2009.06.15 EDA Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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B R & E Select the date and time very carefully so it doesn't One-day Retreat Versus Two Short Meetings conflict with other community or church events For best results have the Task Force help pick the date. Be Why hold a mini-retreat rather than schedule two or three sure that the research will be ready before doing this. If you shorter meetings? In the past,some Task Forces have held can't get the Task Force together to set the date,use the two or three two-hour meetings to review the research Leadership Team to check out possibilities. results and to set priorities. While these meetings have Send written notices and reminders to the Task Force. resulted in reports in every case,there has been wide variation in the implementation of these projects. It appears Establish a telephone tree for calling the Task Force two that one of the major reasons for the differences in imple- or three days prior to the event mentation has been the degree to which the community This last suggestion seems like a lot of work,and it is. Yet, leaders had a shared understanding of the nature of the it's probably the most effective way to ensure attendance. If concerns. When a shared understanding existed among the you don't get good attendance at this stage,the rest of the leaders prior to the meetings,this format seems to have been effort is a waste of time. successful. When it didn't,it resulted in a report but often with little implementation. But doesn't the research report provide the data needed for What Kinds of Projects Work? the group to reach a consensus on the nature of the con- As the person organizing the Task Force retreat you may be cerns? Yes, it does. However,the three-meeting format asked, `What kinds of projects work?" What follows gives often resulted in a thirty to fifty percent variation of partici- pants in them. Thus,a shifting attendance can make it you some guidelines for answering the question. A 1993 impossible to reach a shared consensus. Given the breadth survey of local BR&E Visitation program Leadership Team of participation,trying to adjust the dates of the second and members in four states asked for information on what third meetings to meet the schedules of participants is very projects had been adopted and about the overall impacts of frustrating and often drags it out so much that it kills the program. Using statistical tests on the survey results, enthusiasm. The solution is to hold a one-day"retreat" Allanach identified five broad types of projects that are (four hours plus meal time)for the entire Task Force. strongly associated with positive program outcomes. Table 1 lists the types of projects that are associated with strong programs. The worst outcome is to have someone who did not attend the retreat be listed as an author of the recommendations and then to have that person publicly disavow the projects at Table 1: the community commencement meeting. BR&E Projects Associated with Tips for High Attendance at the Retreat. Successful Local BR&E Visitation Programs. Get a high response rate on the surveys If the response rate is low,Task Force members may feel Inform Politicians of Business Concerns guilty about not doing a better job. This guilt will discour- Start a Business/Education Partnership age some from participating in further stages of the pro- Create a Group to Work on Local Development Issues gram. While you want to put pressure on the Task Force Inform Businesses about Development Programs and volunteers to do their visits,be careful not to overdo Continue BR&E Visitation Program this and inadvertently harm the rest of your program. After the volunteer training,hold monthly Task Force meetings until the retreat It should be emphasized that Table 1 is not a recipe,only an Several meetings are necessary to deal with"red flag" indicator of what has tended to be successful for other issues. It's useful to have presentations and discussions on communities. It is not necessarily the case that something specific economic development trends,issues,or programs that tends to work for other communities will work for your during the retreat. However,never hold a meeting for the community. Each community has unique strengths and sake of holding one. needs. It is the job of the Task Force to consider the unique 12 -- Local Leadership Team Manual