What’s the Label Say?

"I don't care what you label me as long as you call me president." - Howard Dean

Business owner, nonprofit consultant, writer. . .these are some labels that could be used to define me. They don’t tell the whole story, though. Even if I add “mother, wife, volunteer. . .” or throw in “artist, singer, gardener. . .” it still doesn’t convey who I truly am.

Labels are limiting, but that’s what we’re asked to create when we articulate a mission statement for an organization. The foundation of your existence and operations, a mission statement identifies who you are, who you serve, and what you provide, in one to three precisely-worded sentences. It should be something easy to remember and convey, and all of your goals and tasks should relate back to it.

I always start a strategic planning process by examining the group’s mission statement. Sometimes it stands the test of time, sometimes it just needs to be tweaked a little bit, and sometimes we have to chuck it and start over from scratch. If you’re going to use strategic planning to “chart out a path to your future vision,” as I stated in my last post, taking a really good look at your mission statement needs to be your first step.

You may already have a well-defined mission statement and a good sense of who you are and what you do, especially if your organization has been around for awhile. Even so, take the time to make sure the statement is concise enough to share with others, and that your goals can all be tied to it.

Here’s one example from a group I’ve worked with recently: Williamson County Children’s Advocacy Center's mission is “to provide a safe place to report child abuse, reduce the emotional trauma, and extend professional services that protect the integrity of an investigation.” That’s pretty clear and understandable to anyone. Not only is it concise and to-the-point, it allows for all their goals to be fed off the statement.

Breaking it down into parts, we see that what they offer is:

• “a safe place to report child abuse,
• reduce the emotional trauma, and
• extend professional services that protect the integrity of an investigation.”

They can check to see that their goals are accomplishing their mission by asking questions of each one:

Do they provide a “safe place to report child abuse?” - Yes, their new building is designed and decorated to be a friendly house structure, rather than something cold and sterile (like a police station), and their staff and volunteers are trained in servicing children and non-offending family members.

Are they focused on “reducing the emotional trauma?” - Yes, interviews are videotaped to reduce the number of times a child has to describe his or her abuse to everyone involved in the intervention, investigation, and prosecution process.

What “professional services” are offered to “protect the integrity of an investigation?” - The Center only interviews an alleged victim with a referral from either law enforcement or child protective services. One or both of these agencies are present for the interview and watch the interview via closed circuit TV from an adjoining room. In addition to the interviews, they offer crisis intervention, victim advocacy, case tracking, referrals for assistance and other specialized services.

In this group’s case, they found the labels that help define their services.

As an organization considers taking on new projects or plans to change services, the mission statement should drive what is done. If the project or program doesn’t truly - and effectively - fulfill your mission, maybe you shouldn’t be doing it. Alternatively, even if a program isn’t self-sustaining and drains financial resources, if it is at the core of who you are, you need to find ways to keep it going. Or change who you say you are.

And that brings us to an organization’s Vision, which we’ll discuss in the next post.

Stay tuned. We’ll talk again soon. . .
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Focus On:

In the spirit of being “501 Focused,” this blog highlights a nonprofit or association with each posting.]

Our nonprofit focus this time is on the Williamson County Children’s Advocacy Center (WCCAC), a nonprofit organization that provides needed assistance to abused children, non-offending family members, and the professionals dedicated to the intervention, investigation, prosecution, and treatment options related to child abuse cases. This organization offers all services free of charge thanks to grant assistance, individual and business financial donations, community support, and gifts-in-kind, and recently launched a new interactive Website to better serve its constituents and relate its mission to the community.

Their mission is clear - both to them and their clients - and the labels they use to define themselves actually fit who they are. Find out more from their Website: http://www.wilcocac.org/.