Passport Club Vision Exercise – Step 1.
When I started my year as President Elect, I really thought it to be a year of learning. Turns out I’m supposed to be doing too! Presidents Elect have been tasked by the District to develop a Strategic Plan for their clubs, in line with the District Strategic Plan adopted 12 December 2020, which in turn aligns with the RI Strategic Plan released in 2019. in this exercise, we have great support and expert advice from Pardeep Ahluwalia, District Director, Strategic Planning.
With the age of our Passport Club, the timing on this is terrific. We have been functional for several years now and are much more capable of defining what makes or could make us unique contributors to the Rotary world.
In simple terms, strategic planning means identifying opportunities and issues, and determining how to navigate to a more coherent, and effective, state. Out of strategic planning comes action plans. For the Passport Club, this is a premature discussion just yet. We need to first determine who we are, what are our strengths, what are our passions – in effect, what is the nature of our own club. That discussion involves a vision exercise and results in a mission statement that clearly sums up our intentions.
This is clearly a club-wide area of thought and discussion that cannot be confined to Board discussion. I will coordinate the process – from discussion to final drafting – but the result belongs to us all and will impact those we seek to serve. Chris Cochrane will ensure we have recordings of our discussion for reference. Process and interim results will be kept up to date on our club documents list, so you can track and contemplate at any time.
Step 1. then will be our meeting on 14 Sep. Your voice is needed, and we may use breakout sessions to ensure all are able to speak comfortably. It’s a good thing Chris is adaptable! Any written comments/thoughts you might like to pass along, either before or at any time during this process from vision to strategic plan are most welcome. I can transcribe to provide anonymity if you wish.
This sounds terribly bureaucratic, but I admit to being excited about these next months of discovery and consolidation. The tools we use may be similar, but we are not a business tracking the last dollar – we are a group of quite extraordinary people, trying to influence the world for the better. I was delighted to be invited to join you, and I remain honoured to continue.
