and communicate (see #4).
9. Recognize, reward and celebrate accomplishments.  While this doesn’t manage expectations, it sure feels good when you’ve met or exceeded them!
10. ???

I’ve deliberately left #10 open … what tips, tricks or tools do you use when working in partnership with others?  How do you manage expectations?  From community-group activities to multi-tiered projects, please share yours!

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I don’t have a five-year plan.  There.  I’ve said it.

Hold on a minute, you say, isn’t strategic planning essential stuff these days?  Certainly every organization I know – profit and non-profit alike – claims to have some sort of long-term strategic plan in place. 

Judging by the proliferation of publications and seminars on the subject, long-range strategic planning is as popular as ever.  In fact, it may be more popular than ever, since the long-term planning impulse runs strongest during uncertain times … and these are nothing if not uncertain times.     

Management guru Peter Drucker was preaching the virtue of strategic planning twenty-five years ago, sagely counselling that management has no choice but to anticipate the future and attempt to mold it. 

But if success requires planning, does planning ensure success? 

Hardly.

And here’s the real paradox … five years ain’t what it used to be. 

Five years ago, there were no iPhones or iPads.  Facebook was in its infancy.  Twitter just made its debut.  Jobs were being created in fields no-one had ever worked in before.

So … what’s going to happen in five years’ time?  Who really knows?  We hardly know what’s going to happen tomorrow.  Think, as you’re reading this post, of the many thousands of agencies and organizations who must now adapt their plans due to the catastrophic natural disaster in Japan.  As prepared as Japan was, no-one could have predicted what has happened.

Don’t get me wrong, planning is still important and has its place in organizational management, but shorter one-to-two year plans – which can be easily modified as circumstances direct - should become the new norm. 

Why? 

Because long-range planning stifles creativity.  Because it relies heavily on yesterday’s information to predict tomorrow’s actions.  And because it undercuts adaptability by being risk-adverse and attempting to place controls on the future.

At an organization I know, the strategic plan was two pages.  At the top of page one was the vision and mission along with a brief list of three things – achievable in the next year – which they thought would make the organization better.  Board and staff names were attached to each goal, along with a very rough timeline for each and a goal number for success. 

The second page listed two additional goals for the following year with staff and board members assigned to each with the understanding that these were “B” list items – that is, it would be nice to accomplish them, but not mandatory.  This national organization had an annual operating budget of seven figures and consistently received high satisfaction ratings from its stakeholders.

Most long-range strategic plans simply do not work.

Strong leaders know this and build shorter-term plans that allow for adaptation, flexibility and the ability to drastically alter one’s course as circumstances arise.  Poor leaders build a perfect plan and follow it to the letter, placing blame elsewhere when things don’t work out the way they envisioned.

And me?  As regular readers know, I have broad themes in place which help direct my personal and professional goals … and planning half-a-decade ahead at a time isn’t one of them.  Flexibility and fluidity, not a five-year plan, will be my key to success.

What’s yours?

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