ADA News

Dr. Barichello

The ADA Board at its June meeting approved the 2011-2014 ADA Strategic Plan, a roadmap that provides the strategic direction for the ADA for the next three years.

The four goals of this strategic plan each have measures that will document the progress the Association is making toward reaching the 2011-2014 goals of the ADA.

The plan is not a policy document—it's a set of goal statements based on what the Association sees as opportunities, given the ADA's deep understanding of the world in which the ADA operates. This understanding was achieved through rigorous ongoing environmental scanning. The Strategic Plan directs priority setting for resource allocation including money, people and time.

Part of the planning process includes making sure the plan is communicated to ADA members. The ADA wants all members to understand where their Association is heading and how the ADA intends to build a stronger, more relevant value proposition for its members. The plan is posted online on ADA.org (www.ada.org/strategicplan.aspx) and the committee has initiated outreach to the constituent and component dental societies and council and commission chairs.

Dr. Teri Barichello, who chairs the Strategic Planning Committee, hopes that every member will take the time to read the document. "I want members to view this plan from the 30,000-foot level. What I mean by that is that it's important to remember how large an organization the ADA is and that the ADA serves a wide range of dentist members. We tried very hard to create a strategic plan that is relevant to all our members and yet positions the organization so that it is well prepared to handle emerging issues and trends."

Dr. Raymond F. Gist, ADA president-elect, also serves on the committee, and sees how the plan will play into making initiatives become reality.

"What excites me about our Strategic Plan is its positive direction and that the plan drives the budgeting decisions," he said. "To me, this means that our initiatives will be prioritized, funded and realized. Our members, the public at large and our policymakers will know that our leadership will be at the forefront, where it belongs, when addressing issues that are pertinent to dentistry."

The plan starts with an executive summary that presents the ADA vision statement, its mission and the four goals that have been identified through a series of concurrent efforts by ADA leadership, the Strategic Planning Committee and ADA staff:

• ADA Vision Statement: The American Dental Association: The oral health authority committed to the public and the profession.
• ADA Mission Statement: The ADA is the professional association of dentists committed to the public's oral health, ethics, science and professional advancement; leading a unified profession through initiatives in advocacy, education, research and the development of standards.

ADA Goals: 2011-2014

1. Goal: Provide support to dentists so they may succeed and excel throughout their careers.
2. Goal: Be the trusted resource for oral health information that will help people be good stewards of their own oral health.
3. Goal: Improve public health outcomes through a strong collaborative profession, and through effective collaboration across the spectrum of our external stakeholders.
4. Goal: Ensure that the ADA is a financially stable organization that provides appropriate resources to enable operational and strategic initiatives.

Understanding the environmental factors affecting the Association and the profession of dentistry were important considerations to the process of developing the Strategic Plan. A few of the myriad issues affecting the ADA now and into the future include the economic recession; health care reform and changes in the health care marketplace; changes in demographics, globalization and the role of associations in the midst of ever-accelerating immediacy and interactivity of electronic communication.

"In order to remain a relevant and vital organization, the ADA must address this rapidly changing environment and set our sights on the impact we, as a profession and as an association, will have on our members, our communities and our organization," the introduction to the plan concludes.

The next step is to keep the process going: the plan is dynamic in nature and "acknowledges that change is constant and the Association must position itself to anticipate, take initiative and respond to these changes." It will be reviewed annually with input from the Board of Trustees, the SPC and general membership.

The Strategic Plan is translated into the day to day activities of the staff through the annual Operating Plan.

"Quarterly reports on progress regarding the implementation of the Operating Plan are made available to the House of Delegates, the Board of Trustees and the membership along with a key performance indicator dashboard. ADA programs, services and projects must move the Association toward the established mission statement, strategic goals and objectives," the document states.

"It is the duty of the Strategic Planning Committee to maintain the plan and monitor its implementation," Dr. Barichello said.

"The committee will review the plan annually and achievement of the Operating Plan goals quarterly," she said. "The goals and objectives will be analyzed and evaluated in terms of successful outcomes. The committee will continually scan the environment for emerging trends that may affect the profession and organization and make recommendations to the Board as necessary."

Dr. Gist noted that the ongoing monitoring will enhance the ADA's efforts to support members in their profession. "We are helping to prepare our members to perform at the highest level in their respective areas of practice or employment. The Strategic Plan will be monitored and upgraded, as necessary. I think this will engender more interest by our membership, which is paramount to the continued success of the ADA and of organized dentistry," he said.

Reflecting on the committee's efforts since March, Dr. Barichello observed, "This was an extremely challenging process for the SPC. We had to fit an entirely new process into a pre-existing time frame, which meant we had precious little time in face-to-face meetings to work on the plan. Anyone who has ever been involved in planning can appreciate the importance and value of meeting in person. To the credit of the members of the SPC, they were focused, tireless and got the work done.

"As the chair, I am extremely grateful for my committee members: Dr. Carol Summerhays, Dr. Dan Klemmedson, Dr. Ruchi Sahota, Dr. McKinley Price, Dr. Bill Calnon (ADA 2nd District trustee), Dr. Jerry Long (ADA 15th District trustee), Dr. Chuck Norman (ADA 16th District trustee), Dr. Dennis Engel (ADA 9th District trustee) and Dr. Gist. In addition, without our ADA staff, Dr. Kathleen O’Loughlin (ADA executive director) and Diane Ward and knowledgeable and patient consultants from Bostrom, we would still be working on the document."

"We welcome all feedback," she said. Members are encouraged to send any input to the Strategic Planning Committee (via e-mail at adastrategicplan@ada.org) or through communications with their district trustees.