development and community engagement projects are underway. Improvements in marketing and University communications are also under review.

Though some of the hard work has been accomplished over the past year has not been celebrated, make no mistake it was all appreciated.

Strategic Planning vs. Strategic Thinking and Agility

Strategic planning has long been criticized as a process that generally ends with a plan in a file, or a plan on a shelf. Organizations often embark on robust strategic planning ventures, but then fall short when it comes to deploying the processes required to actually change the future of the organization. We know however that we can't change the future without carefully crafted goals and the action steps necessary to accomplish each goal. Much like teaching a course, terminal goals are developed along with the enabling objectives necessary to achieve the goal. KSU's plan has been developed much the same way. The success of this plan rests in the accomplishment of each strategic objective. This plan then is different from other plans; each goal includes carefully crafted objectives with detailed plans to move toward the future.

As with any good planning processes, stakeholders must have the freedom to think strategically and embrace agility. The landscape of higher education is a rapidly changing scene that has become increasingly more competitive. To meet the demands of today's marketplace, KSU must be open to challenging the goals and objectives along this strategic path. As the landscape moves and changes, so must KSU. This plan is a call to action that requires collegiality and consensus, transparency and communication. The future depends on what we do, not what we say.

Strengths, Opportunities, Weaknesses and Threats

Typical strategic planning includes an assessment of institutional Strengths, Opportunities, Weaknesses and Threats. This process is called the SWOT process. Most strategic plans include this analytic process up front. It is from this process that goals and objectives are crafted. Strengths and Weaknesses are internally focused, while Opportunities and Threats are externally focused, each is defined below:

• Strengths: KSU characteristics that give it an advantage over others Universities.
• Weaknesses: Characteristics that place KSU at a disadvantage relative to other Universities.
• Opportunities: External elements that the University could use to its advantage given its strengths.
• Threats: External elements that could impact KSU success if not strategically managed.

After the early SWOT process, which included an analysis of institutional and market data, KSU stakeholders reviewed the history of KSU knowing it is not to wise to move forward without an

[6]