by Gayle Johnson
GAZETTE STAFF
Cheryl Christian was on hand to host two Strategic Plan Focus Group Meetings on March 29th, to help community members of the RM of Argyle understand the importance of the strategic plan currently in the making, the steps and research that will be done to create the final product, and the critical need for community members to be involved.
Cheryl founded GovFox Municipal Consulting Inc., the company hired to work with the RM of Argyle to create its strategic plan.
Cheryl is well-versed in not only strategic planning but also in all levels of municipal government, drawing from expertise gleaned from ongoing education, as well as a variety of notable positions held, including a four-year term as a Councillor in the RM of West St. Paul, followed by a four-year term as Mayor in the same RM.
According to the GovFox website, Cheryl and her GovFox associates bring over half a century “of combined experience in municipal government” with their associates sharing “ best practices in governance, community engagement, operations, human resources, planning and economic development.”
During the meeting, she explained the importance of a municipality’s strategic plan, referring to it as a road map.
Cheryl also discussed SWOT.
SWOT is an acronym for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.
As she went through each, several items were noted by community members in attendance, causing a definite pattern to emerge.
It was enlightening to note that even in this small group, there were parallel thoughts on the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats within our RM.
For example, the small crowd agreed we had a healthy and progressive council and were lucky to have health care. There was also agreement that available housing and lab services were needed.
The SWOT discussion clarified why community members should be involved and fill out the survey to ensure their concerns and thoughts on the need for our collective community are heard.
Our council is opening the doors to community members and asking them what they want and need going forward. Let them know what you think is or is not working and what you want to see in our community.
The RM of Argyle council is committed to building a vibrant and sustainable community that significantly enhances the quality of life for all residents through strategic growth, active citizen involvement, and strong, responsible governance.
They are committed to managing municipal resources with transparency and efficiency while stimulating economic development and creating a thriving community that exceeds the needs and expectations of our community members.
To accomplish this, our council needs our collective participation to know what community members need and what is on their minds.
This road map for the RM of Argyle will be constructed, including input from community members who have filled out the paper survey that was distributed through the mail (copies are also available at the RM of Argyle office), as well as through the duplicate survey available online at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DW26SP6.
The survey is easy and quick to fill out, but the information provided is invaluable. Please note that all surveys are completely anonymous.
In addition to the information gained by the surveys returned by community members, many hours of other research go into formulating a strategic plan, including but not limited to demographics, interviews of municipal government members, and discussions of current amenities.
All information collected is thoroughly analyzed, and discussions ensue with the Council before it is shared with community members.
Many steps must be taken before the actual implementation of the strategic plan.
If you were unable to attend the meetings already held to discuss what a strategic plan will do to enhance and move our community forward, and why it is essential to be part of it, there may be another virtual meeting held to share information. Please watch for updates.
We will follow the strategic plan journey and share information as it becomes available.
