WHAT BENEFITS, FOR WHOM, AT WHAT
Robin Scheu *
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Focus
on results first.
Organizations exist to cause something to be
different. What’s your difference? What is your organization for? What should result from organizational
activity? What does it produce?
1. Brainstorm
the following question:
What
is our organization for? Why do we exist?
(Get
a list of a dozen or more, until ideas stop coming – no judgment here!)
2. Critique
the list:
Eliminate words
that describe good intentions or effort rather than results (support, assist, advocate). These can
be fulfilled while having absolutely no effect on consumers. Your
organization does not exist to try.
Eliminate means of
all types from the list (programs and services, check out verbs – “teaching children to read” is means,
“children can read” is ends)
Eliminate or
clarify statements that are ambiguous as to whether they are means or ends – is
education a means or and end? Are jobs or community support means or ends? In other words, are the results or
activities to achieve results?
3. Rewrite
the list.
4. Create
a statement that encloses these “lower-level” themes – you may have identified
the “for whom” or recipients at the same time, but check to see if they are the
ones you want.
5. What
are the results with these people worth? In monetary terms, opportunity cost
(what is given up as a result) or what is their importance relative to each
other? What are their relative
priorities?
6. Review
your statement from #4. It’s like a
mission statement, but should be characterized as follows:
·
Brief, but including all 3 ends
components
·
Doable, not merely a wish or
unattainable goal
·
Clear, but not having the burden of
being snappy, like a slogan
·
Expansive enough to embrace the
fullness of our intent
·
Narrow enough to distinguish your
organization from the larger world
7. Ask
yourself if your Board would be willing to accept any reasonable interpretation
the Superintendent choose to give the
words of the statement in #4. If yes,
you need say no more about ends. If no,
the Board must go to the next level of detail and specificity. And so on…
8. Be
sure to have received sufficient input from a variety of sources (and
especially owners) before making any “final” decisions. Who do you need to talk
to or meet with?
Ends policies describe the effect an
organization seeks to have on the world outside itself.
What
benefits, for whom, at what cost?
Or:
Ends policies do not describe activities, but
rather they prescribe results, recipients, and costs.
Ends policies describe the “there.”
Strategic plans are usually Means - how to
get from “here” to “there”
The horizon for Ends policies is over the
next several years (or longer) – not the next month or year.
Be watchful of Means masquerading as Ends!
Means are the “how” and Ends are the “what”
Means policies are internally focused and
most of the information that is required for their formulation is available
inside the board or staff organization.
Ends Policies deal directly with
issues of the world outside the board and the operating organization. Your board will be making hard choices about
who will and who will not benefit from your organization and in what ways. Ends
are about impact, and there are no right answers.
Process:
Take
each statement about why we exist/what are we here for and check to see if it
addresses any or all of results, recipients, or costs. Each ends statement must address at least one
of these in order to be an Ends policy. Taken together, these statements will
constitute your Ends Policies that address all 3 questions (what benefits, for
whom, at what cost).
Examples:
|
Offer quality programs and services |
Entirely Means |
|
Support parents of mentally ill people |
Recipients
are defined but no results; support is Means |
|
Help people reach their potential |
That people reach their Potential is a
Result; “Helping” is a Means |
|
Advocate for the mentally ill |
Recipients
are defined, but no results, ‘advocate’ is Means |
|
Make life enjoyable for Low-functioning people |
Very close – change to “Life is
enjoyable….” Then results and recipients are defined |
|
Responsible use of resources |
Entirely
Means |
|
Community support |
Ambiguous – could be Ends or Means |
|
Assist families in solving problems |
Means if
focus is assisting; if “Families solve problems,” then a result and recipient
are defined |