Overarching Goals: - Strategically employ branding and messaging tools to influence civic agenda, increase visibility, and strengthen CHF’s role in the region - Build on strong foundation of CHF research infrastructure (including online platform) and develop equally impactful framework for all programs - Increase Board and Graduate Engagement (in Board meeting attendance and committee participation, event attendance, leadership nominations, fundraising, and contributions) - Leverage and grow Visionaries & Vanguards corporate donor program and Foundation and Community giving
January Make nominations for Leadership Forums Sign up for Board Committee February Staff Directors Retreat (Facilitated by MCV Consulting) Board Orientation for new Board members February/March Each Committee Chair works with staff to complete preliminary 2015 goals April Full Board meeting will review 2015 committee goals and committee activities and choose Development assignments May Executive Committee Workshop will build on outcomes of February Staff Directors Retreat and 2015 committee goals
Center for Houston’s Future connects business and the community to tackle the region’s most pressing problems. CHF works toward solutions by research, planning, educating, convening, and collaborating – driving lasting civic change through community briefings, Summits, Salons, Roundtables, and carefully targeted initiatives. The Center increases community awareness of critical challenges facing our future by providing independent peer-reviewed research and analysis. This information strengthens the nonprofit ecosystem by making the data-based decision-making tools, commonly used in business, accessible to nonprofits, which supports stronger grant proposals, clarity of communication, and enhanced strategic planning. Other organizations, both local and national, recognize our capabilities. For example, CEOs for Cities, Lumina Foundation and the National League of Cities tapped the Center to lead Houston’s Talent Dividend/ My Degree Counts; the City of Houston is using our Arts and Cultural Heritage Indicator Report to help guide the City’s first-ever arts and culture plan; and without the groundwork of the Center’s Pre K for All Report in 2002, we would not have the successful efforts of Early Matters, the current coalition of business, education, and nonprofits working to improve early childhood education. Finally, our staff and leadership serve on a variety of committees and boards across the city. The Center has the ability to collect and analyze information in collaboration with subject matter experts, and distill and present that data and analysis in a usable, accessible form for the good of the community. Greater Houston Partnership is linking to HoustonIndicators. org to inform and support their new Council structure, attesting to the value of the research and the utility of its presentation.
Scenarios 2040, the nation’s largest public-interest, business-led scenarios project, marks a significant achievement in collaboration, engagement, and future focus for the Center. Built over two years by a diverse team of 25 residents age 19-80 and illuminating such issues as resource scarcity, education/workforce alignment, and income inequality, these Scenarios (portrayed in powerful videos) have been viewed and debated by more than 5000 people across the region. Resulting in a community Summit on Investing in a Skilled Workforce , the Center was joined by experts from McKinsey and Company and HR professionals from business including Shell, in presenting our findings and call to action. Following this Summit, the Center chose to narrow the scope of My Degree Counts – Phase II to increase certificates and associate degrees, targeting part-time minority students; and the Partnership launched UpSkill Houston, addressing the middle skills workforce gap by industry sector. Finally, based on the Scenarios, a Future Studies curriculum for high school students was beta tested here in Houston, and then introduced as a curriculum offering to the U. S. Department of State’s Office of Overseas Schools by Dr. Peter Bishop (March 2012-Media launch of scenarios videos; January 2013-Workforce Summit; January 2014-My Degree Counts, Phase II kicks off; Sept. -Dec. 2013-Beta test; 2014-In-service Training with State Dept. ) The refinement of the Center’s Community Indicators program, for which continuing grant funding is requested, is a significant achievement and one to which a substantial portion of this document has already been devoted. In sum, we have moved from the old model of data collection and outside chapter authors to a more efficient staff and Center Fellow based research model, developed a website from scratch (HoustonIndicators. org) which allowed us to transition from printed reports to updated interactive online access to our research findings, moved the site from the development platform to a secure and stable server, established a systematic tracking system for ongoing focus on nine key issues based on both domestic and international peers, and better integrated the Indicator research outcomes in all aspects of Center programming, including Leadership and community engagement. We know that advances in technology will require constant upgrades and modifications and we are committed to continuing to equip our leaders with the best tools and data analysis available to make Houston a top global region.
The Houston region, like most American metropolitan areas, is at a crossroads, poised to continue and expand unprecedented prosperity, yet potentially threatened by such issues as changing demographics, unfunded retirement liabilities, environmental issues affecting our air and water, workforce/job misalignment, and even the potential of catastrophic weather events. We as a region have an opportunity to take charge of our future so that we will continue to become more competitive and sustainable. To do so, we need a clear and shared understanding of exactly where we stand as a community in terms of economic, social and environmental issues. Systematic collection, tracking and analysis of Indicator data informs leadership and can be used to improve governance with evidence-based policy making and promote overall civic engagement. Data is typically reported on a city or county basis. HoustonIndicators. org, accessible and interactive, is the source for comprehensive information on the state of the region. The website itself can be used as a platform for engagement and training leaders and organizations in the value and use of data in decision-making, which will be an important element of our ongoing outreach.
