If you are part of a group or organization, at some point you will probably wonder if what you have been doing has been successful or if the people involved are satisfied with the group.  There are many different ways you can go about evaluating this, from getting the group together and asking for feedback to conducting an online anonymous survey with questions that people can respond to.  However you decide to find out if you're doing well, you'll need to make sure that you carefully plan out what you want to ask.  Few things can be more frustating than asking a group questions with the intent to evaluate performance, only to end up with answers that are of no help to you because you didn't ask the correct questions.  This can happen if someone is not familiar with the purpose or atmostphere of the group or organization that they are looking at.  So how do you know that you're asking the right questions?  How do you make sure that you're getting responses from the people that you want?  There are a few things that you can keep in mind that will help you to answer these questions.  

Make sure that you really know what you want to learn - If you aren't sure what it is that you're looking to find out, then you will not be able to ask the right questions.   If you don't know what it is you want, how can you expect anyone else to?

Make sure they understand why this is important - Even worse than getting answers that aren't helping is getting no answers at all.  Make sure that you convey to those involved why this is important and how it will help things to work better.  

Don't operate in a vaccuum - Run your questions by someone else in the organization.  Don't assume that you got it right the first time and instead let others to point out ways things can be worded to get better results.  

Make it work for the group -If you're looking at a group of people who are technically challenged, conducting an online survey may not make a lot of sense.  You need to big a method that works for those you are trying to get answers from.  

The Membership Committee of the Maine Gay Men's Chorus recently conducted an anonymous online survey of the singing members asking about their satisfaction with the organization so far for the 2009-2010 season.  Before sending this out to the membership, the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors was consulted about the questions that would be asked to make sure they reflected the organization and what information was important.  The reason for this survey was also conveyed to the membership, letting them know what the information would be used for and how their contributions would help.  Because of these important steps, almost every member who received the survey completed it and provided valuable information that was in line with what the Membership Committee was trying to find out.  The results they have received will enable the organization to now improve for the remainder of the season and going forward in the future.  

In many organizations, the problem is not that people aren't coming up with new ideas to get things done - the problem is keeping track of them so you can follow through with them.  Getting a group of people together to brainstorm a solution is a great idea, but if no one is capturing and organizing the thoughts that are presented, then it is as if they were never presented to begin with.  One way of resolving this is by using the technique of "mind-mapping."

A mind map is simply a diagram that is used to represent any number of words, ideas or tasks that are linked to a central idea.  It can be a much more effective way of tracking ideas than using an outline or just taking notes because it helps to better connect ideas together.  A map can either be very simple with multiple central ideas and single "spokes" to convey ideas attached to that central idea or a map can be more complex with ideas that branch off in further idea sequences from the central idea.  However you use the map it helps to connect the ideas together in a way that doesn't happen with just making a list.  

There is no one set way to do a mind map.  Some people will freehand draw a map while others like to have something that is more structured.  There is also software that is designed to help with keeping your mind map organized and can let you print and/or share with others in a variety of ways.  You can find a list of some of the software at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mind_mapping_software

If you do a quick search on any search engine, you will find many sites of people who say that they can tell you the essential tools or strategies you need to ensure success.  The problem is that all of them list different tools and strategies!  Every organization and business is unique so that it is not surprising that you will find a different list of items for different types of entities.  If you search for the "seven C's", you will find pages related to leadership, communication, consulting, learning and even more specialized topics like web design and coaching.  What I have discovered is that there are three fundamental "C"s that will not guarantee success (and be wary of anything that promises that) but will lead to a more productive and rewarding experience working with your company or organization.

• Cooperation - Competition is healthy; but so is cooperation.  Remember that you and the others in the organization or business are part of a team and as such are all working toward the same ultimate goals.  Not everyone may always get along or agree, but it is important that you don't stand in the way of someone else getting their work done.  Be there to answer the phone when they've got a question or offer up the documents that you might have that are what they're looking for.
• Collaboration - Like every organization, every person is unique with their own skills and talents.  Collaborating with others will enable you to help them think in new ways and come up with new solutions and also for you to find new strategies in your own work.  Collaboration doesn't mean that three of you all take a document and break it into three sections and all work on it separately, it means that you use your strengths to help offset what might be a weakness for others.  There might be someone in your office struggling with an issue that you found a solution to last week - help them out.
• Communication - probably the most important of the three, and also the most overlooked.  Communication is more than saying hello to your co-workers as you pass them on the way to the water cooler, it is an essential tool for any organization.  How many times have you started working on a project only to find out that someone else has already completed what you were working on?  Or how many times have you thought someone else was responsible for a task only to realize that they were never aware of that?  These are the pitfalls that occur when there is poor or no communication.  Check in with each other, see where they are at and let them know what you're working on.  If you have questions about a project or task, certainly go and ask someone.  Keep each other in the loop and you will find that things get done more smoothly and the stress of not knowing if something is getting done or having one person responsible for too many tasks will disappear.  

Project management is not a new idea.  As long as things have needed to get done, people have needed to come up with a plan for how to do them.  There are few things worse than having something that needs to get done and not knowing who is supposed to be working on it or what the steps are in getting it done.  To get started with project management, you don't need any special skill sets or certain software (however there are many tools out there that can assist you), you just need to start with a few basic steps.

• What needs to be done - You probably have a long list of tasks that you know need to be completed.  The first thing is to organize these tasks by project in order to better keep track of them.  This can be done in a simple word processing document or a spreadsheet or even just with pen and paper. 
  
• Who needs to do it - Now that you have a better handle on what you need done, you need to make sure that you know who's going to do it.  By assigning people to tasks, you can accomplish two things:  You will know that someone is working on a task and that they are responsible for it, and you will be able to make sure that people are not getting overloaded by taking on too many tasks while others aren't working on as many things.  
• When it needs to be done - Arguable the most important of the steps is setting the timeline for when things need to be done.  Each task should be assigned the day that it is due and how much time is alotted to work on it.  By doing this, you can see what are the prioritized tasks as well as if you have many tasks that need to be completed at the same time so you don't get overwhelmed when a deadline approaches.  

As mentioned before, it is not required to use any special software to start with project management, but you may find that there are tools out there that are very useful to you.  Some of these software packages will better let you manage the people or resources that you have assigned to tasks, see a visual calendar of your timelines (one example is a gantt chart).  Tools have been designed as web-based and desktop-based; free, subscription based, or flat fee; for one person working on it or for sharing with multiple users - there is a great chance of finding a tool out there that works for you.  You can find a list of different project managment software at this site and also by searching for "project management software" in your favorite search engine. 

Maybe you've heard the phrases "core values", "core philosophies" or "governing values" at a meeting at your organization before, or maybe you've seen these same phrases on a company website listed along with their mission and their vision statement.  These phrases are often used but not everyone understands what they mean or why they are important.  Core values are those values that form the foundation of the organization or business; the values that are central to how we do what we do and why we do it and that are not easily changed or given up. 

So why is this important?  For an organization or business to be successful, they need to develop clear values and direction so that everyone involved in the organization or business can understand and contribute - core values allow people to come together and adopt a common approach.  Core values can be as simple as a few words or they can be more complex.  An ideal number of core values is between 3 and 6 - too few and you don't have a clear enough idea of the organization; too many and you risk diluting your purpose by going in too many directions or taking too much on.  Some organizations choose to post their values on their websites and documents whereas others choose to just have them displayed in a key place.  What is important is that they are known and central to the function of the organization or business.

The Maine Gay Men's Chorus, a local non-profit performing arts organization, recently started the strategic planning process.  After several years of not having a permanent Artistic Director, the Chorus hired one and started looking more at the future of the organization.  As part of this process, the Chorus needed to determine the values that were going to support them and guide them in fulfilling their mission and their vision and help as they moved through the rest of the process.  During a Chorus retreat, a session was led asking members what they thought were the key values and ideas that summed up the Chorus and that the directions that they believed it should be moving.  All members present were encouraged to participate to whatever level they felt comfortable in order to get a full range of ideas and values.  Many members not only offered their own views but also expanded on and added to the discussion on the views of others.  All of the values that were stated were recorded on large pieces of paper which were then later taken and typed up and disseminated back to the group to make sure that everything was accurately recorded.  After that the list was organized into several groups which were refined over time as any common threads were grouped together.  It was determined that several themes appeared naturally and what was important began to shine through loud and clear.  The results of all of this was presented to the Board of Directors of the Chorus who agreed that these values represented the Chorus and where they wanted to go in the future.

 As a result from this, the Maine Gay Men's Chorus has established the following core values:

• Harmony - We strive for harmony in our music and in our relationships between all members and with the larger community.
• Diversity - We are made up of unique individuals with unique talents peforming a wide range of songs at a variety of venues.  Our differences are our strength.
• Education - We educate ourselves as well as others through our presence, our performances and our people. 
• Community - We are a community of singers and supporters, striving to educate and entertain ourselves and the larger community around us.
• Music - We promote social acceptance and diversity through our music in an educational and entertaining atmosphere. 
  

Now with the core values established, the Chorus is able to more clearly move forward in determining their long term activities and goals.  They also now have a stronger foundation for attracting new members as well as new audiences and for getting current members more invested in the future of the organization.  While previously the Chorus had only been able to think on a short-term basis because of no permanent leadership, they now can create a successful future for the organization.  This effort in establishing core values succeeded because of seven essential steps.  The exact steps may vary depending on the organization, but the process is the same:

1. Listen to them - Core values should not be determined by a few people sitting in the proverbial ivory tower. 
2. Look at what they say - You will see common threads in their responses start to appear.
   
3. Check the results - Make sure that you have accurately captured their ideas and they feel that they were heard.
   
4. Organize the values - Build on the common threads you've seen and start developing the key values.
   
5. Talk to them - This shouldn't be a one-time shot for them to have input.  Make sure to keep them in the loop and to make sure you stay on track. 
6. Present your values - Determining the values won't matter if no one knows what they are.  Inform the organization and get them excited.
7. Use them or lose them - Don't rest now that you've determined the values.  Infuse them into your activities and build a stronger organization