Meetings begin for Institute’s next strategic plan

Communications & Marketing

Last week, senior Institute leaders took the first steps of a year-long journey to define Georgia Tech’s goals and priorities for the next quarter-century.

On Aug. 3, members of President Bud Peterson’s cabinet, college deans and leaders from the Georgia Tech Foundation, the Alumni Association and the Athletic Association met to begin the strategic planning process for the Institute.

During the next 12 months, faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends of Tech will collaborate on developing a plan to shape the Institute’s goals and resources to meet challenges facing the state, nation and the world in the year 2035, the 150th anniversary of Georgia Tech’s founding.

Prior to the initial workshop, attendees were asked to read “Outliers” by Malcolm Gladwell (author of trend-pattern book “The Tipping Point”) and to complete a detailed survey asking which topics should be included in the vision discussion.

The main goal of Monday’s meeting was to “seed” the planning process by introducing initial descriptions of potential themes that attendees feel should be addressed as part of the strategic plan. “There will invariably be other ideas and themes that come to the fore,” said Chester “Chet” Warzynski, executive director of the Office of Organizational Development (OOD) and member of the initial committee.

The next meeting is scheduled for Aug. 24, when the Steering Planning Committee will meet to review, revise and formalize the initial categories, refining them into more specific themes. The committee—a group of more than 70 faculty, staff, students, alumni and community members—will then break into subcommittees to help direct a larger, campus-wide discussion of these themes.

Following Peterson’s Investiture Ceremony at 11 a.m. on Sept. 3, the subcommittees will assist in leading a larger, campus-wide discussion during break-out sessions lasting most of the day. While some sessions will run concurrently, many will be offered at staggered times during the day, so any individual who is interested in participating in the planning process will be able to join planning teams to work together to develop a particular topic for inclusion in the final plan.

Public discourse and feedback on these themes will continue throughout the fall through facilitated discussions, with first draft reports completed by November. Team reports will be submitted early in 2010, with final drafts anticipated by May 2010. During the summer 2010 semester, the final draft will be made available to the Georgia Tech community and its stakeholders for review. In Fall 2010, the Institute’s strategic plan will be finalized and introduced.

According to Peterson, as a clearer picture of Tech’s next 25 years develops, the Institute’s course over the next 18 months, five years and 12 years will also be charted. “As a top-10 research university, Georgia Tech is poised to play an even greater role in our society,” Peterson said. “Our university-wide strategic plan will help us identify a path forward. The process will be inclusive and comprehensive, and we look forward to the opportunity to get feedback from the entire campus community for this important plan as part of the Investiture on Sept. 3.”

OOD will assist campus leaders and contributors from across the campus in developing the strategic plan, as well as provide information for faculty and staff from all levels on how they may contribute to the plan.

“My office is very excited about working with the subcommittees, unit leaders and staff from across the Institute,” Warzynski said. “The success of this planning process, as with any planning process, depends on the commitment and dedication of the participants—the faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends of Georgia Tech. Their engagement, ideas and commitment will make the plan a reality. The logic is straightforward: Engagement leads to understanding, to commitment, to action, and action to results.”

Resources from the workshops and information as the plan further develops will be available on a dedicated Web site. Frequently asked questions (FAQ), a timeline and forms for community feedback are available. Adobe PDF files of presentations from the different workshops are available for download and review.

For more information

www.gatech.edu/vision