Masonry Magazine March 2001 Page. 30
Mapping Out the Association's Role in Shaping Construction
Planning out the future of the masonry industry is just like taking any journey. If you begin with a clear cut vision of where it is that you want to go and some semblance of how you are going to get there, the trip generally goes as planned. If however, you begin a trip without any idea of where you want to go, invariably you are destined to wander aimlessly. Oh, you may have the time of your life experiencing all of the unexpected events that may take place, but more than likely, you will only end up experiencing the trip from hell.
In many ways, our industry stands at a crossroad. We are faced with a greater demand for our product than ever before. Almost daily, a new competitive construction product makes claims against our masonry system. At the same time, the demand for labor has never been so high, yet interest among young people in a career in construction is at an all time low. More up-start mason contracting firms enter our industry virtually overnight, armed with a lack of knowledge on how to run a profitable company. Even your own time as a mason contractor has never been so divided. If you are like most contractors, you just don't have time for anything.
In the midst of all of the chaos, the Mason Contractors Association of America and its Executive Committee participated in a Long Range Strategic Planning retreat in order to map out a new direction for the masonry industry. What will construction be like thirty years from now? What will be the dominant building materials preferred by customers? Who will our competitors be? Will we have enough workers available to install our products? Will new technology render us obsolete? These were all questions that the association and its officers faced when strategizing about the future. More importantly, the association developed a long range strategic vision of where the masonry industry should be and what role the Mason Contractors Association of America will play in shaping the construction market. What was completed is a new, more defined direction for the association and the development of pathways to the future of masonry.
Last July, a planning group consisting of staff and the Board of the Mason Contractors Association of America (MCAA) met to complete the process of developing a strategic long-range plan. Jean Frankel, Principal Partner of Tecker Consultants, LLC (TC), led the group in the process. During the session, the group engaged in dialogue and deliberation which yielded a number of insights that were refined in an offline review of their work. The framework used was a model of strategic judgments organized into four time-related horizons:
1. Consideration of factors in the long-range planning horizon (10-30 years into the future), and the articulation of a core purpose, core values, a Big Audacious Goal, and a vivid description of what attainment of the goal will be like.
2. A set of assumptions about the future of MCAA, the masonry industry, and the business environment of the future.
3. Identification of a set of mega issues-critical questions that will need to be answered in order for MCAA to position itself strategically in the future.
4. Long-range visioning articulated in five goal statements with draft objectives and strategies that identify where MCAA could be in the next several years and how it can get there. The vision attempts to focus on how the organization will provide beneficial outcomes to members.
10-30 Year Planning Horizon
"CORE IDEOLOGY & ENVISIONED FUTURE"
In developing a strategic long range vision, a core ideology was developed to guide the Board of the MCAA. This core ideology will assist in determining which short term goals and objec-