Organizational Goals and Objectives

Internal Communication

Goal: Internal communications will be planned and targeted to improve employee pursuit of organizational goals and knowledge of organizational business.

Statement of Support: With more than 1,400 employees, the Texas Cooperative Extension workforce is large and widely disbursed among county, district and state offices. Multiple partnerships and diverse programmatic efforts engage much employee attention. Consistent, proactive internal communications are very challenging but important to employee understanding of organizational goals and business.

Objective 1: Make organizational goals and business more transparent.

Strategy	Timeline/Measure(s)
Agency strategic plan revisions.	2007–2012: Revision process completed annually–prior to September 1.
Annually identify director’s key messages and integrate into faculty/staff development events.	2007–2012: Visuals and/or script prepared for supervisors and other event organizers.
Develop and make accessible a comprehensive master calendar that centrally depicts recurring organizational cycles.	2007–2012: Annual. Calendar completed for major steps of planning, reporting, budgeting, and performance appraisal, with additions made on an ongoing basis.
All administrative services and program support units to conduct outreach to employees to communicate about their services, with emphasis on coordinated communication and user access.	2007–2011: Units report annually to the budget center administrators to document communications with employee groups, including presentations, e-mail and newsletters, Web sites, and FAQs.

Objective 2: Improve timeliness, accessibility, and clarity of organizational information.

Strategy	Timeline/Measure(s)
Use technology to implement more standard, real-time release of organizational news as it happens.	2007–2012: Centralized Web site maintained for access to announcements issued directly from decentralized sources.
Utilize the Agricultural Communications production scheduling process to improve selected internal resources.	2007–2012: Appropriate items identified for editing and design treatment and submitted during fall scheduling period.
Continue improvements to Web sites within administrative and program support services to ensure integrated navigation and consistency of information.	Ongoing: Employee development committee assigned with oversight and with providing a progress report to the executive director in the last quarter of each year.
Improve cross-communications among organizational components.	Ongoing: Use of GroupWise public groups promoted through Extension Information Technology training; group glossary developed. Standard posting or distribution protocol recommended for information such as statewide program annual reports and newsletters by associate directors, district Extension administrators/county Extension directors, and regional program directors. Expand the list of tools available for cross-communications beyond email to include various Web 2.0 tools such as wikis, blogs, Facebook and other social networking systems.

Objective 3: Employ more outreach and interpersonal communications to strengthen employees’ organizational perspective, loyalty, and pride.

Strategy	Timeline/Measure(s)
Target employee groups to provide special opportunities for briefings, interaction with administrators, and input/organizational service.	Ongoing: List compiled annually of current year professional association officers and prior year award recipients and San Antonio Livestock Exposition–Leadership Extension (SALE) graduates, as well as employees reaching milestone employment anniversaries.
Develop and feature program success stories at faculty meetings and other interpretive events.	Ongoing: Access provided and announced for resources such as the Extension in the City video segments, Agricultural Communications video news releases, and Economic Impact Reports.
In support of Objectives 1-3, establish a position for an internal communications specialist or Extension associate.	Established when possible through part-time reassignment, to support Extension Family Campaign and upcoming centennials, etc. New position budgeted by 2010. *Contingent upon funding.

Table of Contents
Index of Organizational Goals and Objectives

________________________________

Contact:

Edward G. Smith

Director

Texas Cooperative Extension

112 Jack K. Williams Administration Building

7101 TAMU

College Station, TX 77843-7101

Ph: 979-845-7967

Fax: 979-845-9542

September 2007