Yes. My institution just expanded, openning its first satellite campus. This process was not planned well leaving us underfunded, understaffed and in possession of an under utilized facility. The 2 people who planned the expansion were not with the institution when the expansion occured, and had one foot out the door during the planning process. Because of this, the first year of operations, while going incredibly well, has been more fly by the seat of your pants while gathering some useful data about our market and competition. A good 5 year plan would have laid out achievable steps to help guide growth and could have provided a safety net by identifying true budget numbers, faculty and facility needs. Since a plan is just a roadmap, making adjustments during implementation should be doable, although new paths to goals might need to be created. Reviewing the five year plan on a yearly basis allows the team to make changes while implementing.
vidal,
You are right. A plan is very important and very challenging. It doesn't have to be complex. What is important is to get everyone involved in the school involved in the plan. In this way you will get a lot of good ideas that everyone agrees to. What is also important is to constantly evaluate results. What is happening and how do activities support your plan. What needs to be changed? What is working. A plan means that everyone on staff is working towards the same goal. Thanks for your comments. Susan
Dr. Susan Schulz
Good morning,
My institution is very prospective and continuing
analyzing 5 year plans, and provide to all staff
with stimulus to improve as part of the constituency
as my self today.
I am just part of the staff, taking this course which is very interesting, specially its forums
I have similar ideas as you state, but projection
is quite excellent displayed
I think that attending student and staff needs related with institution increases the opportunity to succeed not only as grads and staff experience but the institution reputation among other advantages
Sincerely
Vidal Garcia
Arthur,
Good points Arthur. A Plan serves a lot of purposes, One is certainly an overall vision. Another includes the specifics like do you want to build programs to degree levels, is the school already a college, is there a need for your programs over time, which accrediting body supports your goals, and lots more. The result of a plan includes the vision, tasks, timelines, deadlines, staff, and of course how much is this all going to cost? We feel a plan needs to be reviewed several times a year, evaluated, and then updated. And of course everyone involved in the school needs to be updat4ed. Thanks Susan
Dr. Susan Schulz
I am involve in preparing our 5-year plan as we speak. The plan that I inherited was good for the past but lacks the vision needed to propel this institute into the future. We may be small and in the past those responsible prepared a plan with the limited resources of the past.
Now we have the staff in place that understands the meaning of having a continuous vision. A vision that keeps the MISSION of our institute in perspective not only in our commitment to our student body, our community but to ourselves.
We all share in the vision, its sacrifice and its outcome.
MIRIAM,
Interesting question about increasing enrollment. Sometimes we look for more ways to spend money. But what if you can increase qualified enrollment through word of mouth? That doesn't cost a lot. It does require a focus on student success. When students are happy and successful they will want to tell their friends and family about your school. Maybe they will even tell their employers that your school is a great place to train staff. Then you can reduce your marketing budget! Susan
Dr. Susan Schulz
MIRIAM,
Yes, running a successful institution or any enterprise requires a plan. The plan can be modified based on results along the way. That is why it is important to build in "how are we doing" measurements. Information from surveys, observations, and other data help make improvements. When everyone understand the plan they will all work towards reaching your goals. thanks, Susan
Dr. Susan Schulz
Under the comprehensive strategies plan use:
Media Marketing for increase enrollment
Effect - increase Budget
Need more personnel
Produce facilities expansion
Summary of strategies, Is properly effective for development business?
The strategic plan is fundamental for develop the institution. I agree that we need to know and organize all the necessary element to complement the strategic plan. All the resources covered the budget and identify the personnel, faculty and facilities. You need to considered the projections using the five yr plan and make all the adjustments.
We cannot anticipate all surprises but, proper planning helps to reduce the amount.
It is interesting about plans. Things happen that we don't expect. You were lucky. And hopefully everyone involved in planning at your school has learned a lot. One view of a plan is to know the steps to where you want to go. Also to anticipate options and opportunities. So when surprises do happen, and they will, you are not caught off guard too much. Thanks, Susan
Our school has had plans and projects that exceeded our resources. Most notably our facilities. For about six months, parking and classroom space were stretched to their limits. Thankfully, we took action as soon as signs of over crowding appeared. We expanded into an existing space that took little or no renovation to meet our needs. If this "turn-key" site was not available in such a timely manner, sever complications would not have been averted.
With all our new projects, the impact on our existing facilities are always examined to measure potential impact.
Hi Dawn,
The is to be able to change as needed with the strategic plan process to reflect what is going on currently as well as have the ability to do long range planning. Sounds like you are working on that with your current company.
Gary
The current company I work for has not developed a 5 year plan. We're working on the plan. I have worked for a previous company that developed a 3yr strategic plan. The contingencies the plan allowed for was if the data did not show we needed to make the change or that we did need to make the change.
This is a good start, Karen. You might push yourself to create a five year plan along with the other stakeholders in the school. When you envision what the school will look like in 5 years it makes you believe the school will still be around in 5 years. And it creates a task list of what has to be done to reach those goals. Then have year to year goals and even break them down to quarterly goals. And most important - measure everything you do. What worked, what didn't and what changes need to be made. Base your decisions about next steps on your findings. Good luck, Susan
We are a very small new school having started our first program in September. So far, we are very fortunate in having room to expand in our facility as we are operating within a ballroom dance studio and, therefore, have the physical space available by rearranging group classes and dance times. Our faculty at the moment is one instructor and one "everything else". Obviously, we hope to grow to have at least 20 students in each program and have more than one program going on at once, which will require additional staff.
Very good idea to collect as much information as possible before opening or acquiring a school. LIke any business, it is essential to know what you know and don't know. It is essential to conduct a feasibility study and create a Business Plan. If worked on effectively, the Plan will include all your options and opportunities as well as obstacles and potential problems. It's better to know these before you start. The Plan will also result in a budget and list of acivities, timelines, and deadlines. There is a lot to know when setting up a school. Just the desire to teach is not enough. Just having the right degree is not enough. Good luck, Susan
I just start to collect data to open an educational school in nursing and other related program
That's great to hear. You put a plan in place and then looked at all the contingencies to make it happen. YOu also let information tell you where another location was needed. Good use of planning and avoiding costly mistakes. Susan
Yes, and it was the reason for us to open another location. The location we are at did not have the capacity to expand with its limited size. We wanted to offer more programs but hit the wall with all of our planning when we realized that it was impossible when there is simply no space. Then a light bulb moment came when it was decided that another branch location was needed. It worked out great and the new branch is going on its second year.
