All Staff Meeting Agenda 20120228

Date: 2012 February 28

9:45 Intros, overview of agenda, creating the container

10:15 Building Respect and Trust

Story-based exercise in Triads

Full Group mining of the triads for what creates respect and trust

How respect and trust relates to improving communication – the positive feedback spiral

11:15 Break

11:30 Improving Communications part 1

Framework: Roles in Decision-Making

Have table-sized groups (6-8ish) discuss approaching decisions and chart decision-making process.

12:15 Improving Communications part 2

Framework: Identify the goals of a communication system/tool, ask if it is effectively meeting those goals, if not, what is in the way?

Use State of the Onion as an example of a communications framework that's not ideally working. Figure out why it's not working, realign our priorities so we can all be dedicated to keeping it up to date and follow through with that, or commit to something else that will work better.

12:45 Lunch

1:30 Strategic Planning: Framework

Goals of Strategic Planning

In general

At Free Geek: What do you need your strategic plan to do for you?

Org Chart: Present draft. Frame current chart as incomplete work-in-progress. The real goal for organizational mapping is for everyone to know who to go to with questions/concerns, what their job is, and what decision-making authority and empowerment they carry. Clarifying this will be part of the strategic planning process.

Identify key questions/issues that need to be addressed through strategic planning Internal and external work/goals Might list some areas ahead of time to group these in, to help with framing.

Identifying key decision-making and communication issues that need to be addressed by the Strategic Planning process

List questions/uncertainties or concerns people have around policies and processes re: decision-making and communication (including confidentiality). Not necessarily solve these questions but commit ourselves to addressing them in the future.

3:00 20 minute Break

3:20 Strategic Planning part 2: Getting Started

Small groups (6-9) exploring scenarios and break out into small groups roughly categorized by department.

Report back: Each group presents it’s ideas (3 minutes each)

4:10 Brainstorm a Structure for the Strategic Planning Process

Roles and responsibilities

Decision-making and communication structures

Timeframe

4:45 Next Steps -- Guided discussion summarizing meeting outcomes and lingering issues

Identify immediate follow-up

To be done during the 2nd half of the In-Service

To be done by the coordinating committee to make sure the results of the retreat are communicated to all stakeholders in appropriate ways

Identify the medium-term next steps for moving the strategic planning process forward

Identify other next steps (may be related to things outside the strategic planning process)

5:30 Survey to collect feedback on Tasha's work, successes and criticisms, and goals for future all-staff meetings

5:45 Close