- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
We are currently updating our UC ANR Strategic Vision. We kicked-off the conversation at the April 2023 UC ANR Statewide Conference, and that then informed the development of the strategic visioning survey that is currently open.
While we have received responses from across our employee and external stakeholder groups, overall response rates are still lower than desired. The strategic visioning process will outline UC ANR's areas of focus and will influence allocation of resources for the next 15 years so it's critical that everyone's voice is represented.
Hoping to appeal to healthy competition, we especially need to hear from those in the groups listed below that currently have lower response rates.
- Campus-based colleagues, especially those of you at UC Berkeley and UC Davis (nice job so far from UC Riverside and UC Merced)
- County- & REC-based colleagues (kudos to statewide program/institute staff and statewide administrative staff for higher response rates so far)
- All program areas (but a shout out to those working in Healthy Families and Communities who are leading in response rate)
If you haven't yet responded, please be sure to find the Aug. 21 email from noreply@ucsd.edu and respond to the survey by Sept. 8. The survey takes about 15minutes to complete.
On Aug. 21, you received an email from our Vice President Humiston inviting you to participate in the UC ANR Strategic Vision Input Survey with a unique survey link just for you. On Aug. 28, reminders were sent to those who had not yet submitted a response.
All responses are confidential, and will be aggregated, analyzed, and provided to the strategic visioning committee to develop the Strategic Vision 2024.
Every Tuesday during the month of August, UC ANR leaders will be hosting two-hour online meetings to share their draft 5-year goals and get your input into the ANR Strategic Plan Refresh 2020-2025.
Teams of goal owners will review challenges we face, briefly share accomplishments to date, and present draft strategies for the future. They want to hear what you think may be missing and your ideas on how to shape the future of ANR. There will be breakout groups to provide the opportunity for you to talk with colleagues and submit your ideas to inform the final ANR strategic plan.
See the table below with specific dates for certain topics and draft goals – and sign up!
All UC ANR staff and academics – including campus-based AES faculty and CE specialists – are invited.
Register at http://ucanr.edu/survey/survey.cfm?surveynumber=31683.
Sessions are limited to 1,000 people per the Zoom meeting license. If you have constraints joining by Zoom, please talk to your supervisor and strategize how the local office/REC can help accommodate you.
Date/ Time |
Topic |
Presenters |
|||
Aug. 4 10 a.m. – 12 noon |
Increasing Program Resources · Goal 9: Generate Revenue and Optimize Resource Deployment · Goal 10: Expand and Diversify Fund Development · Goal 11: Improve Efficiency and Strengthen Infrastructure · Goal 12: Strengthen Communication and Advocacy
|
Tu Tran, Associate Vice President - Business Operations Lorna Krkich, Development Services Executive Director Linda Forbes, Strategic Communications Director Anne Megaro, Government and Community Relations Director |
|||
Aug. 11 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. |
Strengthening Partnerships · Goal 1: Strengthen Research and Extension Partnerships · Goal 3: Build Sustainable Economies for Working Landscapes · Goal 4: Scale-up the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Program
|
Wendy Powers, Associate Vice President - Programs Glenda Humiston, Vice President Gabe Youtsey, Chief Innovation Officer |
|||
Aug. 18 10 a.m. – |
Fostering a Positive Work Environment · Goal 6: Improve Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion · Goal 7: Recruit, Develop and Retain People · Goal 8: Support Volunteerism
|
John Fox, Executive Director Human Resources Missy Gable, UC Master Gardener Statewide Program Director Gemma Miner, Academic Coordinator for Volunteer Engagement Bethanie Brown, Director, Human Resources |
|||
Aug. 25 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. |
Expanding Virtual Reach · Goal 2: Increase UC ANR's Virtual Reach · Goal 5: Modernize Digital Information Delivery System |
Mark Bell, Vice Provost of Strategic Initiatives and Statewide Programs Linda Forbes, Director of Strategic Communications |
Condition changes are those long-term outcomes of our work that are the evidence of how our work makes a difference. Condition changes are at a level higher than that of the personal benefit our clientele receive as a result of direct participation in our programs. Rather, the condition change represents environmental, health, or economic benefits at a societal level (e.g. improved water quality, improved nutrition and health, increased market opportunities, etc.).
How you can provide feedback
Program Team Leaders, Statewide Program Directors, Institute Directors and Strategic Initiative Leaders have worked together to develop the current list of condition changes. They will be reaching out to you to solicit your input. I would ask that you share your thoughts with those who reach out to you and they will collate all feedback they receive and provide it back through a Collaborative Tools site so that the development team can see the feedback as it is received. In early October, we will assemble all of the feedback and make decisions how to move forward.
Why this is important to you?
The final list of condition changes will be coded into the new Project Board (UC ANR program information system that will be replacing DANRS-X and integrated with the merit and promotion process for UC ANR academics. We will be asking academics to assign a percentage of time you spend working towards the condition changes. This will replace assigning your FTE to the federal Knowledge Areas. In addition, you will be tagging condition changes to your work when you write your outcome/impact narratives. You will be able to tag multiple condition changes to a single narrative provided you have quantitative evidence of the effected condition change.
How will this information be used?
The condition changes will be used in multiple ways. First, the condition changes and aggregated effort associated with each condition change will be used to determine if we have sufficient capacity working towards the changes needed to achieve our 2025 Strategic Vision. This will help guide future investments by UC ANR and help you, as an individual, identify priorities for directing your own effort. Second, the outcome/impact narratives that are tagged to specific condition changes will provide us the evidence needed to share all of your good work with supporters. The condition changes will serve as a sorting mechanism for the outcomes/impact narratives. The narratives themselves provide quantitative evidence of your outcomes including how they contribute to condition change indicators, as well as frame the work (what was done, where, why, who were the partners, etc.). Because of the intended uses of the information, it is important that we have a complete set of condition changes that represent the work we need to do to achieve our vision.
Why the rush?
The new Project Board is on track for roll out in March. In order to have the condition changes be part of Project Board and not a separate, additional reporting request, we need to have them coded in the system. The development team has indicated that they need the information in early October. Therefore, we are requesting that all Program Team Leaders provide their collective feedback (1 document per Program Team) by October 1. We will review the feedback, draw up a revised list of condition changes, and have that turned around to the Project Board team quickly.
What happens after the feedback is provided?
We will continue to talk about condition changes and condition change indicators throughout the fall and into spring. We are planning to offer training in the winter and spring to address condition changes, condition change indicators and how they tie to Public Value Statements that are currently in draft form. The Public Value Statements will be reviewed and modified yet this fall. If you have interest in being part of a small-ish group that will review and revise the Public Value Statements, please let me know via email. Note that condition change indicators and public value statements will not be part of the reporting in Project Board or any other form; only condition changes will be reported against in Project Board.
Tips to consider
- Condition changes must be measurable; condition change indicators are the metrics used to quantify the magnitude of change in a condition
- Condition changes should not be audience-specific but rather apply to any/all of our audiences as appropriate
- While I am an incurable ‘lumper' it is best to be a ‘splitter' when it comes to condition changes because it provides greater clarity as to what the evidence that support change really is and will allow for improved aggregation of your impact stories making it easier to share your work with others (easier to find, easier to understand and convey appropriately).
- Having more, rather than fewer, condition changes in Project Board will not cause you to have to report the same thing in multiple locations – the coding is planned to provide opportunity to use multiple tags for the same report.
A generic logic model used for reporting to USDA National Institute for Food and Agriculture can be viewed at http://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/files/270919.pdf.
Regards,
Wendy Powers
Associate Vice President
Background
As part of the current effort to align our work such that we are best positioned to achieve the 2025 Strategic Vision, a group of UC ANR academics have drafted condition changes that are now in need of your review and feedback.
Condition changes are those long-term outcomes of our work that are the evidence of how our work makes a difference. Condition changes are at a level higher than that of the personal benefit our clientele receive as a result of direct participation in our programs. Rather, the condition change represents environmental, health or economic benefits at a societal level (e.g. improved water quality, improved nutrition and health, increased market opportunities, etc.).
How you can provide feedback
Program Team Leaders, Statewide Program Directors, Institute Directors and Strategic Initiative Leaders have worked together to develop the current list of condition changes. They will be reaching out to you to solicit your input. I would ask that you share your thoughts with those who reach out to you and they will collate all feedback they receive and provide it back through a Collaborative Tools site so that the development team can see the feedback as it is received. In early October, we will assemble all of the feedback and make decisions how to move forward.
Why this is important to you?
The final list of condition changes will be coded into the new Project Board (UC ANR program information system that will be replacing DANRS-X and integrated with the merit and promotion process for UC ANR academics. We will be asking academics to assign a percentage of time you spend working towards the condition changes. This will replace assigning your FTE to the federal Knowledge Areas. In addition, you will be tagging condition changes to your work when you write your outcome/impact narratives. You will be able to tag multiple condition changes to a single narrative provided you have quantitative evidence of the effected condition change.
How will this information be used?
The condition changes will be used in multiple ways. First, the condition changes and aggregated effort associated with each condition change will be used to determine if we have sufficient capacity working towards the changes needed to achieve our 2025 Strategic Vision. This will help guide future investments by UC ANR and help you, as an individual, identify priorities for directing your own effort. Second, the outcome/impact narratives that are tagged to specific condition changes will provide us the evidence needed to share all of your good work with supporters. The condition changes will serve as a sorting mechanism for the outcomes/impact narratives. The narratives themselves provide quantitative evidence of your outcomes including how they contribute to condition change indicators, as well as frame the work (what was done, where, why, who were the partners, etc.). Because of the intended uses of the information, it is important that we have a complete set of condition changes that represent the work we need to do to achieve our vision.
Why the rush?
The new Project Board is on track for roll out in March. In order to have the condition changes be part of Project Board and not a separate, additional reporting request, we need to have them coded in the system. The development team has indicated that they need the information in early October. Therefore, we are requesting that all Program Team Leaders provide their collective feedback (1 document per Program Team) by October 1. We will review the feedback, draw up a revised list of condition changes, and have that turned around to the Project Board team quickly.
What happens after the feedback is provided?
We will continue to talk about condition changes and condition change indicators throughout the fall and into spring. We are planning to offer training in the winter and spring to address condition changes, condition change indicators and how they tie to Public Value Statements that are currently in draft form. The Public Value Statements will be reviewed and modified yet this fall. If you have interest in being part of a small-ish group that will review and revise the Public Value Statements, please let me know via email. Note that condition change indicators and public value statements will not be part of the reporting in Project Board or any other form; only condition changes will be reported against in Project Board.
Tips to consider
- Condition changes must be measurable; condition change indicators are the metrics used to quantify the magnitude of change in a condition
- Condition changes should not be audience-specific but rather apply to any/all of our audiences as appropriate
- While I am an incurable ‘lumper' it is best to be a ‘splitter' when it comes to condition changes because it provides greater clarity as to what the evidence that support change really is and will allow for improved aggregation of your impact stories making it easier to share your work with others (easier to find, easier to understand and convey appropriately).
- Having more, rather than fewer, condition changes in Project Board will not cause you to have to report the same thing in multiple locations – the coding is planned to provide opportunity to use multiple tags for the same report.
Attached is a generic logic model used for reporting to USDA National Institute for Food and Agriculture.
Regards,
Wendy Powers
Associate Vice President
View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.
This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.
Generic Logic Model for NIFA Reporting
Dear Colleagues,
I am pleased to invite you to a Virtual Town Hall on Wednesday, Jan. 18, from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m., to discuss the new five-year UC ANR Strategic Plan. Members of the senior leadership team will present the main points of the plan and address any questions you may have.
In August 2016, President Napolitano requested a five-year strategic plan for UC ANR by December 2016. To meet that ambitious deadline, the Senior Leadership Team worked closely with the strategic planning resources at UCOP and UC ANR to guide us through a rigorous process. We enlisted the assistance of representatives of programs and administrative units and drew upon strategic plans that already existed within the statewide programs, strategic initiatives, research and extension centers and budget plans. We also consulted UC ANR advisory groups and committees. When I presented our draft plan to President Napolitano in November, she was clearly pleased with its goals and key strategies for achieving them. The final plan was submitted to the President in late December.
I am now very excited to share the strategic plan with you; it is available at http://ucanr.edu/stratplan1.10.2017. This plan will guide us in a thoughtful and timely manner as we “operationalize” our Strategic Vision 2025. As you read through the strategic plan, please think about how your work aligns with the goals in the plan. I consider this to be a living document that we will modify, add to, and improve upon over time, so your feedback is not only welcome, it's vital.
The five-year plan calls for an estimated $54 million in one-time new costs, including approximately $40 million for capital investments in UC ANR facilities and system infrastructure. To fund the one-time costs, we will finance debt, expand our fundraising capacity and deploy some of our reserves. Ongoing annual costs for the five-year plan are estimated at $6.5 million and will be funded from projected revenue increases of $12 million, which will leave us an estimated annual net operating increase of $5.5 million.
The plan defines 15 goals to enhance UC ANR's research and extension mission, support employees and volunteers, address financial stability and administrative excellence, and increase awareness of UC ANR's value. As you can see on page 30 of the attached plan, each goal has been assigned an “owner,” who will be responsible for overseeing our progress toward its attainment. Our next step is to develop specific action plans with point people, metrics and target dates to reach our goals.
To move the strategic plan from paper to action, I have invited 22 people representing campuses, counties, research and extension centers, administrative units and more to meet at the end of this month. At the two-day meeting, we will begin developing action plans to achieve the 15 goals in the strategic plan. We will also explore how best to engage all UC ANR members in this process because everyone's contribution is critical to the UC ANR mission.
As we map out the paths to our goals, we will be soliciting feedback and engaging different people within UC ANR and external stakeholders. We will keep you apprised of our progress via ANR Update, social media, our website and other reporting. In addition to those regular communications venues, Wendy Powers, associate vice president, will provide informal updates through a new blog she recently launched at http://ucanr.edu/ANRAdventures.
You can offer feedback and collaboration via our many workgroups, advisory committees and public forums, or by sending a comment here.
By identifying and taking specific steps that lead to our goals, we will successfully achieve our Strategic Vision. If you have comments or suggestions for this process, I would love to hear from you. Please submit them to me using this link http://ucanr.edu/5yearplancomments.
Best regards,
Glenda Humiston
Vice President
View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.
This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.
UC ANR STRATEGIC PLAN Jan 10 2017