The week of national staff planning has gone by but the excitement of the annual “Week of Excitement” lingers and so does the work to be accomplished. We worked right through January 12-16 with full staff meetings on Tuesday the 13th and during the morning the following day.
We did a gap analysis on the FY09 plan and found there are several things – particularly in light of the current economy – for which we need to develop some contingency plans so we can maintain high quality service to our members. On the upside, we’re gearing up for the release of the first set of Skill Connect Assessments in just a few weeks, and we’re receiving a lot of interest from the states.
Looking ahead to 2010 and 2011, staff picked up the recommendations of the board based on research from the field and our own SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) and has started development of objectives and business plans to move SkillsUSA ahead. Many of our objectives look toward building opportunities for our chapters to expand: community service; “green” and/or sustainability initiatives; building our national data bases and office technology; and, diversity/inclusion initiatives. We should have a strong pro-active plan for the board in March.
