We Measure Our Success By Your Results

• A vision becomes $11 million of brick and mortar.
  Atlanta Community Food Bank

  We worked with a group of board and staff members to develop a strategic plan and a first-year implementation plan. The first-year outcomes included improved employee satisfaction.  After three years, the organization opened a new $11 million, state-of-the-art facility. The strategic plan was credited with securing major funding for the new building. 

  Read a more detailed description of this engagement. pdf

  What our client had to say …

  "The strategic planning process you led was the most comprehensive and thorough long-range planning process the Food Bank had conducted in its 23 year history. Your expertise was critical to the bottom line outcome: we have a clear blueprint for the next few years and are implementing action planning that has overall alignment. A primary goal was to use this strategic plan to guide a major capital campaign to raise over $10 million for a new facility. I'm thrilled to confirm that our Strategic Plan Summary played an important role in leveraging two $2 million grants." Rob Johnson Chief Operating Officer Atlanta Community Food Bank

• Innovative conference design results in diverse stakeholders beginning to implement mental health agenda.
  Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control

  We were hired to facilitate a conference that would engage a diverse group of researchers, health promoters, and other health scientists to explore how to integrate mental health into the CDC agenda.  
  
  Our "open space" conference design allowed participants to share their knowledge, explore new ideas, and consider topics for which they held a passion relative to mental health as a public health issue.  On the morning of the third day, participants received a report, covering all the sessions, which was used to develop short and longer term actions in six key areas. Within one week of the conference, they had already initiated many of the short-term actions.  After nine months, plans for most of the longer term projects had been developed and started.

• The economics research section of a government agency heightens productivity and morale.
  Veterans Administration: Health Care Financing and Economics

  Our client was a research unit of the VA.  They wished to clarify their mission and vision, develop a strategic plan and design a clear approach to implementation. Our work with them resulted in increased focus with improved productivity and morale.

  Three years later, The Jackie Sherman Group was re-hired to help them revise their strategic plan as part of a division-wide strategic planning effort.

  What our client had to say …

  "Dr. Sherman first consulted with us when we were expanding in size and needed to plan strategically for the future. I hired her to help us develop a strategic plan for the next three to five years. With her guidance, we wrote a mission statement; articulated a vision for our program; worked through a strategy driven by what we thought were the major questions facing the VA and the nation in the next ten years; and set objectives for the program. Her approach helped us articulate our research values and helped us decide how to build our capacity while advancing each member's career goals. Since that time she has coached me on some personnel issues, advised me on updating the strategic plan and been a willing sounding board from time to time."   Ann Hendricks, PhD Director Health Care Financing & Economics Veterans Administration Boston

• Strategic Planning becomes the vehicle for major organizational revitalization.
  Ahavath Achim Synagogue

  One of Atlanta’s largest and oldest synagogues had experienced 5 years of declining membership, decreasing participation in services and other activities, and related financial difficulty. A previous strategic plan had been developed but never implemented. Working with synagogue leadership we developed and implemented a strategic planning approach that involved the entire congregation to communicate about its needs and to engage in developing innovative approaches to revitalization. Positive changes began even before the plan was officially adopted. After the first year of implementation results included increased membership, expanded programming, a revitalized religious school, significantly increased participation across all areas of synagogue life, improved finances, and more participative governance. This planning process and the resulting plan won the Solomon Schechter award in 2009.

  What our client had to say … 

  "Jackie led us through a strategic planning process that included input from our multi-generational congregation and leadership team, resulting in a dynamic plan that we put immediately into action. The outcome is that we've experienced a new level of growth and vibrancy for our congregation. Jackie is highly skilled at working with groups – she was just the right person for this endeavor."   Marianne Garber, PhD Ahavath Achim Synagogue, Atlanta

• Strategic Plan Drives Program Integration and New Partnerships and is Excellent Fundraising Tool.
  Refugee Family Services

  The new executive director of a refugee services agency needed to develop a new strategic plan during a tough economic environment. More than 50% of the staff were new since the last plan was developed, and most had no previous planning experience. The goal was to be more aspirational than previous plans, yet scalable so that the strategic directions would remain relevant across various economic conditions. We designed and facilitated a highly interactive process led by the senior leaders and that engaged all staff members. Input was gathered from the board, staff, funders, strategic partners and clients. The plan articulates a comprehensive set of desired outcomes, a clear theory of change, and strategies and related actions to achieve those outcomes – including program integration and inter-agency partnerships. The plan resulted in a high degree of buy-in from board and staff, and favorable feedback from donors, and is proving to be an excellent tool for fundraising.

  What our client had to say … 

  "Jackie facilitated a strategic planning process for our organization that received very positive feedback from our board and donors. i was impressed by her ability to work through the high-level conceptual challenges. And as a leader, I truly appreciated her willingness to ask the hard questions and challenge me to think things through, which always improves the end product."     Emily Pelton Executive Director Refugee Family Services, Atlanta

• Strategic Plan with Stretch Goals Becomes Blueprint for Running Agency.
  Jewish Educational Loan Fund

  132 year old Jewish service organization with a new executive director wanted a new strategic plan that really stretched the organization to do “more”.  Based on input from a full range of stakeholders – the board, staff, partner agencies, donors, and clients – the resulting 4-year plan expands programming, board development and shifts the board from a focus on the program to a focus on fundraising.  The plan has served as a template for running the organization.  In the first 2 years they have achieved 50% of their fundraising goal and most of the programmatic goals.

  What our client had to say … 

  "Jackie led us through a strategic planning process that included input from our multi-generational congregation and leadership team, resulting in a dynamic plan that we put immediately into action. The outcome is that we've experienced a new level of growth and vibrancy for our congregation. Jackie is highly skilled at working with groups – she was just the right person for this endeavor."       Lara Dorfman Executive Director Jewish Educational Loan Fund, Atlanta   “I’m so pleased that, two years after working with Jackie to complete our strategic plan, we are running the organization using the plan as an actionable template. The plan has become embedded into our culture. Jackie’s approach is smart, practical and very thorough. We trusted her process and got the result we wanted.”       Jeff Alperin Board Member Jewish Educational Loan Fund, Atlanta