Ron's 15 Questions

I want to share with you a tool that I am using to help me get to know the University Advancement division, get to know the people in the division (and them me), and get a sense of or confirm our direction. Below are 15 questions that I have asked each person to answer in preparation for my individual one-on-one meetings with them. My plan is to summarize the responses and look for consistent themes to share with everyone and to help inform our existing processes for setting goals, establishing priorities, making decisions, and measuring our successes.

Here’s a more generic version that is mostly borrowed from our own Police Chief, Ron Hackenberg (thanks Chief!), and slightly customized. I call them “Ron’s 15 Questions.”:
1. What are the strengths of [your department]?
2. What are the weaknesses?
3. If you were in my chair, what would you address first in [your department]?
4. [Your department]’s stated vision is “[your department’s vision].”
What does that mean to you and what is your vision for [your department]?
5. Are you aware of [your department]’s mission?
What do you LIKE to do, and what do you BEST? How can we use those likes and skills to further [your department]’s mission?
6. Are you familiar with your departmental goals or those of the division? Are we prepared to reach those goals?
7. Are we prepared to [begin our next big project]? What areas should we focus on first in order to become prepared?
8. When is the last time you were praised or recognized for doing a good job?
9. Are you currently working with someone here (or elsewhere) to develop your career?
10. What are your future goals?
11. What have you achieved in the area of your education, and what are your future educational plans?
12. Do you feel your opinion counts? Are you consulted for your expertise in strategy sessions or problem solving?
13. Do you feel part of a “team”? Why or why not?
14. What roles do CSUSM and [your department] play in the context of your career goals? What could be done to make you want to stay in [your department] at CSUSM?
15. What are our needs in the area of training?

It’s easy to see how these questions can prompt an open and candid conversation – a first step in the direction of developing mutual trust. Remembering that the best ideas come from those actually doing the work will highlight the importance of providing an outlet for those ideas; almost a brainstorming, unfiltered exchange sort of exercise.

Now I am going to share a secret with you (so I guess it won’t be a secret any longer) that will help you be successful when you enter any new situation. It’s called respect. I’ll close with one of my mantras that helps me focus on maintaining respect in a new environment while still moving forward – Honor the Legacy, Look Toward the Future.