In the last 5 posts, we have covered a number of components that help you answer, and communicate your answer, to Question Zero “What, exactly, are we trying to accomplish?”:
- Choosing the type of story you are trying to tell
- Ensuring you are speaking the right language for your audience
- Making sure you are measuring things that support your mission, not just capturing your activities
- Checking that you are balancing your measures across time and space
As you can see from these items and the previous posts, there is no simple answer to the “perfect” measures that illustrate your answer to Question Zero and your progress to achieving that goal. However, this process and series of questions can help you get there and ensure you are measuring the “right” things – things that will help you better manage your organization, achieve your goals, communicate your impact to your audience and ultimately make the change you are driving for.
So now, over to you! When I’m doing this presentation in person, I usually split people into groups and we do a short run through this process. I would encourage you to try this on your own. In “real life”, this process needs to include representation from your board, your staff, your volunteers, your clients and your ED. As an exercise though, try this:
- Choose a project to focus on
- Decide if you are going to:
- Communicate
- Demonstrate
- Engage
- Decide on your audience
- Customers and potential customer
- Volunteers
- Potential donors
- Internal managers and staff
- Board of directors
- Check for balance
- Time and space
- Financial, mission, organization
- Find 3 things to measure that support your answer to Question Zero
I would love to hear your thoughts and your answers to this question either by email or commenting here.
Constructive Public Engagement 