SBDC Staff Training 5/17/16 - 1 - Closing the Loop: Accreditation, Technology & the Strategic Plan Vision is a destination, a point on which we all focus; strategy is a route, an adaptable path to get us where we want to go. ~Simon Sinek Creative without strategy is called 'art.' Creative with strategy is called 'advertising.' ~Jef I. Richards People should not be unfamiliar with strategy, those who understand it will survive, those who do not will perish. ~Sun Tzu The NY SBDC has the vision, we know the strategy, we live the plan together. ~Jim King A goal without a plan is just a wish. ~? A few quotes to start our discussion today
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SBDC Staff Training 5/17/16 - 1 -
Closing the Loop: Accreditation, Technology & the Strategic Plan
Vision is a destination, a point on which we all focus; strategy is a route, an adaptable path to get us where we want to go.
~Simon Sinek
Creative without strategy is called 'art.' Creative with strategy is called 'advertising.'
~Jef I. Richards
People should not be unfamiliar with strategy, those who understand it will survive, those who do not will perish.
~Sun Tzu
The NY SBDC has the vision, we know the strategy, we live the plan together.
~Jim King
A goal without a plan is just a wish. ~?
A few quotes to start our discussion today
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Yes, Virginia, there is a plan!!
Yes, Virginia, there is a plan.
And, it’s important that we all know, understand and work daily to
reach our personal and programmatic objectives, to achieve the
mission, to advance the vision.
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In its most brief, a key NY SBDC strategy is to be ‘the go-to network for
small business’;
to be the source of small business and technology solutions,
viable tools, skills and applicable information, for in their usage is
our relevance;
to provide the wisdom, vision and Socratic interaction that drive
clients to success, for in their success is our accomplishment;
to drive clients to venture more smartly prepared, for in their
venture is our achievement, for in their actualization is our
purpose.;
to shape and deliver sponsor, host and stakeholder efforts, for in
their goals are our resources.
In this year’s accreditation we are adding the T, Technology. Often we
ask ‘what is Technology’? Hard to define, perhaps, but we know it when
we see it.
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Put simply, technology is the application of generally scientific
knowledge for practical purpose; the application of new learning to
advancements in product, process or function; the discovery of new
materials, new compounds, new chemistries; the synthesis of
innovation, opportunity and commercialization.
We, the NY SBDC with our clients and stakeholders, often find ourselves
at the forefront of technology. At that event horizon from which a new,
changed future is in sight. From Helios in the Mohawk Valley with
systems that can literally see through walls, to Oxyvita in Kingston with
life-saving artificial human blood, SBDC clients are advancing the state
of the art, creating new unthought-of products representing quantum,
life altering change in their industries, small business driving big
change. And, the NY SBDC is facilitating their journey, quite the honor,
quite the responsibility.
These are not simple, formulaic clients for SBDC; no ordinary business
plan will suffice here. We need to match their zeal, their passion for
exploration, their push beyond conventional boundaries in how we
provide assistance, in the goals we set, in the outcomes we expect; for
in those outcomes lies our advancement, our accomplishment.
Luckily, we have advanced our SBDC and stand ready to meet these
challenges with new FAST programming, new SBIR initiatives, new
approaches to STTR, and the most exciting, our innovative Accelerator
Team which brings intensive, broad based, leading edge skills from our
best and brightest to direct service to these high potential clients.
As we pursue Technology accreditation, we formalize the efforts we
have made for years, integrating new services and skills into our
systems of business assistance; learning from the successes, challenges
and, yes, even occasional failures, advancing our vision of how to best
support client technological advancement through our application of
SBDC Staff Training 5/17/16 - 5 -
learning to our own products and processes, advancing and
implementing NY SBDC technology.
Demonstrating how we embed technology in virtually every aspect of
the NY SBDC; how we avoid the isolation of programmatic silos to
maximize client and staff access, utility and efficiency across the entire
network; how we distribute intellectual capital with effective
management, clear purpose and specific goals, and clearly expressing
commitment to the technology small businesses that advance us all.
Today we’ll explore how each of us connects to the strategic plan, the
ways in which each of us plays a pivotal role in accomplishing the plan,
the ways in which our personal strategic plan dovetails with the SBDC.
In short, how we close the loop firmly connecting each of us, small
business needs, technological advancements in small business and the
NY SBDC strategic plan.
Let’s look at some tools and techniques we can use to connect with the
plan, with advancing the mission, with achieving the vision.
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Divergent thinking, one way to approach our personal and program
plans, is the conscious choice to think differently, to think ahead, to
think completely, to know what advances us, and, to know what slows
us; to not accept the ‘pat’ answers, to think boldly
Our goal in divergent thinking is to generate many different ideas,
different approaches, different avenues; to break opportunities and
challenges into their component parts with a thorough understanding
and knowledge of each, to see the connections, the interrelationships.
Only then can we embark on convergent thinking, applying knowledge,
learning, research, and, innovative thought.
To connecting the elements of action, to reaching that nexus of
knowledge, skills and tools generating and deploying creative strategies
and solutions for clients that are meaningful, achievable, functional and
sustainable;
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to being the go-to network for small business, to being proactive
leaders in economic development, to providing the advisement,
education, research and advocacy essential to and making a difference
for NY’s small businesses.
REALITY?
Sounds nice, but how do we make it real, how do we actualize a plan.
As noted, a goal without a plan is just a wish. It’s like science fiction, an
idea or fantasy in its purest sense; while science reality has a budget,
and, a strategy.
We must find ways to move from idea to action, from action to
accomplishment, and, from accomplishment to achievement, from
aspiration to client hero;
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to being that differentiating force gently yet effectively moving clients
from their vision to achievement, from wishful thinker to employer,
from hopeful visionary to commercial success.
As important as what we are trying to achieve is how we will achieve it;
how we define the path forward, the steps and dependencies essential
to success.
And, importantly, how will we know we have arrived, how will we
measure accomplishment, what are the metrics, how will we set the
bar, how will we consistently reset the bar to assure we continue to
advance, continue to grow, continue to challenge ourselves, our
centers, our program.
Our ability to do this, to lead with intellect and passion, to impart
learning and application, to deliver meaningful solutions connected by
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you, each and every Advisor, making it usable information, pushing past
the ‘data dump’ to knowledge born of learning and awareness, in short,
creating the highest quality advisement connected to the highest
quality outcomes – this is our strategic plan and these are the things
that set the NY SBDC apart.
BEING APART
Apart from the masses, apart from competitive programs, apart in our
ability to motivate positive change and difference, apart in achieving
our vision to bring world class expertise to small business, apart in our
ability to bring solutions to our clients, apart in our ability to be ‘the
brightest bulb in the array’.
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CONNECTIONS
Underlying our collective NY SBDC Strategic Plan is your Personal
Strategic Plan. Everyone of us needs to connect with, to make ourselves
a key part of, to engage with and express our embracing of – Achieving
the Mission, and Advancing the Vision of the NY SBDC, our SBDC.
appreciating the inextricable linkage between and among all of us,
connected by our strategic plan;
understanding that without us, individually and collectively, our
program goes nowhere;
rather with each of us, informed by, and connected through, the
strategic plan can, and do, go anywhere;
we can, and do, achieve the great and the small with our clients.
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FIRST CHOICE
Our Vision - The NY SBDC brings world class business expertise to the
SME community.
Our Mission - The NY SBDC provides customized solutions through
advisement, education, research and advocacy for Entrepreneurs,
Innovators and the Small & Medium Enterprise community.
NY SBDC – the ‘go to’ network for small business, the first choice, for
small business, for clients, for stakeholders
The Strategic Plan codifies how we implement the mission of the NY
SBDC in support of small businesses and entrepreneurs; how we
measure, adapt and learn; how the truest measure of program
achievement is client outcome as it best reflects the nature, quality and
significance of our work. And, outcomes most clearly drive the values
we bring to our communities, to NY’s local, regional, and statewide
economies.
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CHOICE & ALIGNMENT
While there is commonality of purpose, there is great variety of
methodology among SBDCs and our stakeholders.
The plan aligns our daily work with the priorities, needs and
objectives of clients, stakeholders, hosts and each of us
individually; and,
The plan serves also to align our program with the strategic plans
of SUNY, CUNY, our private higher education partners, the ASBDC,
SBA and national agendas.
It informs, educates and helps us all to more fully understand the ‘Why’
of what we do, connecting purpose to action, connection action to
outcome measurement, to define the brush, colors and paints that
work best for clients, the program, our hosts, our stakeholders, and
ourselves; define what the program does for you, it will inform your fit
with and connection to the plan.
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How do you express your SBDC artist, how do you understand and
express professional priorities in the context of your work, your peers,
your SBDC, your clients; how do you stay in touch with the SBDC world
around you?
The NY SBDC delivers innovative, practical and realistic advisement
services to meet the evolving needs of small business. We integrate
innovation, leadership and technology across the continuum of service
delivery; in how we, as a program, utilize and apply technology in
counseling, research and training delivery.
From the web to social media, from e-counseling to webinars, from
DVD publication to e-libraries the NY SBDC embraces the use of
technology to enhance efficiency, to do more (often with less) and,
notably, to keep pace with clients, their challenges and their
opportunities;
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How do you innovate yourself, your skills, your techniques, your
knowledge?
In essence, how do you innovate your value to your clients, to the
program, to your host campus, to yourself?
Each of us should explore ways in which we update, modify and
enhance our advisement and direct work with clients through hard and
soft technology. Hard technologies are the computers, software, and
systems we use; soft technologies are the tactics, skills and learning,
infused by experiential knowledge, that form the basis of what we
deliver to clients.
Do you share techniques or tools with the network via the listserve or
share skills and ideas through webinars, seminars or workshops, in your
center or at staff training, have you researched a topic of interest and
presented a workbook, what are the ways in which you give of yourself
to those around you?
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We consistently look to set the SBDC apart, to display positive
differentiation, to be that important safe harbor in the client storm; to
be the beacon of small business assistance that saves many from
foundering on the shoals of failure.
The NY SBDC consistently communicates our program vision, mission,
products, services and achievements to clients – current and potential –
to stakeholders, to sponsors, to funders, to partners.
What are the ways in which you express these concepts …to clients …to
the campus …to SBA …to your peers?
What are the ways in which you support, respect and honor your
coworkers, your campus; how do you live the SBDC?
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Make no mistake, the NY SBDC has a brand and it is essential to our
survival; yes, we’re part of the national network, but no we are not
absorbed or subsumed by it. We are the NY SBDC, leaders within our
communities, our state and our national program.
We build our brand on the quality and effectiveness of SBDC services as
reflected by the compelling stories of those we assist, measured by
what they accomplish and reinforced through ongoing, innovative
communication.
What are some of the ways in which you work locally and regionally to
advance the perception, awareness and value of the SBDC brand;
how have you helped to form relationships with referring entities,
chambers, banks, rotary, perhaps the local PTA?
how do you stay connected to, and aware of, what’s happening
locally, regionally, nationally;
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how do you maintain awareness and appreciation for your region,
for local opportunities, local challenges, local happenings?
how do you spot trends that can affect or impact your clients or
your region, and, what do you do with that knowledge?
Leadership, Professional Development and Intellectual Capital -The NY
SBDC embraces the commitment of all staff to continuous learning and
skills development, and, to sharing the intellectual capital and skills of
all in support of each individual client, services and program priorities.
What activities do you currently – or are planning to – undertake to
stake out a leadership position; to demonstrate the qualities of vision,
commitment and understanding that set you apart in your work.
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How have you connected your interests with your skills, how have you
integrated your professional life, have you settled an internal locus
enabling growth through solid foundation; have you balanced risk and
reward to demonstrate why clients should listen to you?
How do you inspire action… convey optimism… facilitate