Sharing Lessons Learned

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Sharing Lessons Learned

• Sister Patricia Garrahan, S.N.D.
• NCEA, Baltimore
• April 12, 2007
• Available at www.xbss.org
• Resources and Links

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This session

• Managing your organization by the evidence
• Religious community sponsorship lessons
• Sharing ideas as to how these might apply in your
  own situation

www.xbss.org
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McKinsey Company

• Mission
• To help leaders make distinctive, lasting and
  substantial improvements in performance and
  constantly build a great firm that attracts,
  develops and retains exceptional people.

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McKinsey Company

• Managing your organization by the evidence
• Analyzed 230 businesses worldwide
• looking a wide range of management practices to
  improve organizational capacity (ability to unite
  around common goals, execute efficiently and
  renew itself over the longer term)

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Findings(over 100,000 questionnaires)

• Simplistic solutions dont work
• High performing companies have a basic
  proficiency with all available practices
• A combination of energy focused on 3 practices is
  most effective at creating high levels of
  near-term organizational performance and longer
  term organizational health

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Least effective practiceswhen used alone

• Carrot and stick incentive
• Focus on key performance indicators and targets
• Command and control (telling people what to do
  and checking up)
• Relying on detailed strategy and plan

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Combination of practices consistently the best
for a clear record of success

• Clear roles within the structure along with
  accountability
• A leader who articulates a compelling vision of
  the future
• Strong culture within the organization that
  encourages openness, trust and challenge.

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• Being a religious community sponsored school
  doesnt guarantee these qualities but over time
  we have developed some structures and practices
  which can help to facilitate these.

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Clear Roles and Responsibilities

• GOVERNANCE issues
• Who defines expectations
• (sets policies)
• Who grants power
• Who verifies performance
• (accountability)

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Traditional model

• Religious congregations were owners and
• operators of schools and served as primary
• link with the Church,
• maintaining Catholic
• Identity. Schools were our
• family businesses.

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Defining Sponsorship

• Sponsorship of an apostolate or ministry is a
  formal relationship between a recognized Catholic
  organization and a legally formed entity entered
  into for the sake of promoting and sustaining the
  Churchs mission in the world.
• Francis G. Morrisey, OMI

• Sponsorship usually entails three important
  elements
• Use of ones name
• Exercise of certain governance responsibilities
• Accountability to Church authorities

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Restructured Relationships

• Members Groupreserved powers with regard to
  mission fidelity (both canonical and civil
  responsibilities)
• Board of Trustees and Chief
• Executive Officermanagement
• of the institution
• (Board of Limited Jurisdiction)

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Accountability

• Members spell out expectations for mission
  fidelity
• Congregation provides resources for mission
  formation
• Boards use mission criteria in decision making
  and report on mission effectiveness progress

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Articulate a Compelling Vision

• Most congregations have a set of foundational
  documents, core values, educational principles
• All have heroes in education,
• stories of obstacles overcome, wider
• connections to other times and places.

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These can serve as hooks for hanging Catholic
identity
Simplicity
Zeal
Humility
Trust
Compassion
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Creative Fidelity

• Context of the larger mission of Catholic
  education
• Links to Catholic Social Teaching
• Serving students with diverse needs
• Financing schools
• Global solidarity

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Strong culture that encourages openness, trust
and challenge

• Religious congregations have traditions of
  education, spirituality and formation that helped
  them to form abstract concepts like mercy and
  justice into practical guides for action.
• Dont tire people out with the stories of the
  founder but use them as the starting point for
  conversations about what does it mean to be an
  educator today in that tradition.

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On-going conscious efforts at adult faith
formation as part of the culture of the school

• Adult faith formation is not exclusively about
  information it is primarily about providing
  opportunities, within a faith context, for adults
  to talk with other adults about things that
  matter. As such, the best process for adult faith
  formation is not lecture but conversation.

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What is Xaverian Sponsorship?
Networking Opportunities
Guiding Principles

• Governance structures

Formational Programs
through which the Xaverian Brothers and our
collaborators have come to ensure that the
schools that bear our name live up to who we say
they should be and who they as an institution
claim to be.
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Governance Structure
Hold Reserve powers Canonical powers Appoint
Members
Alienation Mission
Congregational Leadership
Hold reserve powers to protect and ensure mission
Members

• Appoint Directors
• Real Property
• Corporate Documents
• Approve Debt
• Associated Legal Entities

Board of Directors
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Guiding Principles Calls Goals

• Call to stewardship for the Xaverian Educational
  mission and participation in the Churchs
  ministry of Catholic Education.
• Call to become centers of faith that articulate,
  transmit, and live Christian values.

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Guiding Principles

• Call to provide a challenging academic program
  that promotes the full development of each
  persons giftedness
• Call to be centers of Christian concern for
  justice and peace

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Guiding Principles

• Call to affirm and celebrate life
• in community
• Call to value and support the dignity and self
  worth of those directly involved in the Churchs
  ministry of education

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Vision of Xaverian Sponsorship

• Enduring personal relationships
• Sense of Christian stewardship
• Centrality of religious instruction, spiritual
  formation, worship prayer
• Character and value development
• Challenging educational program
• Spirit of harmony
• A passion for justice and peace

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Formational Programs

• Teacher Orientation
• New Board Member Orientation
• Administrator Orientation
• XBSS Student Retreat
• Experienced Teachers Retreat
• Faculty/Staff Faith Formation Programs
• Leadership Development

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FORMATIONAL MODEL
www.xbss.org
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But what can I do?

• Identify (or create) your own schools heritage
  and make it visible and practical for your
  community
• Put priority on formation faculty/staff, boards

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But what can I do?

• Be sure that mission infuses discussion and
  decision making
• Try to understand and clarify governance issues

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But what can I do?

• Networkfind common elements share resources
• Consider joining/forming networks of schools or a
  co-sponsorship arrangement

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Sharing Lessons learned

• What are some other practical ideas you have seen
  or thought about?
• If you have any questions or feedback, please
  contact me at pgarrahan_at_xaverianbrothers.org
• The following slides describe the XBSS Mission
  Criteria and process for adding schools to the
  network

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XBSS Mission Criteria

• Be consistent with the mission of the Xaverian
  Brothers, which is to serve the Church in its
  mission of evangelization, especially through the
  ministry of education.
• Respond to identified mission needs or
  improvement opportunities for XBSS.
• Consider the impact on
• Xaverian vision and values XBSS Members
• XBSS schools XBSS Staff
• Xaverian Congregation
• Consider the impact as well as the rights and
  responsibilities of individuals and groups
  directly or indirectly affected by the decision.

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Mission Criteria

• Explore the opportunity for collaboration with
  other Religious Communities, Dioceses, Catholic
  entities or educational endeavors.
• Explore how the opportunity helps XBSS to
  continue our commitment to collaborating with
  lay colleagues in the sponsorship of schools that
  respond to the Calls of the General Chapter for a
  contemplative stance in the world and ministry
  among the poor and marginalized, and how it
  furthers the vision and unique Xaverian nature
  of each school
• Provide opportunities for those who serve with
  XBSS to grow and develop.
• Consider the magnitude of the investment and
  return and acceptable levels of risk.

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Preliminary Exploration up to one year

• AIM To explore compatibility of and mutual
  advantage for the entities involved (the school,
  Arch/diocese, XBSS network) and the ministry of
  the Xaverian Brothers in Catholic education.
• PEOPLE Those with initiating authority Bishop,
  Diocesan Personnel, Superintendent, Head of
  School, Board Chair, Xaverian Brothers
  Congregational Leadership, XBSS Sponsorship
  Office personnel.
• ACTIVITIES
• Begin initial conversation and data gathering.
• Establish compelling reasons for further
  investigation.
• Furthering ministry of Catholic education
• Common vision, values
• Gather as much information as possible about
  potential sponsorship relationship

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Preliminary Exploration

• QUESTIONS
• Why do we want to do this? What do we add to
  each other? What do we bring to each other? What
  value do we bring?
• What is the potential benefit to the community?
• What is the potential benefit to Catholic
  education in this community?
• What would be the cost(s) of not doing this
  collaboration?
• What are our non-negotiables?
• In what ways are the organizations compatible?
  Who are the stakeholders?
• What are the resourceshuman and financialneeded
  to pursue this collaboration?
• How do we decide to continue or stop? Is this
  based on values and mission?
• How do we evaluate our work in this phase?

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Phase Two Sponsorship Exploration1 to 2 years

• AIM To research and collect sufficient detailed
  information to make a decision regarding
  sponsorship.
• PEOPLE Representatives from school
  administration, faculty, parents, alumni, Board,
  Diocese, Sponsorship Office, other XBSS
  representatives
• ACTIVITIES
• Assess school communitys understanding and
  perceptions of mission
• Specifically assess finances, capital needs, debt
  structure, governance, and culture.
• Determine compatibility and identify potential
  impediments to collaboration
• Develop legal documents including bylaws
• Develop transition plan including need and
  process for formation for all constituencies
• Mutual visits by key stakeholders (e.g., board
  members, administrators, faculty) and XBSS

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Phase Two Sponsorship Exploration

• Develop communication plan for internal and
  external publics
• Obtain final approval for all constituencies
• Plan and implement process for developing shared
  or compatible mission/vision
• Develop ritual to finalize agreement
• QUESTIONS
• What are the benefits to each organization?
• What are the mission/vision issues which must be
  included in the discussion?
• What are the financial, legal and canonical
  issues?
• What are the barriers to collaboration? What are
  the non-negotiables?
• What are the elements of the transition plan and
  timeline?
• What communication/formation do we need for key
  stakeholders?
• What is needed for public relations? Who will be
  responsible for this?
• How do we decide to continue or stop? Is this
  based on values and mission?
• How will we evaluate our work in this phase?

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Phase Three Initial Integrationfirst 12 to 24
months of sponsorship

• AIM To integrate the school into XBSS network,
  structures, programs and culture.
• PEOPLE Transition team works with all
  constituencies to monitor implementation of plan.
• ACTIVITIES
• Orient Board, Faculty, Staff, Parents and
  Students
• Celebrate/ritualize collaboration
• Develop and begin implementation of a
  consolidated strategic plan
• Change symbols and signage
• Continue revising, implementing communication
  plan
• QUESTIONS
• What strategies do we need for dealing with
  change?
• Are the purposes and the benefits of sponsorship
  clear?
• Is the formation/education plan effective?
• Is planning underway for ongoing activities?
• How will we evaluate our work in this phase?

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Phase Four Evaluation3 to 5 years

• AIM To assess implementation
• PEOPLE Board of Directors/Trustees,
  Arch/diocese, Sponsorship Office
• ACTIVITIES
• Evaluate implementation of transition plan
• Evaluate community benefit of co-sponsorship
• Continue to evaluate and implement
  communications.
• Conduct Mission Effectiveness Process
• QUESTIONS
• What issues have surfaced and need to be
  addressed?
• How effectively has the school integrated its
  mission and that of XBSS?
• What continuing formation is needed as a result?
• What are the implications of the results of the
  Mission Effectiveness Process?