Purpose & Goals

This poster addresses how middle managers at a mid-sized research university library led a process of implementation and assessment of a Strategic Plan without internal expertise or experience. With the genesis of a new Strategic Plan in 2023, our university library entrusted middle managers with the pivotal role of spearheading a 3-year plan to advance four priority areas and eighteen goals. Faced with a lack of internal expertise, the selected chair of the Implementation Team (a peer middle manager) proactively consulted with industry experts in the field at similarly-sized organizations, engaged in leadership development training, and amassed resources and materials to shape a strategic pathway. This poster will unveil the organizational structure and methodologies used by the Implementation Team (iTeam) to take action in the creation of an Implementation and Assessment Plan. It will also shed light on future initiatives geared towards fostering continuous evaluation and assessment within the organization.

Design & Methodology

In crafting our library’s Implementation Plan, change management principles were employed with university library planning and business management techniques. Recognizing that there is a predictable dip in confidence as people confront a change, the first order of business was to ensure all iTeam members were well-versed in the Strategic Plan itself. Leveraging Appreciative (Assertive) Inquiry to “Design” and “Dream,” middle managers aligned departmental work to the guiding principles and goals of the Strategic Plan, leading them on a path with other library employees to openly explore possible avenues to advance our strategic goals. Open brainstorming sessions were used to generate and capture ideas from all library employees into a Padlet. To distill and synthesize the hundreds of ideas generated from these sessions, we employed Affinity diagramming, constructing four thematic clusters with multiple branches. These thematic groupings provided iTeam members with valuable framing to form group-generated and independent projects. These project ideas were presented to respective iTeam members and library administration as Logic Models for deliberation and selection. Simultaneously, a dedicated sub-group of iTeam members tackled the assessment elements associated with the Implementation Plan. SMART criteria were used to form a charter template which would be required for all selected projects, along with ongoing progress reports and milestone presentations throughout the three-year period. Once a representative list of projects was established for all 18 goals, a “Working Implementation Plan” emerged. At this juncture, the iTeam rapidly transitioned into working groups to create a project milestone dashboard, a shared calendar resource for the iTeam, communication scripts, an organizational schema for all project teams, and a presentation template. These resources were introduced to Project Sponsors, Project Managers, and affiliated Project Team members via four Strategic Implementation Workshops using active learning techniques and Universal Design principles.

Findings

Originally, the iTeam was charged with developing the Implementation Plan and overseeing the assessment process for the three-year term. However, many iTeam members are also serving as Project Sponsors and Project Managers due to their positional authority in the organization. A strategic decision was made to ensure accountability across all projects, irrespective of positional authority. Project Sponsors would spin off to form an Assessment Team (aTeam) dedicated to stewarding the assessment mechanisms of the Working Implementation Plan. Despite this evolution, the iTeam remains committed to ensuring there is a functional Working Implementation Plan where all 18 goals have associated projects to advance the priority areas for the organization. Additionally, the iTeam is responsible for acknowledging achievements and celebrating successes associated with the Implementation Plan annually. At the time of this submission, project teams are actively drafting project charters for the 21 projects represented in the Working Implementation Plan, demonstrating an active commitment to the established workflows of the Assessment Plan.

Action & Impact

The Assessment (aTeam) plays a pivotal role in stewarding the standardized components and workflow of the Assessment Plan. As a collective, they serve as an accountability measure for the Implementation Plan itself, and, independently, an accountability measure for each project presented in the plan. As a conglomerate of Project Sponsors, with many holding dual titles as library administrators, they are best positioned to provide the necessary resources and support for the projects represented in the Implementation Plan. As projects unfold, Project Sponsors play a key role in prompting progress reports bi-monthly to Project Managers. This regular cadence serves as a visible accountability measure for the project work and positions Project Sponsors as crucial support figures—ready to address issues as they arise and provide necessary resources to advance the project. Project charters must include milestones that indicate key phases of the project. At the completion of a milestone, a presentation is prompted by the Project Sponsor to the Project Manager and other Project Team members. These presentations will be delivered to all library employees at monthly meetings using a provided template to address how the completion of the work to date is advancing the goals and priorities of the Implementation Plan and how they are measuring success, as each project must have distinctive success criteria. All Project Sponsors and Project Managers were required to attend one of the Strategic Implementation Workshops delivered by iTeam members to acquaint them with the project charter template and standardized functions to assess the progressions of the Implementation Plan. Project charters ensure that each project team is oriented to work that is specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART), and a rubric was created to aid Project Managers in forming these materials and Project Sponsors to indicate the degree of feedback needed, when applicable.

Practical Implications & Value

Our journey to identify and implement 21 projects offers valuable insights for others navigating Strategic Plan Implementation and Assessment. Emphasizing collaboration, we engaged middle managers and library employees in an inclusive process to generate potential pathways for our Strategic Plan. Affinity Mapping helped organize and draw relationships between a multitude of ideas into thematic clusters, which served as inputs in Logic Models. Logic Models were vital in communicating concepts that could advance the goals of the Strategic Plan to both iTeam members and library administration. This approach aided the path of inquiry and selection of the 21 projects in the Implementation Plan. To create accountability, transparent communication, and continuity for these projects, an Assessment Team was established to steward the standardized processes and workflow for projects represented in the Implementation Plan. With varying levels of experience with project management, we conducted workshops to equip Project Sponsors and Project Managers with materials to ease the cognitive and functional load for all Project Teams to create project charters. Attendees were also given an overview of the standardized techniques of Progress Reports and presentations for effective communication with Project Sponsors and all library employees. Our process highlights the importance of collaboration, iteration, and selecting engagement tools to arrive at a Strategic Implementation and Assessment Plan. Those embarking on similar endeavors can glean insights from our experience to capture diverse perspectives and create an assessment plan that measures the progressions of implementation as distinct from individual project metrics. Not all libraries have positions dedicated to strategic planning, implementation, or assessment. Our experience offers a perspective and approach for mid to large-sized organizations to engage in these efforts in a similar fashion with a collective who holds positional power in the organization but may not have experience with strategic planning or assessment.