Committees Reporting to the District Governor - Strategic Planning

print this page

Rotary District 6780
Long-Range Plan Summary
10 Jan 2009

Note:  The long range planning document was developed by the AG’s and Governors in November and December, 2008, and was proposed to and accepted by the College of Governors on January 10, 2009.  It is in the format suggested by RI in the new Strategic Planning worksheet.   In early 2009, it will be reviewed at clubs and in District committees. 

Planning is an ongoing process, and suggestions are always welcome.  Send comments and suggestions to District Planning chair Jim Roxlo, jim@roxlo.com.

1. Where are we now?  District 6780 - a good Rotary District with 65 Clubs in Tennessee

Today’s date:  January, 2009

Describe your current state:  The District has been a strong contributor to RI and has provided leaders above the District level.  Club activity is increasing by some measures (Foundation, WCS and DSG) but not by others.  Overall membership is flat, and many clubs complain of inactive members and struggle to maintain the activities they have done in the past.  District leadership is talented and energetic but most clubs do not identify with the District and do not participate significantly in District activities.

Strengths:                                                                            Weaknesses:

Active Contact with RI Leaders beyond the District            Lack of “sense of purpose”

Talented and energetic District leaders                              Members’ inactivity and retention

Growing Annual Fund/ District Designated Funds               Many clubs struggle with a generation gap

Good variety of District programs                                       Lack of District involvement/enthusiasm

Tennessee’s spirit of volunteerism                                      Weak Public Relations

2. Where do we want to be?  A great District with outstanding clubs, overcoming weaknesses and growing in all ways

Target date:  June 2012

Key characteristics of future state:  Clubs more active; involved in new things frequently and enthusiastic about doing more.  The District identifies common weaknesses in the clubs and finds new ways to address them.  The District is seen by the clubs as helping the clubs be successful.  The District and most clubs have a reputation of growing in capability every year.

Vision Statement:  District 6780 will be a district that facilitates club growth by identifying, investigating and eliminating barriers that are common to many clubs in the District, and by establishing District programs that enable and accelerate club growth, so that the clubs grow in many directions and the District is seen as an enabler of clubs and leader among districts.

3. How do we get there?  In order to reach the vision, the following goals must be achieved.

Three-year goals:

1. Learn to blend the generations in Rotary and teach this to the District
2. Measure and encourage active membership in clubs
3. Build our capability to have multi-club projects
4. Embrace and improve TRF’s Future Vision
5. Implement an ongoing District planning process that responds to club inputs

In order to achieve the three-year goals, the following annual goals must be achieved.  They are shown as “Annual goal/ Deadline/ Resources needed”, with the understanding that we may not have firm deadlines and resource needs for activities in future years.  Those activities will be revisited when the plan is reviewed each year.

Three-year goal 1:  Learn to blend the generations in Rotary and teach this to the District so that most clubs in the District span three generations and rejoice in their diversity.

• Develop a plan/ June 2009/ 2009-10 District Trainer and Carol Foster

• Phase 1 – develop training and test in a few committees and clubs/ December 2009/ District Trainer

• Phase 2 – deliver training to all clubs and committees/ December 2010/ District Trainer and AG’s

• Phase 3 – test for effectiveness – impact on membership and retention/ June 2011/ AG’s

Three-year goal 2:  Measure and encourage active membership in clubs so that the majority of clubs are measurably growing in capability every year.

• Develop and test an ‘active member’ metric to establish a baseline and measure progress/ December 2009/ Membership Committee

• Develop training for clubs to improve involvement of more members/ Goal date/ Membership Committee

• Establish a club improvement goal and recognition for clubs that achieve it (Humanity in Motion Award?)/ Goal date/ Membership Committee

• Leverage RI’s PR materials to publicly recognize individuals and clubs that are growing/ Goal date/ Public Relations Committee and AG’s

Three-year goal 3:  Build our capability to have multi-club projects so that clubs and members have an opportunity to tackle larger issues and have a greater sense of accomplishment.

• Survey clubs for interest in multi-club projects and project ideas/ June 2009/ AG’s, Community Service committee, WCS/WMHH committee and Grants subcommittee

• Investigate other District’s multi-club projects, establish success criteria and a District support plan/ December 2009/ AG’s and WCS/WMHH committee

• Budget District Grants (starting July 2010) for multi-club projects under the Future Visions plan/ December 2009/ Bobby Davis and Foundation Chair

• Celebrate successful projects and target 4 new multi-club efforts per year by RY2012-13/ set schedule for growth in 2010/ AG’s and Governors

• Leverage RI’s PR materials to publicly recognize successful projects/ December 2010/ Public Relations Committee and AG’s

Three-year goal 4:  Embrace and improve TRF’s Future Vision so that clubs in our District have the financial support to increase activity levels.

• Develop a compelling scenario for 2010-11 TRF activity in our District, secure approval of at least 44 clubs and submit application to be a pilot district/ May 2009/ Carol LaRue and John Bailey

• Receive FV training, provide training to clubs and qualify clubs/ May 2010/ Bobby Davis and 2010-11 Foundation Chair

• Maintain 10% annual growth in Annual Fund Foundation contributions by advertising the benefits of FV so Rotarians in the District are encouraged to contribute to our success/ every year/ John Bailey and 2010-11 Foundation Chair

Three-year goal 5:  Implement an ongoing District planning process that responds to Club inputs

• Advertise, explain and validate this plan with Clubs and District Committees/ June 2009/ Carol LaRue and AG’s

• Develop an annual LRP review/revision process, use it in 2009-10 and codify in District Rules of Procedure/ June 2010/ Carol Foster and Jim Roxlo

• Encourage planning in clubs and committees to improve the inputs to the review/revision process, so that we have at least 10 inputs by 2010-11/ December 2010/ Bobby Davis and AG’s