It's the new year, and while many people are setting goals and resolutions in how they want to PERSONALLY come out of this year--it can also be a great time to pause and reflect on the goals of your student group as well. At MASC/MAHS, we think that these two processes go hand-in-hand, that students who are consistently striving to better themselves, will in turn continue to make their organizations, schools, communities, and world better places.
It doesn't matter if you have dedicated time in the day to teach leadership curriculum, concepts like this should be built into the management of all student leadership activities. MASC/MAHS exists to help activity advisers do just this. When a corporation or non-profit begins their fiscal year, often times they are working off of a "strategic plan" that was put into place for both the short and long-term by stakeholders. Why not use a tool that many real-world leaders have proven successful to help grow our students and leadership organizations?
Many advisers, and some students may be familiar with the acronym S.W.O.T. This model, used worldwide in many arenas shows that there are four major concepts that organizations should have in mind to make their plan of action for the future. By having the discussion and brainstorming with your group's stakeholders, you are taking part in a SWOT analysis.
The photo at right shows a basic grid that you can use to complete a SWOT analysis. The four concepts that you will discuss during this process are:
-Strengths--What is done well? What are the wins that you want to celebrate and use to keep you moving forward? Which behaviors do you want to continue?
-Weaknesses--Which things are NOT done well? Has the ball truly been dropped? If so, when and which processes caused this? Are there things that need to be looked at and re-evaluated?
-Opportunities--Where is the greatest area of growth available? Are there things that are NOT being capitalized on? Which things are falling off the table that could be beneficial?
-Threats--What will prevent success? What obstacles pose the greatest opportunity for loss?
A SWOT analysis of your organization will push your group to look at processes from a 360 degree approach to looking at the state of affairs. Rather than just looking at good and bad, you are looking at the deeper WHY are things good or bad. Instead of simply setting goals and being content with reaching (or not reaching them) you can status at ANY point to see where the best road to success will lead.
Not only does this analysis yield results for your student groups, it also poses potential to help INDIVIDUALS grow. In fact, some of the best SWOT analysis sessions often start with personal reflection on the four concepts before moving onto those of the group. This is a prime opportunity to teach students not only how to learn academically, but also to strive to be a lifelong learner about one of the largest subjects any of us study--ourselves.
We've put together a two-page resource that you can use to bring a SWOT analysis to your group. The first page allows students (or other educators) the opportunity to introduce to concepts to their own lives, and the second page brings a collaboration of where the group can contribute concepts relating to the organization.
Click here to download the template
A great SWOT analysis will lead to exceptional SMART goals, but more on that in a future resource post!
