RENEWED VISION AND FOCUS
When staff and our Executive Committee met in early January to engage in the strategic planning process, no one could have predicted what lay ahead of us only a few months later, but strategic plans are not meant to predict the future, only to establish a direction for your organization’s future, so the effort wasn’t for naught.
What do we do? Where have we been? Where are we going? What steps are we going to take to sharpen our focus in order to get there? Those were the questions that led to the facilitated group discussion. Where did we land?
We lead with our values of inclusion, equity, and compassion. We are
trustworthy facilitators, community partners, relationship builders,
information disseminators, and promoters and supporters of small
businesses, artists, and those working to preserve the culture and
people who make Oakland unique.
While our plan was intended to guide us over the next three years,
the unwavering, annual goals were clear - continue to build and
strengthen strategic partnerships, deliver best-in-industry clean
and safe services, market and promote our small businesses,
restaurants, and bars, activate underutilized public spaces to create
opportunities for community gatherings and cultural and artistic
expression, and pursue consistent, compassion-forward
engagement with local and national leaders around issues of
homelessness and mental health.
Even in the face of tremendous adversity, we were able to deliver on our
renewed and refined commitment to provide value to our
stakeholders. We look to the future with optimism and know our
organization can maintain our values and reach our fullest potential
while contributing significantly to the recovery and rebuilding of our
