Nov. 22, 2010

 

There has been much discussion in the world of higher education regarding strategic planning. While a vast number of colleges and universities have initiated the process institutionally, I sense that isn’t always the case within the realm of athletic administration. I find it perplexing that as athletic administrators we oversee units (sports) that spend a multitude of their energy on strategic planning and implementation while as managers we often fail to lead our departments by the same principles. To that point I would suggest we pay particular attention to the saying: planning without action is futile, action without planning is fatal.

Strategic planning is not a new activity and numerous illustrative examples can be found throughout history: the Mesopotamians planned, the ancient Greeks strategized, the ancient Egyptians deliberated. Athletically, the mission on the field is clear; the singular, concise goal is to win. It is in the execution of the strategic plan that we encounter the complexity. Constructing the mission and goal of a strategic plan is relatively straightforward in comparison to designing the specific action plan to follow through on the implementation. A thorough strategic plan must be partnered with an equally comprehensive implementation strategy in order to be advantageous for an organization. The advisory firm Ernst and Young captures the essence of this thought with their tagline “Thought to Finish”.

There are a number of factors to consider when developing strategy, including expense. Often it involves the expense of outside consultants in addition to the opportunity cost of staff time. Despite the expense, however, I believe the cost of operating without a well developed strategic plan can be significantly costlier, particularly if you do not address liability management, revenue enhancement, cost containment, and performance maximization in a systematic way. To wit given today’s somewhat dire economic environment strategic planning is critical to ensuring not only the basic health and stability of our enterprise but also to its economic expansion. Strategic thinking is a must and extensive and on-going planning a minimum requirement as competition for funding further accelerates. Most successful companies recognize the importance of such a plan. Consider GE, which will spend roughly $5 billion this year alone in research and development. While the size of GE far outreaches that of our organizations, its commitment to bringing new products to the market is certainly something those of us in the athletics industry should emulate. We should seek to turn the planning process into a real business advantage à la General Electric.

Aside from the direct costs and staff time, some of the aversion to the strategic planning process lies in the misconception that this is yet another meaningless item to check off an often extensive to-do list. Strategic planning at its worst can be used simply to justify certain projects or dissolve into a shallow endeavor that results in little more than sanctimonious lip service. Another challenge of strategic planning stems from the fact that new leaders typically prefer to conduct their own plans and are often reluctant to embrace the plans and goals of a previous administrator, in part or in whole. This is often prevalent in today’s political environment of finger pointing and pushing blame for shortcomings onto former regimes. Additionally, it is our human tendency to follow the path of least resistance and upsetting the status quo often seems like a daunting task. These critiques all stem from a failure to understand the function and scope of a well researched strategic plan.

That said some of the benefits to strategic planning are:

• Viewing issues in the context of overall institutional goals to systematically solve organizational and business problems.
• Clearly defining departmental and organizational mission and purpose.
• Establishing realistic goals and objectives to fulfill the organizational mission.
• Establishing reasonable and measurable timelines for implementing solutions to organizational problems.
• Increasing system efficiency and organizational effectiveness within the department.
• Defining organizational resources necessary to executing strategic plan.
• Providing a 5 to 10 year financial forecast (particularly important for those of us who have been or will be involved in major bond financing).
• Creates buy-in for a broad range of constituency.
• Provides a quantitative means to constantly measure performance to strategy. 

At Newberry College we are in the first phase of implementing a strategic plan within the department of athletics. Our plan addresses the following areas:

1. Academic Excellence – the academic and personal development of student-athletes and are they being prepared to become productive citizens of tomorrow.
2. Competitive Success – ensuring that student-athletes and programs compete at the highest level.
3. Integrity of Program – liability management, compliance, gender equity and Title IV, diversity, fiscal management, administration and technology.
4. Facilities – a thorough audit of current facilities, deferred maintenance, and future facility needs.
5. External Affairs – marketing, branding, development, media relations, and community/town gown relations, etc.
6. Communication, Tracking, and Dashboard Development – a consistent format for communicating status and for quantifying results.

Clearly, there are numerous facets to collegiate athletics administration. However, the time and energy dedicated to developing and implementing a strategic plan are well worth it. After all, operating without a well structured plan is like running a race with blinders on: you may run quickly towards the finish line, but you are just as likely to run straight into a wall before you get there.

 

About Brad Edwards:

Brad Edwards was most recently promoted to senior vice president for institutional advancement and intercollegiate athletics. He assumes primary day-to-day responsibility not only for intercollegiate athletics but also of the College's functions for development and major gifts, marketing, branding, communications, alumni relations, and Board of Visitors. Brad joined Newberry College as Director of Athletics on May 18, 2009.

Prior to coming to Newberry, he served as vice president of IMI Resort Holdings, Inc., after seven years as senior associate athletic director / CFO at the University of South Carolina.

Edwards, who played free safety for the Gamecocks and played in the National Football League for nine seasons, was responsible for the recruiting, hiring and training of sales executives and sales directors for IMI's resort properties across North America, Latin America and the Caribbean. He also assisted with the IMI PGA Tour Player program and was responsible for the construction of IMI's New York City office.

In his time at South Carolina, he served as the athletic department's chief financial officer and was responsible for the day-to-day oversight and management of all business functions. He oversaw the department's budget, business operations for Williams Brice Stadium, the Colonial Center and Sarge Frye Field, new facility design, development, and construction, all venue concessions and food service, department advertising and multimedia rights, coordination of bowl travel, and many other operational aspects of the department. He also assisted in securing major financial gifts and executive suite licenses.

He joined the South Carolina athletic department as assistant athletic director for development in July 1999 and was named associate athletic director in October 2001. He transitioned to senior associate athletic director in July 2003.

Edwards played free safety in the NFL for nine seasons after being drafted in the second round of the 1988 draft by the Minnesota Vikings. He also played with the Washington Redskins and Atlanta Falcons and was a starter and defensive co-captain with the Redskins' Super Bowl XXVI championship team.

Edwards is married to the former Marlana Brown. The couple married in April 2010.