The CBA Strategic Plan - REFOCUS 20/20, 0616 COBJ, Vol. 45 No. 6 Pg. 5
| Author | Loren Brown, J. |
Loren Brown, J.
Presidents Message
It is often said that lawyers are enthusiastic agents of change, as long as the change does not happen to them. This is true throughout our profession and within the bar association. We are the first to volunteer our time and effort to help others effectuate change, but we resist change in our own lives.
When we are motivated to advance positive changes in our own lives and profession, however, we do a very good job. I saw this phenomenon in action this year as part of a committee that worked to create a four-year strategic plan for the CBA.
History of the Strategic Plan
One of the key initiatives of Charley Garcia's 2014-15 term as CBA president was to create a strategic plan for the CBA, to guide the organization into the future and help the bar navigate the evolution of the profession. To that end, the CBA engaged the services of the American Bar Association to help form a strategic plan.
A professional facilitator was sent from the ABA to Denver to meet with bar leaders and volunteers in June 2014. After a lengthy one-day session, a strategic plan had begun to take shape. Unfortunately, the timing was not great.
Not long after that meeting and unrelated to the plan, CBA Executive Director Chuck Turner announced his plan to retire, effective January 1, 2015. It was clear that any strategic planning would have to be placed on hold until Chuck's replacement arrived.
Patrick Flaherty took over as executive director in January 2015. Because of Patrick's background as an attorney and his training and work in the nonprofit sector, he was very excited by the prospect of developing a strategic plan that would help guide the organization into the future.
A committee of 22 brave souls was formed to tackle the strategic planning initiative. After several meetings, however, our group realized it would take us four years to formulate a four-year plan. The decision was made to reform as a smaller committee, and also hire Susan Spero, a professional facilitator, to help formulate the strategic plan.
The committee comprised CBA President Loren M. Brown (yours truly); CBA Immediate Past President Charley Garcia; CBA President-Elect Patricia Jarzobski; Benjamin Currier (past chair of the CBA YLD); Chris Bryan (past chair of the CBA YLD); Nicole Black (chair of the CBA YLD); Jake Eisenstein (chair-elect of the CBA YLD); CBA Executive Director Patrick Flaherty; CBA Deputy Executive Director Greg Martin; and CBA Assistant Executive Director Dana Collier Smith.
The initial task of the committee was to determine the plan's components. We decided the plan should address all aspects of who we are as a bar association, from mission, values, and vision to strategic goals. We also realized that for the plan to be truly successful, it would have to include input from the key stakeholdersour staff and our members.
To obtain this important stakeholder input, the CBA staff was consulted heavily regarding the current functions of the bar and thoughts about the future. In addition, each of my presidential visits to the local bar associations included discussions about the strategic plan and current and future needs of the local bars and their members. We also focused on strategic planning during the October 2015 Board of Governors (BOG) meeting. The 153 BOG members broke into discussion groups to talk about the future of the bar, and also took a formal survey regarding the function and future of the bar.
Because the BOG represents a small segment of the Colorado legal community, we also surveyed the entire CBA membership. The survey was completed in early 2016. The responses and results...
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