The Side of Your Desk

Every organization has one.

The side of the desk list.

Update the communications plan. Implement the strategic plan. Develop that new project. Improve board reporting. Find the funding. Create the measurements. Engage the community.

All important. None quite urgent enough to get done today.

And if your side of the desk list has its own side of the desk list… well, you might have a capacity problem.

Small municipalities and nonprofits are particularly good at wearing multiple hats. They have to be. One person may be responsible for administration, communications, grants, community engagement, HR and project management while still handling everything that walks through the door that day.

There’s an old saying: “Jack of all trades, master of none.” Being versatile is valuable. But there comes a point where asking one person to wear too many hats begins to dilute progress.

And usually, it’s not the urgent work that gets missed. It’s the important work that isn’t urgent yet.

Your plans should actually connect. Your strategic plan shouldn’t sit by itself. t should connect to your budget, because that's where you decide what you're actually willing and able to invest in.

Your budget and strategy should connect to an action plan. That action should connect to your communications, so people understand what you're doing and why. And all of it should eventually show up on your board or council agenda, where progress can be measured and accountability happens.

Strategy → Budget → Action → Communication → Accountability.

When those pieces aren't connected, even a great strategic plan can become another document sitting on the shelf or another job sitting on the side of someone's desk.

Sometimes you don't need another employee. This is where organizations sometimes overlook another option. You may not need or be able to afford another permanent staff position. You might need three or six months of additional capacity.

Someone who can come alongside your team, pick up a project, facilitate the work, connect the pieces and get it moving.

That could mean turning the strategic plan into measurable actions, developing the communications plan, creating better reporting systems or finally moving forward on the project everyone agrees is important but nobody has time to lead.

The goal shouldn't be to create dependency on an outside consultant. It should be to leave the organization with greater capacity than it had before.

And that can be cost-effective. Instead of adding the long-term cost of another position, you're purchasing specific expertise and capacity for a defined period with a defined outcome.

Sometimes the question isn't: “Why aren't we getting this done?”

It's: “Have we actually created the capacity to get it done?”

Because sometimes all an organization needs is someone to pick up the mantle, connect the pieces and turn what's sitting on the side of the desk into action.

And maybe finally clear off that desk.