ART Workshop: Strategic Planning for Small Archival Programs

This event is co-sponsored by METRO and the Archivists Round Table of Metropolitan New York, Inc.

Strategic planning is an essential management tool for all archival programs. The barriers to creating and implementing a strategic plan, however, can seem insurmountable to solo and small-shop archivists. This workshop will provide an overview of the strategic planning process from the perspective of small archival program management, emphasizing relationships and community-building both within and outside of the archival program's parent organization. The presenter will engage workshop participants with a strategic review of various archival programs' mission statements, conversation about setting priorities and sticking to them, and instruction in crafting attainable and meaningful goals for archival programs. Participants will receive time and collegial support during the workshop to write key components of a strategic plan.

Colleen McFarland currently serves as the Director of Archives and Records Management for the Mennonite Church USA in Goshen, Indiana. She received a B.A. in German and History from the College of Wooster, an M.A. in History from Cornell University, and an M.L.I.S. from the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee. For the past decade, she has managed small archival programs in college/university and denominational settings. She has published on the topic of small archives management in Archival Outlook and Archival Issues. She currently serves as the vice chair of the Archivists of Religious Collections Section (SAA) and as a board member of the Society of Indiana Archivists.

Who should attend:

• Lone arrangers and archvists
• Archivist-managers of small- to medium-sized archival programs

By the end of this program, participants will:

• Understand how to balance strategic planning and the day-to-day work of managing a small archival program
• Craft a vision statement that complements the values and culture of the archival program's parent organization
• Write a preliminary SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis for his or her archival program
• Learn to identify appropriate goals and formulate achievable objectives

Visit http://metro.org/events/316/ for more information and registration.