Strategic Planning
On Saturday, September 10, 2022, our board members, staff, and Leena and Yogesh Satyal met to discuss and adjust our strategic plan. Board President Jim Craig said, “This year’s strategic planning session was very special. It was the first meeting since 2019 that board members were able to attend in person. It was wonderful to see everyone again and reconnect. Back in 2018, Mitrata had laid out a five year plan, but like many things it was put on hold during the pandemic years. This year, our strategic planning session focused on making those plans a reality.”
The morning was started with a fun game of “two truths and a lie”. All members present submitted two statements about their life that were true, and one that was a lie. They then read the three statements out loud and all other participants voted on which statement they believed to be the lie. This was a wonderful ice breaker and allowed us all to learn some very interesting facts about one another!
Next, we heard from Leena Satyal and Yogesh Satyal, the Executive Director and Board President of our NGO partner, Bhuvaneshwori Satyal Foundation (BSF), on BSF’s history, the current state of operations in Nepal, and their plans for the future. It was very difficult to keep our programs in Nepal operational throughout the pandemic, and we would not have been able to do it without their incredible dedication. It was wonderful to hear the program operations are beginning to return to normal.
Then, Mitrata’s Founder and Executive Director, Dr. Christine Schutz updated everyone on our Operations Team, and the excellent progress we’ve made in enhancing Mitrata’s internal structure over the past few years.
Finally, we broke into teams to discuss specific action items and goals necessary for each committee so that we may be able to achieve our goal of opening a 2nd Contact Center in Kathmandu in 2023. A year ahead of our original five year plan!
Moving forward, our committees are taking the goals we discussed at the meeting and are now developing their own strategic goals for the next year. These goals will enable the work of each committee to drive Mitrata, as a whole, toward reaching our overall goals.
Overall, it was a very successful day and everyone left feeling energized and excited about what we’re building for the future!
Thank you to all of our Board members who worked so hard at the strategic planning meeting, and our advisory board members who help us in countless, vital ways! A special thanks to Leena, Yogesh, and the Board members who flew into St. Louis for this meeting; and to Hewie Powell and Arlene Miller for hosting a phenomenal dinner following the planning session! What a special time to get to see you, and we are so grateful for your support!
