Strategic Planning ITRC Fall Meeting 2005 This is the briefing for the first plenary session of the ITRC at the fall meeting in Memphis, TN. It will be the first time the whole thinking of the strategic plan will be presented to the ITRC members. It is a “pep talk” briefing, designed to bring everyone into the concept of why we did a plan, how it was done, that it is a completed process for now, and we are moving on to action. So it has a lot of ownership in the presentation, i.e., “WE are in this together, this is who WE are, this is what WE will do.

Today’s Briefing The planning process What is in the strategic plan The next steps The briefing will cover three things: A quick outline of how we conducted the planning process A description of the contents of the strategic plan And what are the action steps we will take next Do not dwell on the process. It is talked about here simply to show there was linear thinking and rational steps in developing the plan. Anyone complaining they did not know about it was not paying attention. NB - - The outline of the plan is not exactly how it is presented in the written plan itself or in the sequence the Board followed to get there. This discussion tries to give logic to the presentation by telling how we got to where we are. To wit: We cataloged what ITRC accomplished in the first ten years and how the program developed while achieving what it did; We defined what our purpose and mission is; We examined what basic values drive the ITRC; We looked at what we do well and tagged those items as core competencies; We looked to see what expertise and emphasis we will need to be competitive in the future; And we prepared a list of actions to start working on.

Process and Timeline Began at the Board retreat in February 2005 Board members, team leaders, POCs, stakeholders, and industry gave input Board reviewed input at retreat in May 2005 Draft discussed at Midyear meeting Draft plan circulated for comment by a select, review group Final plan adopted by Board in October 2005 Pretty straight forward. The select, review group called the SPG (Strategic Planning Group) numbered almost 100 and included the board, team leaders, POCs, some PAs, stakeholders, industry members, and academicians. The final plan will be included in the handout materials of the fall meeting.

Planning approach What have we accomplished in ten years? What is our purpose and mission? What values do we embrace? What competencies are at our core? How should we prepare for the future? What actions are next? See the notes above on slide 2.

Our Defining Decade A problem-solving model that works A strong network of site owners, purveyors of technology, regulators, and stakeholders Over 50 documents published More that 20,000 people trained in innovative problem solving Growing support among the states Continued federal commitment Solid industry support A problem-solving model that works The ITRC model of teams developing products and training is now a proven concept. We think it will be effect in the future too. A strong network of site owners, purveyors of technology, and regulators These are our customers without using the word “customer.” Site owners are industry and federal land holders. Purveyors of technology are the manufacturers, the vendors, and the consultants. The regulators are the state and federal regulators. I would avoid a long discussion of “Who are our customers.” It always seems to be a tar baby discussion – tough to get out of. Over 50 documents published Nuff said. More that 20,000 people trained in innovative problem solving You can use some a Mary’s stats from the ECOS meeting here if you want to. Growing support among the states We just added WY and maybe IA Continued federal commitment Although the money may have dropped, I don’t think the fed’s desire to keep the ITRC viable has diminished. Solid industry support Make sure everyone knows that industry has always been there fir the ITRC and all indications are they will continue to be.

Purpose and Mission Purpose: To advance innovative environmental decision-making Mission: Develop information resources and help break down barriers to the acceptance and use of technically sound innovative solutions to environmental challenges through an active network of diverse professionals These are the words we labored over. Tell everyone they should have these words memorized by the January kickoff meeting.

Our Basic Values We are a state-led organization We bring innovation to the environmental marketplace We are grounded in technical excellence We approach our work with integrity We operate openly and in partnership We strive for consensus This is an outline of what is in the document. I think it is pretty straight forward.

Where is our expertise We are a viable, responsive network of environmental experts We are proactive in proposing environmental improvement We know environmental remediation We know state and federal regulations We are collaborative and unbiased We are apolitical and communicate across political boundaries We deliver a return on our funder’s investment Our products are readily accessible Again, pretty much a list of what we know and what we do well.

What we will Need for the Future Go beyond remediation Expand our capability to respond to emerging issues Deliver our information products efficiently and effectively Expand our communication capability Track market trends Now we are moving into some new thinking. These are the conclusions that the planners have come up with. For purposes of this discussion, they should be presented as the winnowing of lots of choices down to the ones that the planners thought were most important today for the ITRC. Not everyone has to agree with them, but they are they choices right now.

Action List List shows the main areas of the strategic plan and what we need to do in the our work in the immediate, middle, and long-term future List becomes the action plan for the ITRC Actions will be monitored by the Board There will be a table to attach here.