Over the past nearly 3 years, we’ve become keenly aware of change. I remember March 13, 2020. At my former job we were putting out fire after fire – just doing our best to serve the community without interruption – while the world around us was seemingly shutting down. A stay-at-home order was enacted. My job sent me home. I could no longer see my family for fear of infecting them with a disease.
Later that same year, we learned about the brutal murder of George Floyd. Governor Ducey placed a curfew. People I know protested and were tear gassed. I protested. I felt myself cold with anger and, at times numb, to what was happening around me.
During the same summer, the Catalinas caught fire. Wildfires are nothing new to this native of Southern Arizona, but this was a bad fire. For the first time I can remember, there were evacuations of the foothills. I couldn’t go outside for long periods of time because of the smoke. That summer was HOT too. I think maybe the hottest on record, with many days above 110. It felt like it would go on and on.
That summer eventually ended and turned into fall, which turned into winter. That winter, the COVID-19 vaccination came out and the frenzy began to try to get as many people vaccinated as soon as possible. We also saw the events of January 6th that left me cold to my core. We saw a second impeachment hearing, and for several weeks, we didn’t know if the President was leading the Country. It was a scary time.
Once we got vaccinated, there was another shift to be had. We needed to go back to work and bring our staff back to work. The economy began to heat up again and then the markets started to crash. The Fed began raising the interest rate. In 2022, war broke out in Ukraine and gas prices surged for Americans.
As you’re reading this, we face a nearly 9% inflation rate, a housing crisis, looming funding issues with the expiration of American Rescue Act Plan dollars, and a climate crisis that we need to seriously look at and get under control. Why do I tell you all of this? Because planning is key to responding to these crises with speed and efficiency.
We’ve seen what a lack of organizational and community planning can do. Can we weather the storm? More than likely. Will it be chaotic without a plan? Absolutely.
Community planning is critical to success, and we are in a prime stage to do it. We can begin to document what we’ve learned about our agency’s operations and responsiveness during the pandemic and aforementioned world changes. We should be talking about what went well and what did not. We need to ask our selves key questions and try to outline changes or plans that need to implement before the next major disaster or change.
Planning needs to happen on a large scale as well as organizationally. Getting involved in community planning coalitions helps to create a network for your organization and those you serve as disaster strikes. It helps to make the critical connections prior to needing them.
Let’s begin your organizational planning processes today.
Contact maddy@bynesconsulting.com to begin you planning process.
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