College Sports Information Directors of America

by Jessica Poole – 2022-23 College Sports Communicators President  @JessPooleA2
Minnesota Aurora FC, Chief Operations Officer

Wow, it’s May. To say that the last several months have flown by would be the understatement of the year. It’s hard to believe that in a little over a month’s time that my season of being CSC President will be over. I can’t believe that my year in the “seat” is almost over; it’s all happened so fast I’m not sure I’ll even be able to look back on it until after CSC Unite but it sure is crazy to think about even just for a second!

While my time in the seat is almost up, there is one last thing on my presidential agenda that I wanted to share with you all and also ask for your support.

The last time we underwent an organizational strategic review was back in 2016 and since that time our industry has undergone what I would say is a massive overhaul. We have truly expanded what it looks like to be an athletics communicator and our organization has also undergone some change as well. We’ve rebranded our organization with a new name, modernized our governance structure, expanded our membership model to include all who communicate throughout the intercollegiate athletics space — and as a result it’s time we take a look at CSC’s strategic plan and make sure its in line with where our industry is and also where our organization is currently.

We will be forming a strategic plan working group, spearheaded by yours truly, who will take a look at our current strategic plan and make recommendations for any necessary changes that will be submitted to the Executive Board of Directors for review.

The working group will include members from across our membership who can help us look at this document with varying perspectives while also making sure we provide margin for our organization to continue growing and expanding. We will also include all levels of our governance structure, to ensure that each and every one of our members are represented and have a voice in this project.

We have accomplished so much this year and I truly believe that this is a vital next step as our organization continues to grow. This strategic plan review will give us the opportunity to make sure that we are in line with all of the growth that has taken place and will take place. It will give us an opportunity to showcase our new governance structure and it will allow us to make sure that the entirety of our membership is represented in this plan.

This review will allow us to look at strategic planning in a different way. I know that often times when we hear the words “strategic plan” it involves a lot of time to get to a large document that is often times a paperweight in someone’s office. I do not want that to be the outcome of this process — we all have too many paperweights on our desks!

My goal with this process is to help us look at our organization in maybe a smaller snapshot, a “micro-strategic plan” if you will. I’d like this group to be keenly focused on what the next two to three years look like for our organization and membership because we all know things are changing at a rapid pace, and what we think will happen today will change tomorrow. I’d also like this process to be very inward focused with the overarching question being “what can CSC do to innovate within our profession”

This process will take some time and I’m excited to embark on it with you all as one of my final responsibilities as your President.
 
Until next month,
 
Jess