The Child and Youth Program: Leading the Way for a Bright Future

Transcription

1 The Child and Youth Program: Leading the Way for a Bright Future

2 Where We ve Been Over the last year and a half, LCYPCs/CYPCs have: Completed monthly reports Reviewed results from two years of field surveys Developed two annual reports Engaged in numerous local and national trainings/professional developments Met with numerous individuals, partner organizations and professionals Provided a wide variety of programming support, activities and events to thousands of youth and families

3 Where We re Headed Collectively, the Child and Youth Program is focused on continuing to: Meet the needs of our military youth and families Grow and expand our current network of partner organizations and supporting individuals Recruit highly-qualified volunteer teams Transition into a consistent, steady-state resource Expand outreach and support to educators, administrators, counselors and mental health professionals

4 Getting from Point A to Point B The Child and Youth Program has been providing excellence for years, our goal is to continue that momentum forward by: Reviewing existing feedback sources (i.e & 2013 Satisfaction Surveys) Drawing upon past trainings focused on program delivery and expectations (i.e. Customer Service training, etc.) Reviewing goals/expectations of the customer (i.e. SFPD) for the state/territory-level program The model for doing this is known as the Open Systems Model

5 Open Systems Model What is an Open Systems Model? An open systems model is a process that regularly analyzes feedback from various sources to better determine what is needed to achieve a system/program s goals. Field Guide to Consulting and Organizational Development

6 Open Systems Model - Explained To understand the Open Systems Model, you must begin with the end in mind! Results/Outcomes: Knowledge whether institutional, programming, regulatory, etc. Behaviors culmination of useful/necessary skills and actions Attitudes regarding values, conditions, pride Performance striving for excellence, with high levels of delivery and customer return/satisfaction

7 Open Systems Model - Explained External Feedback Sources: Annual Satisfaction Survey results Evaluations from parents/guardians Comments from partner organizations/individuals VA Tech Survey and results Internal Feedback Sources: End of the Month Reports Annual Reports Meetings with SFPDs AARs following events Volunteer comments following events Identifying sources of feedback is key to the open systems model process

8 Open Systems Model - Explained Needs/Resources: What are the needs of our families? What are the expectations of our customer(s)? What areas of our program may benefit from additional growth? Who are our partner organizations/individuals? What resources are available to us? Activities/Processes: How do current processes work to meet desired results/outcomes? Are there areas to streamline processes? What are those areas? How effectively do our activities/programming work to meet results/outcomes?

9 What does this mean to me? Through careful application of the Open Systems Model, we can identify the following: Areas for programmatic growth and development Areas for professional development Areas where additional leadership may be required to achieve desired outcomes Effective leadership is a key aspect of the successful delivery and execution of the Child and Youth Program

10 Leadership Defined Leadership in and of itself can be defined as: a process of social influence in which one person (or a team) can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task Influence: can make or break organizational success Support: build up, encourage, collaboration Common Task: working together toward a shared vision/goal

11 Leadership vs. Management Managers Administer Ask how and when Focus and systems Do things right Maintain Rely on control Have short-term perspective Accept the status-quo Keep their eyes on the bottom line Imitate Emulate the classic good Soldier Copy Leaders Innovate Ask what and why Focus and people Do the right things Develop Inspire trust Have long-term perspective Challenge the status-quo Keep their eyes on the horizon Originate Are their own person Originality Source:

12 Self-Reflection Take a moment to reflect on your current approach: What are you doing to place value on the people utilizing your services? On your volunteers? How do your actions show a focus on long-term goals rather than short-term tasks? Do you strive to think outside-the-box or are you content maintaining what has always been? How does your program demonstrate a commitment to innovation and creativity?

13 Top Ten Leadership Qualities The following qualities are necessary for positive, successful leadership to occur: HONESTY Whatever ethical plane you hold yourself to, when you are responsible for a team of people, it is important to raise the bar even higher. Your program and your team are a reflection of yourself, and if you make honest and ethical behavior a key value, your team will follow suit. ABILITY TO DELEGATE Trusting your team with your idea is a sign of strength, not weakness. This will not only prove to your team that you trust and believe in them, but will also free up your time to focus on the higher level tasks, that should not be delegated. COMMUNICATION Being able to clearly and succinctly describe what you want done is extremely important. If you can t relate your vision to your team, you won t all be working towards the same goal.

14 Top Ten Leadership Qualities SENSE OF HUMOR Morale is linked to productivity, and it s your job as the team leader to instill a positive energy. That s where your sense of humor will pay off. CONFIDENCE As the leader, by staying calm and confident, you will help keep the team feeling the same. Remember, your team will take cues from you, so if you exude a level of calm damage control, your team will pick up on that feeling. COMMITMENT There is no greater motivation than seeing the boss down in the trenches working alongside everyone else, showing that hard work is being done on every level. By proving your commitment to the brand and your role, you will not only earn the respect of your team, but will also instill that same hardworking energy among your team. POSITIVE ATTITUDE You want to keep your team motivated towards the continued success of the program, and keep the energy levels up. If your team is feeling happy and upbeat, chances are they won t mind staying that extra hour to finish a report, or devoting their best work to the program.

15 Top Ten Leadership Qualities CREATIVITY Some decisions will not always be so clear-cut. You may be forced at times to deviate from your set course and make an on-the-fly decision. This is where your creativity will prove to be vital. INTUITION Guiding your team through the process of your day-to-day tasks can be honed down to a science, but when something unexpected occurs, or you are thrown into a new scenario, your team will look to you for guidance. Learning to trust yourself is as important as your team learning to trust you. ABILITY TO INSPIRE Make your team feel invested in the accomplishments of the company/organization. Being able to inspire your team is great for focusing on the future goals, but it is also important for the current issues. Source:

16 Leadership is solving problems. The day Soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help or concluded you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership. ~Colin Powell

17 What Makes a Poor Leader? The following characteristics are common among poor leaders: LEADERS WHO CAN T SEE IT, PROBABLY WON T FIND IT Leaders without vision will fail. Leaders who lack vision cannot inspire teams, motivate performance, or create sustainable value. LEADERS WHO FAIL TO LEAD THEMSELVES A leader who lacks character or integrity will not endure the test of time. PUT UP OR SHUT UP Nothing smacks of poor leadership like a lack of performance. Nobody is perfect, but leaders who consistently fail are not leaders, no matter how much you wish they were.

18 What Makes a Poor Leader? BEWARE OF THE KNOW-IT-ALL The best leaders are acutely aware of how much they don t know. They have no need to be the smartest person in the room, but have the unyielding desire to learn from others. FAILURE TO COMMUNICATE When leaders are constantly flummoxed by those who don t seem to get it, there exists both a leadership and communications problem. IT S ALL ABOUT THEM If a leader doesn t understand the concept of service above self they will not engender the trust, confidence, and loyalty of those they lead. Any leader is only as good as his or her team s desire to be led by them. SING A LITTLE KUMBAYA While love and leadership are certainly two words you don t often hear in the same sentence, I can assure you that rarely does great leadership exist without love being present and practiced.

19 What Makes a Poor Leader? ONE SIZE FITS ALL STYLE The best leaders are fluid and flexible in their approach. Only those leaders who can quickly recognize and adapt their methods to the situation at hand will be successful over the long haul. LACK OF FOCUS Leadership is less about balance and more about priority. The best leaders are ruthless in their pursuit of focus. DEATH BY COMFORT ZONE The best organizations beat their competition to the future, and the best leaders understand how to pull the future forward. NOT PAYING ATTENTION TO THE CONSUMER Leaders not attuned to the needs of the market will fail. As the old saying goes, if you re not taking care of your customers, someone else will be more than happy to.

20 What Makes a Poor Leader? LACK OF INVESTMENT Leaders not fully committed to investing in those they lead will fail. The best leaders support their team, build into their team, mentor and coach their team, and they truly care for their team. THE A WORD Real leaders are accountable. They don t blame others, don t claim credit for the success of their team, but always accept responsibility for failures that occur on their watch. BEING CULTURALLY UNAWARE The lesson here is that culture matters forget this and all other efforts with regard to talent initiatives will be dysfunctional, if not altogether lost. LACKING CHUTZPA Courage is having the strength of conviction to do the right thing when it would just be easier to do things right. Source:

21 Closing Thoughts If you really want to determine someone s leadership prowess, give them some responsibility and see what they do with it. Leaders produce results. It s not always pretty, especially in the case of inexperienced leaders, but good leaders will find a way to get the job done. One of the primary responsibilities of leadership is to create more and better leaders. There is no success without a successor. John Maxwell

22 As evidence of completion of this course, you will need to complete the short assessment tool provided. To access the assessment, please click on the link below: Click here to being your assessment: Please Note: Following completion of the assessment, please print out the results and write the name of the course next to your score. Then, scan the document and the results page to your RAPM. This will serve as your documentation of completion.

23 You have now completed the Effective Leadership module as required by the national contract. Congratulations!