Prepared in June 2012:
BOD Strategic Initiatives for 2012-13 Academic Year (ADOBE PDF)
Prepared in July 2011:
BOD Strategic Initiatives for 2011-12 Academic Year (ADOBE PDF)
Prepared in Fall 2010:
BOD Strategic Initiatives Review for 2010-11 (ADOBE PDF)
Prepared in July 2010:
Download the BOD Strategic Initiatives for 2010-11 Academic Year (ADOBE PDF)
Prepared in Fall 2010:
2009-10 CoSIDA Board of Directors and Divisional Leadership Strategic Initiatives Review
(ADOBE PDF)
Prepared in Fall 2009:
Download the BOD Strategic Initiatives Progress (2008-09) document (ADOBE PDF)
Organizational and Management Based
• Strategic Plan developed and approved in June of ‘08
• Strategic Plan has enabled the organization to be much more focused and it has enabled the organization to better concentrate on not only managing but leading the organization. It also has enabled CoSIDA to be more pro-active with regard to leading the profession in general.
• an emphasis was put on developing a more “federated” structure; as a result, a new management tier - University and College Division Management Advisory Committees - was instituted and implemented.
• Due to the new management tiers, there are many more groups and people actively involved in leading/managing multiple aspects of the organization and profession.
• New management concepts as it relates to BOD and management tiers has resulted in a feeling that we are more pro-active - both internally and externally- as it relates to dealing with organizational and professional issues.
• BOD Management Structure Improvements
- all BOD members now have assigned duties, responsibilities, task/project assignments
- all BOD members, not just officers, are more actively involved in various organizational matters
- BOD duties/responsibilities are now better spread out and proportioned more equally so that some members don’t have a huge amount to do and others have virtually no duties/responsibilities. There is still work to be done in this area.
- BOD has been restructured and is clearly spending more time on numerous organizational and professional matters, not just the convention activities, as has been the case and perception.
- There is more “project based” focus, especially in areas other than the convention-based matters.
- All fund-raising based efforts have become more centralized in terms of management and accountability by the Marketing Director and Executive Director. CoSIDA's 2nd VP position has been divested significantly in fund-raising time as a result of this move.
- Specific monthly organizational/management checklists have been developed to aid in future planning
• Discussions have begun relative to redoing officer duties/main functions so that more emphasis is placed on enabling officers to deal with issues and lead and manage the profession vs. primary convention-related duties as has been the case for quite some time. Discussions have begun how to better use the three Past Presidents on the Board in that regard as well.
• Committee Based Improvements
- More active BOD liaison management with each and every committee
- More accountability has been put into place for each committee chair and each BOD liaison as there is more monthly communication and reports to BOD than in the past.
- Each committee chair has been asked to provide a specific list of goals and objectives for the upcoming year, emphasizing how they will specifically support the organization's strategic plan and seek to improve membership-based performance.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Enhanced Visibility/Leadership Role Within Collegiate Community
• Worked with Bob Vecchione (Deputy Exec. Director of NACDA) and Joan Cronan (Women’s AD at the University of Tennessee and President of NACDA) to determine short-term ways that CoSIDA and NACDA could better work together to aid each group’s appropriate membership.
Those conversations eventually led to a proposal from NACDA with regard to a unique partnership arrangement. This arrangement enabled CoSIDA to keep control over association matters while benefiting CoSIDA with more direct access to the other collegiate community's leadership groups.
This also allows CoSIDA and CoSIDA business regular exposure to other groups within that community via email/magazine visibility. These are both things that CoSIDA did not have in either regard. The arrangement also provides that CoSIDA move our convention to the NACDA site on a trial basis beginning in 2013.
• Partnership arrangement with NACDA provided CoSIDA with the immediate ability to provide a monthly “CoSIDA Corner” column that will appear in the NACDA membership magazine which 9,000 university and athletics administrators receive. The partnership allows for CoSIDA to use NACDA and NACDA-association websites to share appropriate information and news. This enables CoSIDA to reach 13,000 additional university and athletics administrators relative to appropriate items.
• Partnership with NACDA enabled organization’s leadership to represent CoSIDA in-person at the annual NACDA mid-year meeting in late January- a first for CoSIDA. CoSIDA is now one of 15 college management affiliations at that meeting and CoSIDA was given the opportunity to address the NACDA Executive Committee and each of the affiliates with regard to the organization/ profession over the course of the three-day meeting
• As a result of appearance/presentation at the NACDA mid-year meeting in Jan. ’09, relationships were started and developed with several groups, including: D1A AD Association, FCS AD Assoc., D1AAA Athletics Directors Assoc., D2 AD Association, D3 AD Association, NAIA, National Two-Year Institutions Assoc., Marketing Directors, Compliance Directors, Development Directors, Event Managers Association and Licensing Directors Assoc., among others.
• CoSIDA was invited to have a seat on the monthly National Communications Directors teleconference [PR Directors for six BCS conferences, rep from NCAA Communications Department, CoSIDA rep and Coordinator for BCS (Bill Hancock)]. Purpose of group is to discuss communications-based issues and possible strategies for assisting the athletics community.
• Established a strong working relationship with Erik Christenson and Bob Williams of the NCAA Communications Department which ensures us being put into more pro-active situations to deal with forthcoming news and NCAA legislative matters that would effect our organization/membership and profession.
• Improved relationship with NCAA led to the NCAA approaching CoSIDA in early March of 2009 relative to the Div. 1 Recruiting Cabinet which was preparing discussion on and potential legislation in dealing with the elimination of printed media guides. That advance information enabled CoSIDA to take on a coordinating and proactive role by informing the nation's D1 communications leadership and having CoSIDA’s newly-formed UD Management Advisory Committee (chaired by Charles Bloom) to coordinate this national discussion.
In doing so, our thoughts and ideas would be presented to this NCAA Cabinet prior to the finalization of the proposed legislation instead of after that stage - which has been the norm in the past for our organization.
The Div 1 Recruiting Cabinet then extended an invitation for CoSIDA to attend this group’s meeting in June, the first time in organizational history CoSIDA had a opportunity to participate in-person with a NCAA committee prior to legislation being proposed or written.
• Worked with Grant Taeff and Mel Puliam of American Football Coaches Assoc. with regard to better affiliation/relationships between our two groups. That led to an invitation for CoSIDA to address the AFCA Board of Trustees in Nashville on Jan. 11, 2009. This was the first time that CoSIDA has ever been invited to address this group.
• Pro-actively reached out to Dutch Baughman (Exec. Director of Div. 1A Athletics Directors Association) to indicate that CoSIDA wished to work with him and that group relative to issues that jointly involve both groups in the areas of “communications.”
This resulted in CoSIDA’s first-ever invitation to attend the annual D 1-A Athletic Directors Assoc. meetings in Sept. of ’08. That appearance resulted in further discussion on the ways that CoSIDA could be of resource value to that meeting in the future as well as CoSIDA's involvement and regular correspondence on appropriate issues with that group.
Following this, CoSIDA was one of a few groups that had its Executive Director extended an opportunity to participate in a forum in Sept. of ’09 that will deal with economic-based issues facing college athletics. Also, Baughman, after reviewing CoSIDA's pro/con document on “printed guides discussion,” decided to distribute that to all D1A Athletics Directors in mid May.
• CoSIDA leadership asked by the BCS communications leadership to work with the media relations committee at the 2009 National Championship Game.
• CoSIDA leadership helped the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) coordinate a “Roundtable Discussion” on media based issues at the 2009 National Championship Game.
• Interviews/ Q&A’s conducted with NCAA News, Athletics Management magazine, AFCA Newsletter (First Down) and the International Sports Journal.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fund Raising/ Sponsorship
• A commitment was put into place to start CoSIDA's yearly fund-raising efforts much earlier and to change our fund-raising philosophy from being a primary convention-based concept to one that is more yearly-based.
• All sponsorship/fund-raising efforts have been centralized, with the Marketing Director and Executive Director coordinating that entire process instead of having much of that responsibility falling to 2nd VP post as in the past.
• The 2nd VP has been divested of a significant number of organizations/firms to contact. Many of those “accounts/clients” have been shifted to the Marketing Director and Executive Director.
• A commitment has been put into place to provide sponsor-based inventory throughout the year, not just primarily as it relates to the convention.
• A “tracking chart’ program has been put into place that enables the leadership to more routinely stay abreast of the fund-raising efforts.
• All sponsorship levels have been evaluated and much more inventory is being provided throughout the year to appropriate sponsors for their support of the organization.
• More people on BOD are being asked to use their personal/professional relationships to help fund-raise instead of all these responsibilities falling to just a few people. That has led to more year-to-year consistency in fund raising efforts as the given sponsor is not always dealing with a new person each and every year.
• BOD and organization leadership positions are being more pro-active with regard to sponsor relations
• Relationship/agreement with IMG as CoSIDA's “sales/advertising rep” has put us in a position to be much more pro-active in the future with regard to selling pure advertising space for online ventures (website, E-Digest, E-Directory).
• CoSIDA leadership has personally visited with key sponsors in a much more pro-active manner than the past.
• Progress has been made in establishing strategic partnerships that will enhance future membership benefits in terms of content on website, professional development, webinars and the CoSIDA Community.
• Arrangement with Sports Services Inc. (official convention online registration partner) enabled the organization to garner its first-ever direct sponsorship cash revenue arrangement with regard to the website.
• Arrangement with Collegiate Images has provided us with legal and strategic advice as it relates to Academic All-America program matters
• BOD is more pro-active with regard to seeking out additional corporate support. Since July of last 2008, the organization has attracted five new corporate partners at the $7500 or above levels (FOX Sports Interactive, Collegiate Images, Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award, Sports Systems, ASAP Sports).
• Number of $7500-plus sponsors has grown from eight in 2008 (ESPN, ICS, CollegeFanz, DigiPix Art, NBA/WNBA, NCAA, CBS Sports, TRZ Sports) to 12 in 2009 (ESPN, ICS, CollegeFanz, DigiPix Art, FOX Sports Interactive Media, CBS College Sports, Lowe’s, ASAP, NCAA, Collegiate Images, Sports Systems, TRZ Sports).
• From our 2007 to 2009 conventions, the number of sponsors who have contributed $10,000-plus in cash has risen from one to seven; the number who have provided $5,000-plus has grown from four to 10; and the total cash sponsors who have given $2,000-plus has grown from six to 16.
• “Cash” sponsorship revenue (this outside of the rights fee for the AAA program) has increased from $46K in 2007 to $98K for 2008 and to $135K for 2009.
• “Cash” sponsorship revenue (outside of Academic All-America program rights fee) has nearly tripled in the past two years (from $46K to $135K).
• The $134,900 in cash sponsorship revenue (outside of AAA program rights fee) for 2009 was the best total in that regard for the organization in the last seven years and the second best yearly total in organizational history, trailing only the $151,500 generated in 2002.
• Total cash sponsorship money (AAA rights fee plus convention/website sponsorship packages) has grown from $212K in 2007 to just over $301,000 in 2009 - a 40% increase.
• The $301,000-plus in total cash from fund-raising efforts for 2009 was the largest single-year total in organizational history, surpassing the previous high of 264,400 set in 2008.
• The 2009 and 2008 years rank first and second in CoSIDA history in total combined cash financial support from fund-raising/AAA rights-fee programs.
• For 2009, the organization has generated $425,000 in total organizational financial support ($301K in cash and $124K in trade-based arrangements).
• The $425,000 in total financial support to the organization (cash and trade out ) is the largest single year total in organization history.
• Despite a tough economy, a total of $55,500 in “new client” sponsorship cash revenue was raised this past year vs. 2008 totals.
• Cash revenue from direct web-based sponsorships has grown from 0 in 2007-08 year to $4500 in 2008-09.
• An “internal management checklist” has been put together with regard to specific inventory requirements for each sponsor/partner, so that appropriate management takes place and items do not go unaccounted for.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Academic All-America Program
• Worked with AAA Committee to provide a more pro-active organizational structure to ensure more attention was being paid to marketing/PR aspects in addition to the nomination/selection process.
• Started process of seeking to establish AAA Foundation as a way of eventually generating funds that would assist the organization in advancing future AAA programs in a variety of marketing and branding based ways.
• Started process of seeking “grants” from organizations on behalf of AAA program and mission
• Worked with AAA Committee leadership to setup a Strategic Advisory Board to work with the Committee relative to marketing/PR initiatives.
• Capital One Academic All-America Hall of Fame nomination process was put online.
• Reached a sponsorship agreement with Collegiate Images which includes that organization provides legal-based services on behalf of the AAA program and in infringement-based issues. CI was successful in then halting a long-term infringement case with the Collegiate Swim Coaches Association.
• Worked with ESPN so that we could get more attention for the program/teams.
• Worked with the Marketing/Sales Units at ESPN to assist them with presentation materials as it relates to attracting a sponsor/co-sponsor for ESPN and CoSIDA for AAA core team programs and AAA Hall of Fame.
• Worked with ESPN to start the renegotiation process in Dec. ‘08 for the AAA program contract which expires in June of 2010. In the past, such re-negotiations did not start until a few months before the contract expiration date.
• AAA Hall of Fame selection process timeline was put back into place so that it was completed in February instead of later in the spring.
• Discussions regarding the possible expansion of a third “divisional program” for AAA were started.
• Established a working relationship with Velocity Sports and Entertainment. John von Stade of Velocity was one of the key executives at Millsport when Millsport managed the AAA program and AAA Hall of Fame (when GTE and then Verizon were sponsors).
If ESPN/possible new corporate partner are not interested in AAAHF, or don’t show CoSIDA enough interest in that property, von Stade indicated that Velocity would likely be interested in seeking sole corporate sponsorship for that property. They are in a holding pattern in that regard until CoSIDA sees what transpires with potential new sponsor for AAA program via ESPN.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Marketing
• Arrangements made with NACDA that CoSIDA would have regular columns in NACDA's organizational magazine (mailed to over 9,000 members) and have use of NACDA's daily blast email system (which goes to over 13,000 university and athletic administrators) to provide appropriate news from CoSIDA. Dozens of CoSIDA generated stories have then been sent out to AD’s/Univ. Presidents/Marketing, etc. via that email blast system, providing exposure to groups/people we have not been getting to directly.
• Discussions regarding the development of primary and secondary “branding” concepts have begun
• A concept for a new logo has been developed
• Set up task forces to start working on image-based pieces which could be used in a variety of different ways, inside and outside the organization.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Web-Based
• Developed a new contract with website provider ICS that ensures that working relationship for at least three years.
• Compiled a elevated list of “inventory items” with the web-based area that are now provided to sponsors
• Online post significantly upgraded in May of 2009 as part of creation of organization’s first-ever Director of Communications position. This post was funded by moving money spend for AAA awards fulfillment aspects to this position. In short, newly formed position was funded without any new dollars being spent.
• On-line membership renewal process became fully operational
• On-line convention registration process put into place
• AAA Hall of Fame nomination process was put online
• A CoSIDA membership-based association community was setup by CollegeFanz Network
• First cash revenue sponsorship/arrangement regarding website was established (Sports Systems, Inc.)
• Arrangement with IMG to sell pure advertising packages for website was established
• Cash sponsorship revenue from website grew from 0 in 2007-08 to $4500 in 2008-09
• CoSIDA Directory went to full on-line and E-Directory productions
• CoSIDA Digest went to a full E-Digest based arrangement
• Significant increase in sponsor based exposure on website
• “Membership Repository/Library” concept developed with CollegeFanz Network which will enable articles/seminars, etc. to be placed into it for use by membership in a variety of areas.
• In Feb. ’09 organization’s first membership-wide webinar took place
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Membership Services
• A CoSIDA membership-based association community was set up with CollegeFanz Network
• A “membership repository/library” concept for website was established as part of CoSIDA Community
• First-ever membership webinar took place in Feb. ‘09
• On-line convention registration system was established
• On-line membership renewal system was established
• Capital One Academic All-America Hall of Fame nomination process placed online
• On-line Directory was instituted as per membership request
• E-Newsletter/Digest was established on line per request of membership
• Multiple membership-based teleconferences were setup from Feb.-June of ’09 to discuss issues such as cost-containment with AD representatives, social media, and printed media guide discussions
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Educational Based
• Leadership cabinet role is being developed for this concept
• First organizational webinar conducted in Feb. ‘09
• Strategic initiatives have been started where groups would provide content/webinars/podcasts as part of “sponsorship"
• Started to seek out “Continuing Education Providers” concept for sponsorship and web-based content
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Annual Convention
• Online registration process finalized and set up
• Arrangement with Populous (formerly HOK) to print badges (in advance and onsite) at no cost to organization in exchange for some convention-based inventory
• Introduced a change in philosophy regarding planning of the Convention workshop, with a three-prong approach initiated. New approach: sessions that are put together should be of interest to entire group; sessions that bring the entire group together to discuss, and then are followed by several breakout sessions on that subject matter that membership can choose to attend; and sessions specifically put together by the Management Advisory Committee for University Division (UD) and College Division (CD) so that relevant matters are discussed. This concept has particularly been embraced by the CD segment of the organization.
• Exhibitors: per their request, hours were reduced for the exhibitor hall and a social-based reception in the exhibitor hall was established.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal Management
• Decade-long studies/reports were compiled in areas of yearly operational fund, convention and fund-raising to assist the leadership in getting a better feel and understanding for the business-based aspects of the organization.
• Established some new fiscal reporting charts, enabling BOD to get a better feel for flow of revenue/expenses per year and also viewing some historical reports in that regard.
• Cost-containment: CoSIDA Digest and Directory became purely online versions, saving the organization nearly $50K yearly in printing/mailing costs
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Legal-Based
• CoSIDA now writes contract arrangements relative to sponsorship/partnership arrangements to protect its best interests, rather than having the sponsor/partner write the contract which CoSIDA approves and signs.
• Sponsorship arrangement signed with Collegiate Images includes that organization taking an active role in protecting AAA infringement. That arrangement resulted in a positive resolution for CoSIDA in a long-standing “infringement” matter with the College Swim Coaches Association.
• AAA Foundation concept continues to be reviewed in terms of legal setup for the future
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Professional Survey/Data Collection
• Worked with Dr. Heather Barber of the University of New Hampshire to develop a specific survey/study on our profession in general - and within each CoSIDA divisional group - as it relates to job satisfaction, reasons for professional turnover and issues within the profession. This data, when provided in executive summary report in the future, should provide the leadership with more specific quantitative data to help it discuss the level of burnout and turnover, issues within the profession of the intercollegiate community at-large.
• Began to work with Joe Moore, former SID at Central Missouri who is now teaching at the Central Missouri journalism school as he seeks his PhD. Moore wants to do his dissertation/thesis (scheduled for completion in June of 2011) on “Earned Influence in Sports Communications at the College Level: Why do and don’t PR professionals Have It?”. Joe wants to work with the leadership of CoSIDA to develop a survey and compile results for this study which the leadership can then use to help it advance its strategic plan and initiatives.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------