RG175 Blog

I know, I know. Eyes glaze over. Comments abound: “Mission? Don’t they all sound the same?” “I don’t really pay attention to them!” “Do they matter?” Sigh. Here’s my story of an early addiction to mission and, I hope, the case for why a mission statement matters—to you as a leader and to the school... read more

Strategic plans can be effective tools for charting the course of a school’s future, for getting key stakeholders on the same page, and for appropriately allocating time, energy and resources for the purpose of helping the school do a better job of living its mission. But despite these potential ben... read more

One of the great gifts in my career was to work with three consultants (trustees/parents) from the Monitor Company, a strategic consulting firm started by Michael Porter, perhaps the leading expert on strategy in the world, and a Professor at Harvard Business School. These consultants gave me the fr... read more

Disgruntled parents, underperforming teachers, rogue trustees. Heads have a long list of headaches. But beyond those irritants is a creative and generative part of the job, challenging and satisfying. The world of strategic thinking, of focusing on adding value to the school can be that creative... read more

The pitfalls and limitations of strategic planning for many independent schools have been identified and explained by major industry thought leaders (Rob Evans, Ian Symmonds, Grant Lichtman). The sad truth is that most strategic plans lack strategic thinking. Most embody what other schools have incl... read more

Opportunity statements for head positions at independent schools more often than not indicate that the school is looking for a “visionary” leader. And, indeed, vision is often critical to the advancement of a school. It separates true leaders from managers. And yet, heads of school struggle with the... read more