Starbucks. Southwest
Airlines. Facebook. Kahn Academy.
All successful brands and companies that produce quality service,
products and programs. We assume these
companies are good because of their names and what they have done. More times than not, we go to get our coffee
at Starbucks or reserve our flights with Southwest simply because we know what
we are going to get. We don’t question
the how and why we get what we need with great businesses and programs; we just
expect to get what we want and need. The
expectations that they have molded in each of us are built on the foundation
and culture within their organizations.
The same goes for
successful educational programs. Many times
we take them for granted because each year we know what we are going to
get. From the inside of the building or
classroom, sometimes our staff and students almost make it look too easy. They make pride, tradition and success look
routine. In reality, all of those things
are anything but easy to duplicate.
Great educational programs are lot like the successful
brands above. They are built on basic
principles that stand the test of time.
When I think of success, I think of the performing arts at Gahanna
Lincoln High School. While all of the
programs (theatre, band, choir, orchestra) are successful in their own rights,
they all have foundation built on the same principles:
Relationships Are Vital
Everyone in the department and program needs to work
together, even if they have different individual styles and personalities. To have a successful program at any level,
you need to have a foundation built on relationships. Your department needs to have the same goal
in mind: all students, our students.
Don’t focus on grade levels, focus on students. Relationships stand the test of time when
everyone has the same overall goal to achieve.
Communication Must Include Everyone
To have successful programs you need efficient and effective
communication techniques. Everyone within
the department needs to know what the rest of the staff is doing. For effective communication you need strong
relationships. When you are thinking
about your own program, remember to make building strong relationships a priority
in order to help the flow of communication.
When you care about others in your program, you will communicate better
because you want to make sure everyone is informed. You won’t do it because you feel you have to
communicate to everyone. You will
communicate to make sure the relationships inside your department and program
remain strong so everyone can achieve the ultimate goal of helping others.
Structure Can't Take Days Off
Create a structure for the entire program for everyone to
follow. Surprisingly, more structure allows
for others to be more creative and flexible in their instruction. You would think it would be the opposite, but
it isn’t. The formulated structure of a
program allows for staff to step outside of the normal routine and try
different methods. If they work, the
rest of the staff in the program can also use the methods and make improvements
on their end. If it doesn’t work, other
members of the program can add input and everyone knows the new attempt wasn’t
successful and can help make improvements to either use it or not use it. That is only possible when a solid structure
exists and all members have a part in creating the structure.
Success Breeds Success
Successful programs have a healthy culture. Many times, a healthy culture has the
foundation of a solid structure. Besides
culture and structure, successful programs also have talent. But talent alone doesn’t create success. A mixture of culture, talent and structure
creates success. Winners win! We know that’s the case. But there is always a foundation to a
winner’s success story and it focuses around culture.
When you are thinking about your classroom, your building,
your district, or even your business, remember what great organizations or
programs represent. Visualize how you
can make improvements in your organization or program by focusing on the
characteristics discussed above. Use the
next couple of months to figure out how you and your team will help transform
your programs or classroom to be the best it can be. Build a culture to make success the norm and
not the exception.
