by Bill Fontana
So this is my first piece in my new position as Director of Strategic Initiatives at the Pennsylvania Downtown Center. As I started my “world’s slowest retirement journey,” it struck me that I was leaving the Executive Director position at PDC with a lot of institutional knowledge, including internal processes and procedures, stuck in my head and NOT down on paper. The title seemed like the right one to allow me to finish so many of the administrative, fiscal and programmatic things that I had not completed for one reason or another, before I stepped down as executive director.
The plan is pretty simple. Spend two days a week on service delivery matters and two days a week on, well, strategic initiatives. The idea reminded me of a management tool called the Eisenhower Matrix. The matrix divides everything we do into four groups based on things that are important, or not and things that are urgent, or not. The Eisenhower Matrix looks like the graphic you see below:
In his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, author Steven Covey correctly states that most people spend too much time in in the Not Urgent-Not Important block - Covey calls this Quadrant 4 - and not nearly enough time in the Important-Not Urgent block, Covey’s Quadrant 2. Unfortunately, it is this all-important Quadrant 2 where the matters related to strategic thinking exist. They are in the “I know it is important, I just don’t have the time right now” block. Covey goes on to state that “highly effective people” spend more time than most in Quadrant 2.
A recent article in the Harvard Business Review indicated that in a survey of 10,000 corporate leaders, 97% responded that “being strategic” was THE most important leadership behavior. However, a separate study referenced in the same article indicated that 96% said they lack the time to be strategic thinkers.
So, I have set a new mission for myself as PDC’s Director of Strategic Initiatives. Not only should I work to take care of the strategic matters that require my attention at PDC, but I should help YOU as the program manager, or a board or committee member of your local revitalization effort, to become a more strategic thinker. This article will, over the next 18 +/- months, provide you with tips and tools, knowledge and skills, and other resources necessary to become a revitalization professional who better understands the importance of, and spends more time in, Quadrant 2.
The old adage goes... “If you always do what you you’ve always done, you always get what you you’ve already got.” As revitalization professionals you want to effectuate change in community and not keep the status quo – what you’ve already got. You want things to get better. Strategic thinking will help you effectuate that change. Make time for you and your board to think strategically.
Keep your eyes open for Strategic Thinking Briefs (STBs) to help you and your board develop this all-important skill.