We've all heard the cliche, "A rudderless ship never makes it to port." After four years of building a board, internal processes, communication tools, a membership and the like, your RCS CBA knew it was critical to have a plan in place to help our fledgling organization run by volunteers take our work to the next level. The board also wanted to ensure we were alway focused on our mission - to be a catalyst for growth and prosperity in our community. RCS CBA's Board of Directors knew it needed a strategic plan to be our rudder.
"A lot of value lies in a well designed strategic plan – it’s meaningful, customized to your organization, impactful, actionable and it provides direction for everyone by embracing collaboration throughout the organization. After all, strategy is everyone’s responsibility," said Mary Beth Imbarrato, a strategic plan and project management expert at MBI Consulting, LLC, who RCS CBA hired late in 2020 to help guide us through the development of our plan and its implementation.
The Board of Directors and Mary Beth worked throughout the winter and spring to redefine our mission, vision and values. We also created goals we intend to accomplish in 2021. The Board slightly revised its mission statement to make it more relevant and precise for 2021 and beyond: The RSC Community Business Association is a catalyst for growth and prosperity through economic and community development initiatives that foster a strong business climate. We also adopted a vision statement for the association and a set of values: Vision RCS CBA won't rest until we have a vibrant local economy achieved through cooperation between businesses, municipalities and the communities we serve. Values RCS CBA is innovative, welcoming and collaborative. Finally, RCS CBA adopted 5 goals to help us work toward our mission in 2021: 1. Grow membership by 13 members by the end of 2021. 2. Offer monthly programs that enlighten our members and add value to the membership. 3. Develop and maintain initiatives that attract and retain businesses in the community. 4. Celebrate the success stories in our community and promote a narrative that highlights our growth, strengths and our potential. 5. Formalize organization, policies and procedures to make RCS CBA legitimate, sustainable and continuous. You can see the full plan, including all the initiatives to help us achieve the goals
Most importantly...we need help! RCS CBA is a volunteer organization run by leaders who work full time in businesses throughout the community. If you have a passion for RCS and want to see a revitalized Main Street and other economic development activity we need your time and talents. Please reach out to chair Joy Iafallo to see how we can plug you into our work.
Read more about the value of a strategic plan from Mary Beth Imbarrato, PMP, CSM, SPP, CMS of MBI Consulting LLC here.