Most organizations invest significant amounts of time, energy and money into creating programs and events for people they hope to serve. I am inspired by the countless hours of work that many of these organizations put into these important projects. Our world is a better place because of their work.
A Simple Reminder
As your organization continues to experience success around programs and events, please resist the urge to default to what has worked in the past. We live in a rapidly changing world, and it is safe to say you cannot assume that what has worked in the past will work today or in the future. We must all continue to reiterate our efforts based on the feedback and input we receive from the very ones we serve.
Dedicating time to build relationships with people we serve and creating channels for constructive feedback are essential to long-term success. Always remember that everyone evolves, including the people we served last year, last month or even last week. Designing strategy must take into account the possibility that if we are not careful, we may end up creating programs and events for people who no longer exist other than inside the memory of our past successes. Yes, these are imaginary people who are easy to default to when planning based on the past.
Let’s keep refining what we do and how we serve. Real people will thank you for it.
