Fast 10
How do you figure out what to do? How do you move beyond taking a position on questioning “right vs wrong”, and create direction that is aligned with intention?
An NCAA Division I Athletics department asked for help developing and executing an idea. Perfect. Translating ideas into projects, we do that. To start, we need to understand two simple things; what are you trying to do, and why. Asked with empathic curiosity, without an ulterior motive, this first step is simply about understanding intent and potential, the yardstick by which project scenarios are measured against. Sometimes we find ourselves challenging, altering or creating the ideas that drive projects, but that may not be where the real value lies. We’re focused on the interpretation and the response.
We spent nearly a year working with athletics leadership clarifying those ideas. Most of the work, however, was done in the first work session, a few hours - but it took the balance of that time to interpret, build consensus and define a framework. The first day was custom built. It took two months to design and only could have been done by diving deep. I am not a fan of cold kickoff meetings. The day included; Fast 10, Recruit Me, It Takes A Village, Show Me the Money, Slow 10, and It’s Time. Not your run of the mill work session. They did not necessarily know it, but that day gave us all we needed to figure out what they wanted to do and why they wanted to do it.
You might have heard in the field of design, constraints are a good thing, that a blank slate can be more challenging and difficult to get started. Well, we had plenty of a good thing then, because the existing context and constraints were complex. I would never go so far as saying developing the idea was easy or simple, in fact seeking and articulating the right vision can be challenging and if it misses the mark, a project can crumble. But the application of a vision to an existing context, both physical and cultural, is where it all comes together - or doesn’t. This is the space where ideas become projects. In fact, very clear ideas, when applied, can shape shift, alter priorities, or sway opinion. Even when the mandate is clear to create a new reality, that new reality lives within and responds to the current one. Keep it real.
The athletics strategic plan focused on academic support and performance, the student athlete experience, health & wellness, and building community. Here’s what we did. We created a heart for the organization and complex - one it already had, it just wasn’t working. Literally clogged. The heart is symbolic, super functional, and multi-use. Located at the center, both geographically and programmatically. We identified, reorganized and prioritized program, activity, and interactions around the heart to build “One Team.” A connected community of student athletes, rather than a collection of different sports and activities. The academic program was expanded, reorganized, and relocated. Disparate administrative groups were brought back together and reorganized. Program that was seen as the primary touch points for the student athlete experience and health & wellness were reconceived, made visible, and connected to one another in new ways that enhance operations and invite participation. Opportunities were created to gather, connect, create interaction, as well as to spread out and breathe. It was big, but we created a full portfolio with a cross section of project scales and types; ones that required the attention of senior leadership and big donors, but also others that were incremental, opportunistic, and could be implemented operationally and internally over time, opportunities for all to contribute to something bigger. Turn ambition into momentum.