The ATA Chronicle - July/August 2024 - 4

FROM THE PRESIDENT
Where Are We Headed?
ATA Strategic Planning
" F
GEOFF KOBY
president@atanet.org
Failure to
consistently
plan can lead
to inconsistent
results.
ailure to plan is
planning to fail. "
This old saying
(going back at least to 1919
and probably much older)
applies to any organization.
Stretching it a bit, I'd like
to argue that failure to
consistently plan can lead
to inconsistent results. For
many years now, ATA's Board
of Directors has met once
a year for " Strategy Day "
(formerly called " Planning
Day " ), where we take an
extra day before the Board
meeting, set aside the
formalities, and focus on
challenges to ATA and ideas
for the future. Each year, the
president-elect develops
the topics based on current
issues and leads the Board
through the day.
So far so good, right?
Yes, but there's one thing
missing-a formal strategic
plan. Executive Director
Kelli Baxter dug into ATA's
archives and found just
one past strategic plan for
ATA, which was prepared in
1997 for the years 19982000.1
The
document
states that ATA's Board,
" in an effort to fill a void
in the governance of the
Association, developed a
three-year plan to chart the
future of the Association. "
The five main challenges
they recorded may sound
familiar, involving
improving continuing
education (today's
Professional Development
NOTE
1
Program), maximizing
Board effectiveness,
increasing public awareness,
expanding voting rights
to all individual members,
and addressing " advanced
accreditation " (certification
in today's terms).
I appreciate the Board
members of the day who
had the foresight to prepare
a strategic plan. Many of
their ideas still resonate
today. ATA is larger and
more complex than it was
in 2000, though, and the
initiative that was started
then didn't turn into a
strategic planning culture
with continuously updated
strategic planning. I believe
this must change! Twentyfour
years is too long to
go without a strategic
plan. Therefore, ATA has
contracted with a consultant
expert in strategic planning
to guide us in developing
a new one. Since new
Board members are elected
each year, our plan is to
familiarize them with our
strategic plan at their first
Strategy Day so we can
create a culture where,
year after year, everyone is
guided by the same set of
principles we have all agreed
on. And on Strategy Day
each year, the Board
can review and update
the plan based on the
current situation.
At our most recent Board
meeting at the end of July,
we took the first step in this
formal strategic planning
process. President-Elect
Andy Benzo developed and
presented an excellent
Strategy Day that focused
on team building, SWOT
(strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities, and threats)
analysis, and a discussion
of different models for our
Annual Conference.
Moving forward, our
consultant will survey the
Board and the membership
based on our results. The
consultant will then meet
with the Board in January on
Strategy Day to finalize a
new strategic plan
addressing the significant
challenges ATA is facing
today-including AI and its
effects on our members and
developing a financially
sound conference model-as
well as areas of strength,
such as professional
development and
certification, and how to
improve them. We'll include
clear statements on where
we think ATA is headed and
what actions we need to take
to get there. This strategic
plan will be shared with the
membership and used as a
guideline for decisionmaking
at all levels-on the
Board, in the committees and
divisions, and at ATA
Headquarters. This way, we
can all pull together for a
common vision, with the goal
of keeping and growing ATA
as the vibrant, strong, and
caring organization it is.
If any past Board members have copies of more recent strategic plans, please share them!
4 The ATA Chronicle | July/August 2024
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The ATA Chronicle - July/August 2024

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