STRATEGIC DESIGN
I researched, developed, and delivered a strategic plan for an eleven-branch County library system centered around improving quality-of-life all.
Date:
2022
Client:
Sarasota County Library & Historical Resources
Needs Assessment & Strategic Plan
Deliverable:
Roles:
Design Research; Strategic Design; Workshop Facilitation; Community Engagement; Project Management
Economic Stratification; Urban Planning; Emergency Preparedness
Concepts:
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
Over a six-month period, our small team guided of designers and strategists led Library leadership and staff to cocreate a new strategic plan for the eleven-branch library system using human centered design techniques. Through a combination of highly participatory community engagement sessions and workshopping, we led a process of co creation that resulted in the drafting and adoption of new Mission, Vision and Values Statements and ultimately a new strategic plan for the County Library system. This engagement required a nuanced approach to provide value to the various community stakeholders. Because Sarasota is generally an affluent community, our team needed to deliver a strategic plan that could leverage the large philanthropic base to support the needs of an increasingly stratified community of patrons.
PROBLEM:
We began the engagement with robust discovery and research such as focus groups, interviews, questionnaires and surveys. The qualitative research verified certain assumptions and uncovered new issues that needed to be addressed in our work. A driving question was “How might the County Library system best support the population of community members that work in the service industry in addition to the more affluent population of retirees that drive the robust art and philanthropic activity of the county?’
SOLUTION:
Using the World Health Organization’s (WHO) framework on Quality of Life as a basis for our strategy, we were able to articulate Seven strategic areas of focus that emerged from identifying the needs, strengths, challenges and opportunities that communities in the county are experiencing.