park district of highland park strategic plan 2012-2016€¦ · - yogi berra . strategic plan-draft...
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PARK DISTRICT OF HIGHLAND PARK STRATEGIC PLAN
2012-2016
Park District of Highland Park
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“If you don't know where you are going, you are certain to end up somewhere else." - Yogi Berra
Strategic Plan-DRAFT
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Acknowledgements
Park District of Highland Park Board of Commissioners
Scott Meyers President
Brian Kaplan Vice President
Elaine Waxman Commissioner
Cal Bernstein Commissioner
Lori Flores Weisskopf Commissioner
Staff
Liza McElroy Executive Director
Ted Baker Director of Park Operations
Kathy Donahue Director of Recreation Services
Stephanie Kerch Director of Communications and Marketing
Dan Malartsik Assistant Director of Facilities
Brian Romes Assistant Director of Recreation
Rick Stumpf Director of Planning and Projects
Project Support
Barbara Heller, Heller and Heller Consulting
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Table of Contents
Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 5
Mission, Vision and Values ....................................................................................................... 7
Community Input Information .................................................................................................. 8
Board and Staff Workshop Information ................................................................................. 11
Major Focus Areas .................................................................................................................. 14
Organizational Culture ............................................................................................................ 15
The Balanced Scorecard .......................................................................................................... 16
Strategic Themes and Initiatives ............................................................................................. 17
Objective Statements .............................................................................................................. 18
Strategy Maps ......................................................................................................................... 21
Strategic Initiatives 2012-2016 ............................................................................................... 24
Implementation Guidelines .................................................................................................... 28
Summary ................................................................................................................................. 30
Definitions ............................................................................................................................... 31
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Introduction
The Park District of Highland Park (PDHP) and Heller and Heller Consulting, Inc.
(HHC) worked collaboratively with Board members and staff to develop the Park
District of Highland Park Strategic Plan 2012 to 2016. The Plan will be aligned with
fiscal years beginning April 2012 through March 2016. The Strategic Plan’s intent is
to:
Establish a four year future direction
Align the organization with strategic direction
Incorporate resident needs into future planning
Drive innovation as part of the organizational culture
Strengthen and identify elements of organizational culture through values
Develop preliminary approaches to infrastructure and capital project needs
Create groundwork for a subsequent master plan process
The District, through its Vision Statement, aspires to provide extraordinary
experiences in parks and recreation facilities, programs and services, and
consistently exceeding the public’s expectations. Developing a commitment toward
the strategy process, in part, positions the organization to authentically achieve its
vision. The platform for the Plan began in 2009 as Leisure Vision completed a series
of community input meetings and developed and administered a statistically valid
household survey that addressed community needs, unmet needs, and funding
priorities. The strategic recommendations include initiatives addressing survey
results. Subsequently, in 2011 an additional series of focus groups and public
meetings were held as part of this process. These groups responded to questions
relating to the District’s strategic direction.
The Plan will create direction for the future allocation of resources, financial
stability, staffing levels, internal support and communication, organizational culture
efforts, and the capacity for learning and growth. All of these areas relate to one
another. Good strategic direction takes this into account. A specific example is
financial stability relating to staffing levels and internal support. If additional staffing
is needed, this impacts financial stability and internal support provided. These cause
and effect relationships are included in the strategic initiatives.
Previous to this process, the District did have a mission statement. This process
included a review of the mission statement, and the development of a vision
statement. District values were also created. The Strategic Planning process
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included a workshop with Park Board members and Department Heads, a one half-
day staff workshop, and follow up meetings with staff, providing opportunities for
review and reflection.
The elements of the Plan include the major areas as follows:
The PDHP Strategic Plan includes the following information:
Revised mission, development of a vision statement and values
Community, Board, and staff input
Notes from Board and staff workshops
Information about the Balanced Scorecard framework for strategy
Major Focus Areas
Strategic Themes
Objective Statements
Strategy Maps
Strategic Initiatives
Guidelines for Implementation
Strategic Plan Definitions
This list represents a process of six sequential tasks, as follows:
Task 1
Public and Staff Input
Task 2
Board and Staff Workshop
Task 3
Staff Workshop
Task 4
Refinement Meeting
Task 5
Draft Report and Presentation
Task 6
Final Report
"The result of planning should be effective, efficient, and economical...that is, suitable for the intended purpose, capable of producing the desired results, and involving the least investment of resources."
Clark Crouch
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Mission, Vision and Values
A good starting point for strategy is a review and development of mission, vision,
and values. Previously, the District had a mission statement, but additionally desired
to develop a vision statement and values. The Mission Statement was shortened,
but the essence of the statement remained the same. Mission statements define
the business or purpose of the organization. Vision statements are more
aspirational; what do we hope to become? Values set a level of expectation
describing how people within the organization behave. The essence of strategic
planning asks these three basic questions:
Where are we now?
Where do we want to go?
How will we get there?
Mission Statement
To enrich community life through healthy leisure pursuits and an appreciation of the
natural world
Vision Statement
To provide extraordinary experiences in parks and recreation, consistently exceeding
the public’s expectations, while:
Inspiring environmental stewardship and education
Using nimble decision-making and creative solutions
Creating a harmonious workplace with passionate, forward-thinking staff that
share true camaraderie
Enriching the quality of life for our community
Values
Communication: We make earnest efforts to connect regularly and effectively with
residents. In addition, within the District, we talk to those impacted by our
decisions, we speak openly with one another in a trustworthy environment, and we
provide direct feedback to others.
Accountability: We demonstrate responsibility to the District and the community in
everything we do. We have congruency between our words and our actions.
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Innovation: We create an environment that inspires new ideas, we view the District
through a different set of lenses, and question why we do things the way we do. In
addition, we desire to nimbly change our services in response to continuously
changing customer requirements.
Integrity: We deliver on what we promise do to by adhering to the highest ethical
standards. This results in trust and respect toward one another.
Teamwork: The District’s greater good guides our actions. We respect others and
work cooperatively and collaboratively, express our differences of opinion, and
listen to one another.
Community Input Information
As part of the Strategic Planning process, two days of focus groups were held at the
Park District of Highland Park. The consulting firm of Heller and Heller conducted
small group public input meetings with various community members, staff and
Board members and two larger public meetings in September 2011. Approximately
100 residents, governmental officials, Park Board members, and staff participated in
the process. Similar questions were asked of all groups, with a few questions
specific to the audience, such as staff members. The following information
represents a brief summary of consensus information generated during the
meetings.
Future Vision: what is your vision of the Park District in the next five years?
Many comments related to infrastructure needs (facilities in particular as compared
to park amenities), developing priorities for capital projects, references to significant
decisions the Park District faces, and getting the organization back on track. Along
with these, participants desire to see ongoing efforts in improving communication
with the community.
Strengths
Strengths include the District’s reputation as a well-run organization with a staff
group that serves customers well with direct/open communication. There is a
general feeling the District now has a good leadership. From the perspective of
partners, the District is good to work with, and communication is strong. The
District offers a wide range of programs to choose from for any age. In addition,
there is a wide variety of facilities, plenty of park space, and wonderful natural
resources for the residents. Reference was also made to the financial sustainability
of the District.
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Improvements
Improvements include better training ownership/accountability of staff, not
overusing staff (the staff is here because they care but they should not have to be
worn down), fewer board driven initiatives, stronger leadership, hiring the right
person for position vacancies, being more of a team/talking to one another and the
residents, better marketing with a better Website and attracting more non-
residents. Other improvement areas include offering too many programs and not
being able to maintain a sense of focus. Lastly, park maintenance needs
improvements, particularly the lakefront.
Issues
The consensus number one issue is what to do with the golf course(s). Another
significant issue is the aging of the facilities. What is the plan for the future? What is
the plan with the money in reserves? What to do with all the beaches?
Acknowledging and communicating with the public, creating programs for both the
young and old are also important issues. How can Highland Park generate revenue
and sustain recreation programs? A few focus group participants mentioned their
lack of trust with the PDHP board members.
Partnerships
When asked about partnership opportunities or ways to strengthen existing
partners, the focus groups commented as follows:
Local businesses - Chamber
The City – Partner with city for emails
Senior Center
Good idea to share resources among other districts. House league with Glencoe
is a smart idea. We definitely should have ability to use other park district
services and their residents use ours
I like the private-public partnership. AYSO has taken over the maintenance of
the fields because the park district is not doing a good job. Our fields are not as
good as other district fields
Highwood students - is there some way to do a partnership with Highwood?
Strong relationships are not there among the agencies. They should have
quarterly meetings together and public meetings
Is there a way for the School and Park District to be on the same page?
The hospital partners with the District
Promote the mission of the hospital through the District
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Bilingual staff are needed for Hispanic population
Partnership between the park district and the zoning board such as granting an
allowance
Partnerships might be successful if they were issue-directed. For example, the
Green Initiative Alliance involved all government agencies to learn from each
other. They should follow that same process for other future partnerships
Communication
This area addresses resident perspectives relating to the District’s ability to create
awareness of programs and events. Some residents are excited by the notion of
tweeting, adding friends on Facebook, and using the news feed as a bulletin board
for cancellation/updates. Others prefer a minimal online presence, i.e. just an email
once a week. It is important to know which ones to use and the information to pass
along with it. Print materials still need to exist as in signage/program guides, and for
the ones not online. Also important is the need to be bilingual and attracting new
residents.
Mission-Key Words
Participants were asked to offer words or phrases to describe what they believe the
District’s mission statement should include. Responses included:
Quality programs for all ages and abilities at affordable prices
Customer service excellence
Providing a refuge from the rest of life, i.e. quiet places
We are improving lives
Should we always constantly try new activities? Industry trends?
People want to move here because of the park district
Outdoor spaces and lush green
People have an interest in trails
We have an aging population
Being flexible
New Services/Parks/Programs – Improvements
This section includes comments related to improvements to parks, facilities, and
programs. Simple improvements would satisfy the majority of people. The pool
seems to be due for an upgrade, as well as the beach. Another idea is adding
artificial turf and an indoor sport complex. Also, how can the District appeal to an
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aging population and how can we cater them as well as responding to changing
ethnicities in the community? Other comments included:
Better database of information and get more targeted information
We all have resource needs…how do we best allocate?
Coordinating activities with other agencies in town to prevent overlap
Hang onto kids longer…they reach a certain age and then leave our programs
We don’t do anything with the skate park. We should have some events there
such as X games
Zip lines are very popular
We are a weather vane spinning in the wind, we need a vision and need focus.
Go back to the core of what we should do well. What is our niche?
Regional approach to services
Our community could be better served for people with disabilities. The park
district should have more of a leadership role
LA Fitness is taking business away from the Rec Center
More outside winter activities are needed
Centennial needs updating but will the investment pay off – same with Rosewood Beach
A senior golf league offered through the City’s senior center should be offered
Second sheet of ice at Centennial
Paddle tennis
Veladrome
Multi-generational programs to tap into
Board Development from the Perspective of Staff
Staff members were asked to provide input relating to Board development and how
the Board can continuously improve their learning. Comments from staff included
the hope that the Board regularly makes decisions based on the greater good of the
Community and carefully discerns individual interests that benefit few. There was
also a feeling that staff and board need to build a higher level of trust. Better
familiarity of facilities and programs would also be helpful. Staff would like to assist
in this. The staff members also recognize the newness of some of the Board
members, and the time required for the Board to learn how everyone operates.
Board and Staff Workshop Information
The initial Board and staff workshop included facilitated discussion relating to
organizational performance and identification of major issues. Project priorities
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were discussed as well. The following lists the information generated from the
meeting.
Organizational Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT)
Workshop participants were asked to identify the major strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities and threats of the District.
Strengths
-Program and service variety
-Quality of staff
-Consistency of programs
-Property and land
-Loyal users
-Relationships and being an important part of the community
-Reasonable costs/value to programs and services
-Relationships with other agencies
-NSSRA
-Responding to citizens and listening to their needs
-Leadership of the District
-Residents are well informed participants
-Experts and professionals working for the District
-Professional staff
-Environmental leadership
Weaknesses
-Aging Facilities
-Slow to respond to threats
-Need to be more proactive
-Bad recent history
-We try to be everything to everyone
-Lack of focus
-Governmental bureaucracy
-Communications/public relations
-Staffing analysis is needed to determine appropriate number of staff
-Uneven balance of programs for age segments
-Uneven balance of allocation of resources for programs
Opportunities
-Creating wow for facilities
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-Tremendous natural resources
-Put our recent past behind us and being proactive
-Expansions opportunities
-The reserves we have available
Threats
-Everyone offering similar programs
-Raising fees
-Customer requirements changing faster than the District’s ability to change
-Rapidly evolving consumer preferences
-Similar provider experts
-Specialty areas vs. generalists
-Staff leaving
-Competition art center
-Senior Center
-Having substantial reserves
Project Listing: The following is a listing of the major projects the District is
considering over the next several years. They include:
-Rosewood
-Country Club
-Central Parks Stairs
-Maintenance Facilities
-Hidden Creek
-West Ridge
-Second Sheet of Ice
-Gymnastics
-Upgrading Recreation Center
-Moraine Park Erosion
-Dog Park
-Boat Launch at Park Avenue
-Skokie River Woods
-Sunset Golf Course (Clubhouse/Greens/Traps)
-Senior Center
-Not Meeting demand for athletics
-Artificial Turf
-Immediate need to change facilities
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Criteria for project ranking: During the workshop, the group developed a listing of
criteria needed to assist with capital prioritization. The list included:
1. Grant availability
2. Logistical and financial support for sister government
3. Financial results
4. Current condition
5. Return on investment
6. Sustain facilities
7. Infrastructure assessment
8. Community input information
Criteria for golf course ranking: The same process was used to determine the ranking of
priorities to assess which golf course should be closed. A golf feasibility study will be
done to provide an objective opinion of which is the best course to close. In addition, a
City/Park District task force will lead the decision making process.
1. Access
2. Is the city going to close the course?
3. Comparative economics and relative synergies
4. Infrastructure requirements
5. Encumbrances around the properties
6. Opportunities for alternative uses (such as trails)
7. Resident participation
8. Golf amenities
Major Focus Areas
The group completed a brainstorming exercise relating to key major focus areas the
District needs to ensure are included and addressed within the strategic
recommendations. The Major Focus Areas (MFA) below are considered to be the
most significant issues the Park District will face during the next four years.
The following is the list of items identified, listed according to priority ranking by the
group.
1. Infrastructure needs
2. Allocation of resources for capital projects
3. Employee morale
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4. Building brand image
5. Serving the consumer
6. Functioning Board/Good decisions made
7. Become more profitable
Organizational Culture
Park District leadership recognizes the importance of creating a great organizational
culture--one that espouses an innovative and inspiring work environment. As a
result, one of the steps in the Strategic Planning process was a review of current
morale and the need for improvement. Additionally, employees were asked to
discuss their perspectives of what creates an ideal organization.
Employees were asked to identify areas that are important for the District’s ability to
be the ideal organization. They were ranked as follows:
1. The need to stop reacting so quickly to the public 2. Creating an environment in which what employees do matters and employees
matter to the organization 3. Relaxed culture 4. Effective communications 5. Consistency/fairness 6. Shared vision 7. Accountability for work and results
Employees were then asked to identify ways to improve the District:
Continue to regain trust
The Board needs to have courage to make the difficult decisions. Stand up for what they believe in, rather than reacting to individual residents
Staff standing up for what you believe in
Define your message o It all goes back to communication o Ask questions to ensure understanding
Sincerity in praise
Public recognition of District’s great services
We should have ways of sharing all good comments we receive as it is easier for people to complain
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The Balanced Scorecard
The PDHP Strategic Plan is based on the Balanced Scorecard, a strategy framework
that emphasizes the cause and effect relationships among distinct yet interrelated
perspectives: customer needs, financial performance, internal support processes,
and learning and growth. The Scorecard also includes a measurement system that
monitors organizational performance. The Scorecard focuses on the key drivers of
success that leads to the achievement of mission and vision.
Robert Kaplan and David Norton developed the Scorecard in the early 1990s. At the
time, they believed that knowledge based assets were becoming increasingly
important. Yet, most organizations at the time measured financial results while not
measuring employee capabilities, information systems, quality and innovation. The
authors believed employees pay attention to what the organization measured. As a
result, organizations had a tendency of overly focusing on financial performance.
Since that time, both private and public sector organizations have implemented the
Balanced Scorecard. The premise of the scorecard is to develop a strategy-based
measurement system that becomes the foundation for the development of strategy.
The Balanced Scorecard framework includes four perspectives:
Customer: To achieve our mission and vision, how should we appear to
our customers?
Financial: To succeed financially, how should we appear to our taxpayers?
Internal business: To satisfy our customers, which business processes
must we do extremely well?
Learning and growth: To achieve our mission and vision, how will we
sustain our ability to change and improve, and develop leaders among
the staff and Board?
The strategic recommendations included in this Plan outline future efforts and
resource allocation relating to these four perspectives. This approach ensures that
learning and growth of the organization relates to its strategic initiatives.
Furthermore, it focuses on the customer and the ability of the agency to be
financially sustainable.
The Park District of Highland Park aspires to be an excellent, accountable, ethical,
and sustainable organization based on its strong commitment to mission, vision, and
values. The Strategic Plan provides the foundation for this growth.
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Strategic Themes and Initiatives
In using the scorecard, the District has developed Strategic Themes that are broad-
brushed organizational descriptions that provide direction. These Themes follow the
four perspectives outlined above. They include:
Customer: Be Extraordinary
Financial: Responsive, Intelligent, Ethical Financial Stewardship
Internal Business: Operational Excellence
Learning and Growth: Think Different
The Themes, along with the Major Focus Areas, provide the over-arching framework
for the Plan’s implementation.
Strategic Plan Hierarchy
The Plan includes a hierarchy of elements that starts with the most macro level of
strategy and moves to a more micro level (moving from strategic to tactical). The
starting point for any strategic planning process is the review of the vision, mission,
and values. The mission statement was changed from its previous wording. The
vision statement was newly created. Values were discussed among staff and Board
members which resulted in new values. Subsequent to the development of
Strategic Themes, Objectives were developed. Objectives describe what the District
needs to do well in support of the Themes. For example, one of the Objectives for
the Theme: Be Extraordinary is: “Manage First and Last Impressions.” Therefore,
the District must identify ways to strengthen its impressions to its customer base.
Strategic Initiatives are more micro-level in support of the Strategic Objectives.
Following along with the Be Extraordinary Theme, an example of an Initiative is
developing standards for staff’s adherence to creating first and last impressions. As
evidenced from the sequence listed above, the Initiatives are more specific than the
Objectives, and the Objectives are more specific than the Themes.
A measurement system of key performance indicators follows the Themes and
Objectives. The measurement system reflects the District’s progress in completing
the Strategic Initiatives. The tactics are detailed action steps that outline how each
initiative will be accomplished. Tactics are very specific, lengthy in number, and are
best developed year to year. As a result, tactics are not included within the Plan.
They will be developed each year by staff for the current year Initiatives.
The Balanced Scorecard hierarchy is presented by the pyramid shown below.
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Objective Statements
The following is a list of Objectives and a specific definition that describes each of
them to ensure understanding of their intended meaning. The Objectives support
each of the four strategic themes and are generally two to four in number in support
of the themes. The objectives represent what the organization needs to do well in
support of the four major themes.
Be Extraordinary
Objective 1: Manage first and last impressions
Critical touch points of service include first and last impressions between staff and
customers. As a result, the District will work toward ensuring that these customer
transactions occur consistently and effectively through the development of
standards and training.
Objective 2: Create the Wow factor
In addition to managing impressions, the District will instill a wow factor in
programs, facility operations, and service delivery. This includes the development of
Mission, Vision, and Values
Strategic Themes
Strategic Objectives
Measurements
Strategic Initiatives
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standards, identifying ways to exceed customer expectations, managing tangible
evidence, and developing repeat business and customer loyalty.
Objective 3: Creative/unique programs and services
PDHP will utilize flexibility, innovation and industry trends in developing the
District’s recreation program inventory. In addition, customer knowledge is
important in order for staff to offer the right array of programs. The District will
capture customer data in order to align services with their needs.
Responsive, Intelligent, Ethical Financial Stewardship
Objective 1: Long term capital vision
The District recognizes the importance of effectively and efficiently allocating capital
dollars for the greater good of the community. This results from good decision
making processes, having many staff with different perspectives involved in the
process, and developing plans to refresh
and renovate facilities.
Objective 2: Align resources to
community need
The District will rely on statistically valid
survey information and ongoing resident
feedback in deciding capital priorities.
Decisions will be based on providing for
the greater good of the community rather
than randomly reacting to special interests.
Objective 3: Create financial best practices
Financial and organizational accountability results when good processes exist for
regular financial reporting, clear policies and controls are in place, and
organizational competency is developed for excellence in financial decision making.
Operational Excellence
Objective 1: Build the brand and stronger marketing message
When the Highland Park Community hears the words, “The Park District of Highland
Park” the intended outcome of this objective is to associate good feelings from the
community toward the Districts operations, programs, and services.
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Objective 2: Strengthen internal and external relationships
Continuously connecting with the community is of significant importance to the
District. As a result, overall guidelines for communication efforts will be developed.
This premise holds true for internal communications as well. Employees will work
together to establish internal guidelines.
Objective 3: Strengthen and build operational procedures, processes, and
park/facility/design standards
In order to operate excellently, operational procedures need to be in place and
processes documented. Additionally, the ability to operate effectively and
consistently will rely on the development of operational standards.
Objective 4: Become a strategy focused organization
This results when the District focuses on its long term direction and everyone is
aligned around the District’s Vision, Mission, and Strategic Initiatives. This exists at
both the organizational level and departmental level.
Be Different
Objective 1: Board and staff development
This includes identifying critical competencies of performance excellence for board
and staff, allocating training resources with these competencies, and
developing/selecting an overall system of training opportunities.
Objective 2: Develop and accountable work environment
The Park District embraces the notion of gaining the most effective return on
investment of taxpayers’ dollars. As a result, the District sets a high standard of
performance by the Board and employees. This is accomplished by robust
performance appraisal, ongoing feedback processes, and the measurement of
organizational performance.
Objective 3: Foster a culture of innovation
Innovation requires a work culture that embraces change and is supported by
encouraging staff to try new processes and services. Innovative organizations
operate with growth in mind and are successful in sustaining operations.
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Strategy Maps
The District’s mission and vision provide the framework for the strategic
recommendations. In addition, the recommendations include actions related to the
Major Focus Areas (MFA):
Infrastructure needs
Allocation of resources for capital projects
Employee morale
Building brand and image
Serving the consumer
Functioning Board/good decisions made
Become more profitable
The MFAs are not explicitly a part of the scorecard. Their intended purpose is to
ensure efforts are made to strategically address those areas of paramount
importance to the agency.
All of the Strategic Themes, Objectives and Initiatives are aligned with the four
Balanced Scorecard perspectives: customer, financial, internal business support,
and learning and growth. These are represented in the following strategy maps.
The first map provides the list of the four perspectives and their supporting
objectives. The second map includes the same information with the addition of a
measurement system in support of the Themes and Objectives.
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Strategic Initiatives 2012-2016
The following are the Themes, Objectives, and Initiatives for the next four years,
2012-2016. Time period priorities are attached to each Initiative as follows:
Short Term Initiatives to be accomplished April 2012 and March 2013
Mid Term Initiatives to be accomplished between April 2013 and March 2015
Long Term Initiatives to be accomplished between April 2015 and March
2016
Ongoing Goals are repeated during the entire time period
Dedicated staff time will be required to complete the Initiatives. Before each year
begins, the list of short, mid, or long term Initiatives will be evaluated according to
current workload demands to ensure realistic pursuit in the number of strategies
attempted and completed. The staff work will be supplemented by professional
services such as landscape architects, architects, land planners, and engineers in
specific areas such as master planning and infrastructure assessments.
A few of the Initiatives are supported by tactics. This is a result of discussion at the
staff workshop in which a few of the identified initiatives were re-categorized from
initiatives to tactics. The tactics for the other Initiatives will be developed on a year
to year basis by staff. As mentioned previously, the Plan becomes too lengthy to
include tactics for all of the Initiatives. Furthermore, the Plan must be fluid in its
deployment. Developing tactics for initiatives four years from now is difficult to
establish as the work environment changes so quickly.
Customer Theme: Be Extraordinary
Objective 1: Manage first and last impression
Develop standards for managing customer touch points and recreation programs to reinforce consistency in service delivery Short Term
Complete an access review on an annual basis to identify improvements to customer touch points (Website, telephone, front desk, registration, etc.) Ongoing
o Create checklist and training of first and last impressions (tactic)
Objective 2: Create the Wow factor
Implement systems for identifying ways to exceed customer expectations for facilities and programs, including the development of key customer requirements for core services and programs and how to exceed on the delivery of those requirements Mid Term
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Develop a system wide approach to measuring customer satisfaction and loyalty including mystery shopping, focus groups, program evaluations, surveys, and lost customer research Mid Term
Objective 3: Creative/unique programs and services
Develop a process for implementing new and different programs from customer ideas and trend research Short Term
Develop a customer loyalty program through a reward system for recognizing rewarding and encouraging extraordinary program service Long Term
Develop a customer relationship management program Long Term
Financial Theme: Responsive, Intelligent, Ethical Financial
Stewardship
Objective 1: Align resources to community need
Collect community needs through a statistically valid survey every five years to ensure resource allocation is aligned with the needs of residents Long Term, 2014
Explore inter-government efficiencies with other agencies including school districts, City, and neighboring government partners Ongoing
o (participate with representatives of the City to evaluate and recommend the future of the golf course operations) tactic
o (participate with other agencies to continue trail development and connectivity in the community) tactic
Objective 2: Long term capital vision
Develop a process to involve staff in the capital prioritization process Short Term
Develop a process to prioritize long term major capital priorities Short Term
Perform a long-term infrastructure assessment to determine high expense liabilities Mid Term
Objective 3: Create financial best practices
Create a plan to study district-wide purchasing standards and policies Mid Term
Create a pricing process along with a cost of service study to ensure appropriate and consistent approach to pricing Mid Term
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Assess privatization opportunities to determine the most cost efficient way to do business Long Term
Review/update financial policies Ongoing
Explore opportunities to partner with local businesses to increase participation and expand services Ongoing
Internal Business Theme: Operational Excellence
Objective 1: Build the brand and stronger marketing message
Create an external communication plan Short Term
Develop a common brand/look across the PDHP Mid Term Objective 2: Strengthen internal and external relationships
Create a process to leverage technology to create customer knowledge through data mining from program software systems Short Term
Develop internal communication guidelines Mid Term
Formalize interagency agreements Mid Term
Build on existing efforts in sustainable practices and be the leader in the community in these efforts by developing a sustainability plan and measurement system Long Term
Objective 3: Strengthen and build operational procedures, processes, and
park/facility/design standards
Initiate staff equality and consistency of rules, benefits, perks, and disciplinary procedures Short Term
Develop and centralize all park/facility/design standards with an intended goal of efficiency, refinement, and consistency
Develop and implement a District wide IT Plan Long Term Objective 4: Become a strategy focused organization
Implement the strategic planning process that includes regular progress reports, communication of results, measurement system, and staff and Board involvement in implementation Short Term
Learning and Growth Theme: Think Different
Objective 1: Board and staff development
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Develop and implement new employee orientation/immersion training Short Term
Create the PDHP customer relations/service training that includes customer loyalty techniques Short Term
Develop core competencies for supervisory positions and provide training through a District leadership training program, such as a Park District of Highland Park University Long Term
Strengthen board competencies Short and Mid Term o Pre-election orientation and board member orientation (tactic) o Offer a Board boot camp to familiarize facility operations and programs
(tactic) o Develop a process for a Board self-assessment (tactic) o Develop a decision making protocol for Board members (tactic) o Review other district board best practices (tactic) o Develop issue papers for Board and staff in order to provide the community
with message consistency (tactic) o Provide financial systems training as part of the Board orientation program
(tactic)
Create a system-wide strategic approach to training based on skill set gaps and District strategic direction Mid Term o Create a centralized staff training assessment to determine policy and
associated centralized funding (tactic)
Objective 2: Develop an accountable work environment
Complete a work analysis/staffing review to determine the best allocation of labor dollars Short Term
Create a system to measure organizational and departmental performance Mid Term
Develop a process to measure employee satisfaction on an ongoing basis Mid Term
Objective 3: Foster a culture of innovation
Create a work culture cross functional team to continue improvement in work environment efforts Long Term
Develop a reward and recognition system connected to service delivery excellence and commitment to District values including innovation Long Term
Establish innovation as part of the work culture as part of the hiring process, reward and recognition, and performance appraisal Long Term o Create a process to identify industry trends (tactic) o Provide innovation training (tactic) o Develop a cross functional innovation team (tactic)
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Additional Strategic Initiatives
The following is a list of ideas generated during the course of the development of
strategies. In order to maintain a realistic list of Strategic Initiatives, these items are
important but will only be pursued if good progress is made toward the previously
listed Initiatives and can be added later.
Develop “value based” and “experienced based’ marketing strategies to appeal to the development of an emotional response from customers
Perform a District culture inventory to determine how the culture can be improved, made stronger, and adhere to District values
Provide an in-house financial training program to ensure better understanding of financial systems
Implementation Guidelines
Implementation of the Strategic Plan requires a standardized process of review,
refinement, and measurement. The following is a listing of suggestions for
successful implementation of the Strategic Plan. It represents the commitment and
discipline required to institutionalize the process.
All employees and Board members should receive a copy of the plan or
electronic access to the Plan.
The Plan becomes the guidepost for the District. When decisions or
responses to the community are needed, the Plan becomes the reference
point for decision making and whether or not new issues or responses to the
community are of higher importance than what’s been established as
existing direction.
Post a summary or shortened version of the Plan on the Website and track
results on the site as well. It may also be helpful to print a short summary of
the Plan’s progress to distribute to interested partners and community
members.
Elements of the Strategic Plan should be incorporated into the new
employee and Board orientation program.
Regular reporting of the Plan’s progress should occur. Break the Plan into
separate fiscal years and report one year at a time. Each initiative for the
year should include a list of tactics that support the goal’s completion. It is
the project leader’s responsibility to report on his/her goal, included in a
monthly or quarterly report. A suggestion is to input each year’s data on a
spreadsheet that lists the Themes, Objectives and Initiatives start date and
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completion date, and which staff person is responsible for the Initiative’s
completion.
At the end of the year, perform an annual review and documentation of the
initiatives and distribute appropriately.
Update major stakeholders such as the City and School Districts on the Plan’s
implementation and results on an annual basis.
Conduct staff meetings on a quarterly or semi-annual basis to review the
Plan’s progress and results and report the Plan’s progress to the Park Board
on a quarterly basis.
The performance appraisal process should reflect the completion of the
Strategic Plan initiatives as an evaluation criterion. Also, performance
criteria should be aligned with values of the District such as innovation,
teamwork, and accountability.
Track the measurement system on a quarterly basis. Some of the measures
will be calculated annually. Provide an annual narrative about the results.
Review the inventory of measures on an annual basis and make adjustments
as necessary to ensure the measures continuously add value to decision
making. Include a combination of lagging and leading indicators. (Lagging
indicators or outcomes measure past performance; leading indicators or
performance drivers assist in establishing future performance.)
After completion of the first year of the Plan and baseline results are
quantified, targets should be initiated for the measurement system. For
example, if there is a customer satisfaction measure of achieving 90%
customer satisfaction, and in the initial year, the 90% is achieved, the target
for successive years could be 95%.
There should be an annual just-in-time review of the next year’s Initiatives to
determine if priorities have changed. This can be included at an annual
retreat in which successive years’ Initiatives are discussed as part of the
annual budget process. Initiatives should tie into the budget process.
Post a chart of each year’s initiatives on office walls in administrative areas
with a check-off column designating completion as part of a visual
management program. Staff meetings should regularly include discussion of
strategy. This is a part of the visualization process to emphasize the Plan’s
importance and the District’s commitment to execution.
After each year of the Plan, the staff should review the Plan’s process and re-
tool any parts of the process that need improvement.
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After the initial year of the Plan, the Strategy Map should be cascaded to the
various Departments, aligned with organizational strategy.
Some of the Initiatives require individual effort to complete; others require a
group of employees to complete the work. The Initiatives are specific work
projects that are scheduled for completion between fiscal year 2012-2013
through fiscal year 2015-2016. Each Initiative is designated as year short
term (year 1), mid term (year 2-3), long term (year 4), or ongoing.
Summary
The Park District of Highland Park has experienced substantial change during the last
few years. It has been difficult for the District to gain traction and forward
momentum, but it is now at the precipice of having the ability to establish a strong
culture and sense of direction. The agency desires to become more pro-active and
studied in its approaches. The goal of the Plan is to help the District achieve those
goals.
Strategic planning takes discipline, commitment, and great leadership. Those
elements are now in place in the organization. With dedicated and committed
Board and staff members, PDHP will have the ability to become a more strategically
focused organization, one aligned with community need, dynamically improving
programs and services, and continuing its legacy of impactful initiatives for the
residents of Highland Park.
All of these efforts will result in successful efforts toward the agency’s vision: To
provide extraordinary experiences in parks and recreation, consistently exceeding the
public’s expectations, while:
Inspiring environmental stewardship and education
Using nimble decision-making and creative solutions
Creating a harmonious workplace with passionate, forward-thinking staff that
share true camaraderie
Enriching the quality of life for our community
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Definitions
The following list of key words describes the definition of the terminology used for
the Strategic Plan.
Vision—desired future of the organization. The vision should be a “stretch” for the
organization, but possible to achieve in approximately five years. It should state a
measurable achievement.
Mission—describes the business of the organization. The mission also defines the
core purpose of the organization and why it exists.
Values—describe the way the District operates. Values are meaningful expressions
of describing what is important in the way we treat our employees and our guests
and relates to the internal culture of the organization.
Balanced Scorecard Perspectives—the four perspectives include Customer, Financial,
Internal Business Process, and Learning and Growth. They demonstrate cause and
effect relationships in the completion of strategy. All of the Strategic Initiatives are
aligned with these four perspectives.
Major Focus Areas—as part of the planning workshop, staff members were asked to
brainstorm ideas about areas of major focus the Department should concentrate on
during the next five years. While the focus areas are not part of the strategy map,
they do become an important part of strategy formulation. Within the list of
objectives and initiatives, references are made throughout the Plan to ensure focus
on the five most critical areas.
Strategic Themes— broad brushed, macro-oriented organizational sense of direction
that relates to the four Balanced Scorecard perspectives of customer, financial,
internal business, and growth and development.
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Strategic Objectives—concise statements describing the specific elements an
organization must do well in order to execute its strategy.
Measures—a standard used to evaluate and communicate performance against
expected results. Measures are normally quantitative indicators and capture
numbers, dollars, percentages, etc. Measures assist the staff with the ability to
determine organizational performance.
Strategic Initiatives—the specific programs, activities, projects, or actions an
organization will undertake in an effort to meet performance targets. The strategic
initiatives are specifically detailed with specific tactics, which are not included within
the body of the Strategic Plan, but will exist in separate documentation.
Tactics—Tactics are not included as part of the Plan. The development occurs after
the Plan’s implementation. Tactics are subordinate to the initiatives and detail the
steps necessary to complete an initiative. Staff members will identify the tactics for
the initiatives before the start of each fiscal year.