Shul Kiruv Planning Guide - Part 1 - Setting Goals

To develop a successful kiruv program for your Shul, you must know what you want to achieve. The prerequisites for success are goal setting and planning. This blog post is about helping you define and articulate your goals and setting up a structure so you can plan effectively to reach those goals.

According to Don Clark, in his article on "Leading & Leadership," (available in its entirety at http://www.nwlink.com/~Donclark/leader/leadled.html) there are six steps of goal setting: Vision; Goals; Objective; Tasks; Timelines; and, Follow Up. Let's examine each and see how it applies in a Shul setting.

Step 1 – See the Vision

The first step in setting goals is to have a vision of what you want the future to look like. In the case of a Shul, a Kiruv Committee can develop it's own plan for the Shul's kiruv activities, but how does that fit with the goals of the Shul itself? Has the Rabbi, President and Board developed their own vision for what kind of a Shul they want to have a few years down the road? Does it include a commitment to promoting kiruv in the Shul and throughout the community? The answer to this last question will impact on the Kiruv Committee's goals because the vision of the Kiruv Committee must fit into the bigger vision for the Shul as a whole. Is kiruv just going to be some isolated programs within the Shul, or is it going to be a Shul focus and mentality? This is very relevant to your planning.

Developing your general vision is the first step to setting meaningful, realistic goals.

Step 2 - Choose Your Goals

In order to set your goals, you have to convene your committee, which will, hopefully, represent a cross section of the Shul so that their ideas and participation will represent the general membership. Goals are more specific than the vision, but are not so clear that you yet know how you are going to reach them. For example, goals could be to establish and build two ongoing programs and four individual events, one per quarter. This gives you a definite direction and frames your vision.

Step 3 – Define Your Objectives

Objectives are like mile markers on the highway to your goals. They enable you to measure your progress and make sure you are going in the right direction of your vision. Here is where you need to get specific by selecting the specific programs and activities you are going to run, and assigning measurable criteria for success. For example, we are going to run a weekly Beginner's Service, with a Kiddush afterwards and after three months we are going to have at least 5 steady attendees, after six months, 15 steady attendees and by the end of the year at least 30 regular participants. The concreteness of your stated objectives—if agreed upon by the entire committee—will help to focus and galvanize everybody to meet and beat the objectives. If you are not specific, it will not be clear to everybody what exactly you are trying to achieve and each person will have their own idea of what you are trying to accomplish. That is a sure recipe for mediocrity—at best. If you want to rally the troops, be specific and clear about your objectives.

Step 4 – Analyze and Assign Tasks

The tasks are the means to accomplishing your objectives. At this stage, you figure out exactly what has to be done to put your projects into place. In a later blog post, I hope to provide you with an outline or sample To Do list for your average program. For now, this means assigning a member of your committee to head up each of the programs and events you have chosen. This person must then make a list of all he or she has to do in order to get it done. This ranges from getting people to help, to advertising and publicity to scheduling, etc.

Step 5 – Set Timelines

Developing a timeline enables you to easily prioritize your tasks. Very often certain tasks must be done before others and each of them might be done by different people. Having a timeline that all involved are aware of enables everything to proceed smoothly and on schedule. For example, Rachel will have called the two local newspapers to get their ad rates by September 12th and given the information to Steve who will confirm the budget allocation for the ads by September 15th, etc.

Step 6 – Follow Up

Follow up is primarily the job of the Kiruv Committee Chairperson. It is ongoing from the start, but is most important as things start to come together. This involves following up and making sure that each person is doing what they agreed to do and making sure everything is running smoothly. It does not mean doing someone else's job; it does mean overseeing, cheerleading, coordinating and making sure everybody is working in tandem to reach the group's goals. As Don Clark puts it, "Over-supervision stifles initiative, breeds resentment, and lowers morale and motivation. Under-supervision leads to miscommunication, lack of coordination, and the perception by subordinates that the leader does not care."

To review:
1. See the Vision;
2. Choose Goals;
3. Define Objectives;
4. Analyze and Assign Tasks;
5. Set Timelines;
6. Follow Up.
Plan your goals by following these six steps to success and you will surely build a dynamic, exciting and rewarding kiruv program in your Shul.