Strategic direction : it's such an important thing, as Ed Morrison has long driven home. Strategic doing, to me, involves careful planning and action - and its reassuring to see the core of talented thought leaders that have comprised this collective.
One can apply different strategies [1] in their own realm of doing, I can only recommend the one I suggest and feel driven to complete. Many of us have banded together to defend and champion the most meaningful and reasonable causes in town, and the region.
For years we've worked - personally, for me the most powerful aspect has been relationship building under a frame of trust, authenticity, transparency, and collaborative spirit. Organizational designs are finally shifting [1], and significantly - to cooperatives and collaboratives like ours. And not to drive the point home again, the most effective ones will employ this type of strategic doing.
1. Consider the region you are supporting and serving, in community development or economic development. Both are equated under the frame of quality of life and place enhancement (Sustainability).
2. Map the stakeholders in your system and determine the core competencies for each. Allow transparency of this map to all stakeholders in the system.
3. Encourage collabrative models that embrace an enlightened mindset and leaders who not only embrace a philosophy of continuous process of improvement, but also seek to transcend self-centeredness and serve their collaborative partners and cooperative members. A new world order emerges. This is why its important, and how it can be done.
4. Mitigate risk and cost to all members of the cooperative - align best strengths, make deficiencies irrelevant. Connect diverse approaches to feed a greater, richer outcome.
Look at our own REAL.COOP - we are one, but we have individual entrepreneurial ventures: Bill with Wind and Solar venture, Norm with 7gen, IT venture, Kevin with his law practice, and so on and so on. We can bring value to the Whole with our connections to all we are doing as one cooperative - and it shouldn't work in reverse. Both ways.
With Kade Social Ventures I aim to target the institutions with greatest need [2], those often with marginalized, discriminated-against populations. Chemical dependency centers, VA Hospitals, Other hospitals, correctional facilities, etc. Create new, long lasting viable vocations for the previously stigmatized. Couple this with a strong support network - whether AA, second chance programs through faith centers, and individual mentors (i.e. Big bros and sisses).
The gardens I've researched are designed for optimal therapeutic outcome based on condition and root source - Alzheimers, Dementia, Addiction, Stigmatization, ADD, and restores hope to all in a systemic way. This is ensured with cutting edge facilitatation. This approach should integrate the best of the best cutting edge approaches I've learned - Open Space, Appreciative Inquiry, World Cafe, Collaborators welcome ... it will all work out. But drive this pilot project first, and make it sing. Then replicate and tweak design and approach to the culture in question. A new creative, enlightened class of leaders we never gave their just due - til now.
We'll bring value and opportunity to realneo in a big way - the Co-op will thrive, and everyone will get opportunity. We should all celebrate our own little piece we own and drive to success. Then we share and contribute and feed the whole.
The magic begins... REAL.COOP flourishes. Now.
Links:
[1] http://realneo.us/blog/sudhir-raghupathy/the-future-of-organization-ring-cone-theory
[2] http://realneo.us/content/hitchcock-center-women-stakeholder-based-model-transformational-outcomes