Transparency In Leadership

Transparency is as vital in our personal life as it is in our professional or even public one. And there is no better place to discover transparency in ourselves than through the lens of our most immediate relationships. If a leader, elected or volunteer, wants to create and maintain dialogue with others, they need to be as transparent as possible and at all times.

Starting with leadership, transparency helps us measure success. Successful leaders recognize their obligation to help the people they work with and the common cause. Moreover, leaders consistently ask for continuous support as purely, fully, and freely as they offer it. This is transparency in action.

Leaders help us grow. How many of us have personally experienced, whether in recent months or distant years, the difficulty in establishing or maintaining relationships with leaders? Although even just one person experiencing issues with transparency in leadership is problematic, twice that, or more, hinders growth.

Leaders should always be transparent. Transparency reveals a leader's actions when they clearly go against the common cause. In these unfortunate scenarios, this is typically good cause for a change in leadership. But if we want progress, if we want change, we need leaders that are a constant example of transparency.

Building The Foundation

Infrastructure Redevelopment Initiative:

Redeveloping the County Democratic Party's infrastructure will assist in providing a vision to guide the party, help create better objectives to unify our actions with the community-at-large, and, most importantly, help Democrats have the resources needed win elected offices.

Some key components of this phase of development include creating:

• Strategic Development Plan
• Developing a Vision Statement
• Revamped Mission Statement
• Revamped Leadership Model
• Executive Steering Committee
• New and Revamped Action Committees
• Committee Guides
• Operations Management Initiatives
• Administrative Guidelines
• Training Guides
• Volunteer Guides

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Executive Leadership:

A revamped internal leadership model will incorporate new, as well as redevelop existing, strategic development roles relative to the needs of the party at any given time. This does not change state officiated elected leadership guidelines for County Party Chair and County Precinct Chairs, but will impact interactions with those offices.

The County Party Chair will still determine her / his Executive Leadership appointments. However, like other successful non-profit organizations, this new Executive Leadership team will function as a Board of Directors for more well-rounded input. Each Director will provide direct oversight over specific Standing Committees for a Leadership Council of Chairs.

An example might look like:

Leadership Council	Reporting to:
Marketing Chair	Public Relations Director
Donor Relations Chair	Public Relations Director
Fundraising and Events Chair	Public Relations Director
Volunteer Action Chair	Training Director
Community Outreach Chair	Public Relations Director
New Legislative Support Chair	Strategic Planning Director
New Political Activism Chair	Strategic Planning Director
New Candidate Support Chair	Training Director
New Education Outreach Chair	Training Director

Until the Strategic Development Plan is fully realized, and a written, living document implemented, the Executive Leadership Board will serve as an Executive Steering Committee. This includes, eventually, adding an Executive Director for Operations and Administrative oversight. After the Strategic Development Plan is implemented, other non-executive Steering Committee members might be considered.
Executive Steering Committee:

• County Party Chair
• Appointments
• Vice-Chair
• Secretary
• Treasurer
• Field Operations Director
• Public Relations Director
• Strategic Planning Director
• Administrative / Operations / Management
• Executive Director (TBD)

Executive Steering Committee (New Standing Committee):

• Executive Leadership
• Other Appointments by County Party Chair

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Establishing both short and long term goals as well as long-range planning for continuous improvement strategies will ensure that all County Party Leadership, Administrators, and Volunteers can perform admirably.

Goal Setting:

Some short term goals will be achievable within weeks or months, whereas some will take longer. The objective will be to achieve all short term goals in less than a year's time.
Short term goals include:

• Seamless integration of all applicable leadership transitions:
• County Party Chair
• Appointments
• Standing Committee Chairs
• Sub-Committees
• Written Strategic Development Plan will be determined and implemented:
• Creating a Vision Statement
• Revamping the Mission Statement
• Organizational Manual (Living Document)
• Committee Manuals (Living Documents)
• Training Manuals (Living Documents)
• Administrative Manuals (Living Documents)
• Changes to County Party By-Laws to account for all updates
• New Strategic Planning and Execution Management initiatives:
• Monthly Review and Assessment
• Quarterly action items determined
• Annual Review and Assessment
• New Planning Initiatives
• Mid-Year Meeting (on even years to account for potential new Leadership)
• Annual Retreat
• Mid-Term Meeting
• Municipal Oriented
• Special Session (as needed)
• Except for state officiated requirements and TDP Guidelines, implementation of revamped County Party leadership definitions and guidelines for:
• County Party Chair
• Precinct Chairs
• Appointed Roles
• Committee Chairs (Standing)
• Leadership Training
• Executive
• Administrative
• Committee
• Volunteer
• Volunteer Empowerment Initiatives
• Training
• Administration (plan)
• Awards and special thanks programming efforts
• Democratic Party Coordinated Campaign Efforts
• CCDP Leadership and Committees
• TDP (Texas Democratic Party)
• DNC (Democratic National Committee)
• Public Relations Plan:
• Marketing Plan
• Communications Planning
• Social Media Plan
• Advertising Planning
• Community Outreach Plan
• Publicity objectives
• Public Affairs
• Coordination with Like-Minded Groups and Organizations
• Democratic Party related (Nearby County Parties and Clubs)
• Resistance
• Advocacy
• Activism
• Non-Partisan

Long term goals could be achieved within a year's time, as / if needed, but are expected to take two or more years to be a fully functional part of the Strategic Development Plan. This includes:

• Focus on all judicial seats and any other elected offices not currently being pursued
• New office location
• New operations and administrative tools and resources
• New (ED) Executive Director
• Position CCDP for 2020 Census

1, 4, and 10 Year Plans

• 1 Year Plan
• Transitional Leadership Plan
• Strategic Development Plan
• Public Relations Plan
• Volunteer Training Plan
• Candidate Support Plan
• Education Outreach Plan
• Legislative Support Plan
• Political Activism Plan
• 4 Year Plan (1 Year Plan Plus)
• Hire Executive Director
• 10 Year Plan (1 and 4 year Plan Plus)
• Census Review and Organizational Redirection Planning (every new decade)

All of this honors all state officiated requirements and by-laws of the County Party as is, including the approval of any recommendations by the CEC (County Executive Committee). Moreover, none of this should be perceived as final recommendation but rather a guiding outline of all good things yet to be realized.

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As CCDP Chair, I'll work with the new Executive Leadership team, the CEC, and, most importantly, the Collin County community, to address more specific ideas relative to establishing the new Strategic Development Plan. Here is an overview:

Strategic Development Plan: Once an effective infrastructure is established, a comprehensive written Strategic Development Plan for continuous improvement will be set in motion. This involves redirecting our operations management and practicing continuous improvement exercises all while still honoring the Democratic Party agenda. Some key components of this phase of development include implementing:

• Regular Strategic Planning Reviews
• Leadership Retreats
• Volunteer Appreciation Programs
• Train-The-Trainer Programs
• Educational Program Outreach
• Community Outreach Initiatives
• Legislative Affairs Management
• Political Activism Coordination
• Public Relations Initiatives

Are you ready for progress?

#ProgressTakesChange #Vision #Unity #Empowerment #CollinCountyDemocraticPartyChair

A Sign Of The Times

Over the last year, progressives have experienced a growing number of people new to politics looking for answers to seemingly simple questions. A lot of these questions have few to no answers found or, at least, easily accessible. As a candidate for Collin County Democratic Party Chair, one of my goals is to offer an FAQ page for our website among other online informational ideas that we should have implemented years ago. 

One of the general inquiries I get asked about a lot is best management practices for yard & road signage considerations. Until I'm elected or CCDP Leadership decides to rectify this, I'm more than happy to share some basic ideas that most any candidate or campaign team can benefit from. These are lessons learned from communication with other candidates throughout the State of Texas during my City Council bid. 

Keeping in mind that requirements in each municipality may vary, a candidate in Texas might consider:

• Reading through and honoring the State of Texas requirements here, Texas Ethics Commission on Political Advertising, and all links therein
• Importance to add the 'Political Advertising By' and the other TXDoT 'Right-of-Way' disclaimers (per the above link) on all signs. Did you forget? No worries. This can be added as a weatherproof sticker
• Only print double-sided yard and road signs
• Create a sign map (Google's My Maps is your friend)
• Ask for permission when placing signs on private property. When in doubt, follow suit with what others are doing (but be prepared to monitor that decision)
• Public property placement is only applicable at municipally managed polling places (with schedules typically determined by municipalities) and cannot typically be bigger than 2'x2' in a lot of municipal areas
• Have as many yard signs as possible for polling places during early voting, primary, run-offs, and general elections. Sustainability Tip: Ask everyone with yard signs to place them at the polling places. Keep in mind, you have to arrange to pick them all up in the municipally determined time period (road signs have a longer grace period for pick up but still limited)
• At a minimal, purchase heavy gage t-posts, long outdoor zipties, and a solid pair of scissors or box cutter
• Invest in at least one post driver and post remover (both will save your life or that of those planting your signs) and a good pair of leather gloves
• Be sure all of your road signs have rivets (based off sign size). Tip: bring a screwdriver or something similar to poke extra holes for extra zipties (the wind is stronger than you think)
• In high wind areas, support signs with a top brace (a wood crossmember should work)
• Periodically drive by, or have others check in on the state of, all signs 
• Don't assume that a local party's recommendation(s) for sign printing options is the only option

Again, this isn't a complete list of signage considerations for every candidacy. However, progress takes change, and I look forward to your vote on March 6th, 2018.

In This Moment

Building upon the strong Democratic candidate base who met the filing deadline this week, coupled with Doug Jones' win in Alabama as well as other recent special election wins, we have to now look beyond this moment and into the next. Because a desire for change - whether as a concerned citizen, voter, advocate, volunteer, candidate, or elected official - without a strategic plan and a vision, will only take us so far.

This is a key point in many areas of the country, including Texas. It's certainly a significant factor in Collin County where Democrats have not won a partisan seat in decades and the Collin County Democratic Party have only very recently shown their acceptance of the need to be prepared. So what are some takeaways from these monumental occurrences, and how do we leverage this information for more progressive wins in 2018?

Ides of March

Trump's Presidential win in November 2016 was a tipping point in American history. So many of us woke up on November 9th with doubt - doubt in ourselves, doubt in others, doubt in our future. But just as the death of Julius Caesar proved to be a turning point in Roman history, changing a Republic to an Empire, we would find comfort in each other.

Running on Empty

With the new year, we found strength in numbers with women's marches drawing crowds in by the hundreds and thousands across the U.S. and around the globe. Activist groups found new hope and resistance movements were being born everywhere. Municipal elections in May 2017 proved equally exhilarating with hundreds of new candidates in Texas alone, each as ready as the next to make change. 

I know, because I was there. I was in Austin with tens of thousands of people feeling energized. I know because I ran as the only openly progressive, unapologetic Democratic candidate in a race for a non-partisan seat in Plano, Texas. What I (and many candidates and activists alike) discovered though, in Texas and definitely in Collin County, was that for all of this glorious momentum, we were dependent on a Democratic Party, struggling financially in communities that heard little from them and expected nothing. Because that's all they had seen for decades.


Progress Takes Change

We have so many people in Collin County looking to be the change they wish to see in the world. We have people wanting to volunteer and even run for office. But in order for those people, especially those new to politics, to be successful, they need training & education, they need tools & resources, and they need money. They need to know that the party who's flag they wave, is going to be there for them and all Collin County citizens, before, during, and after every election cycle.

With a new year, March is the month to watch. Because on March 6th, 2018, Collin County voters will not only decide on primary winning Democrats to run against well-established, tenured, and extremely well-funded Republicans in the November 2018 midterms. Collin County Democrats will also be given a choice to vote for a new leader, with a new vision, and a new plan for our future. 

Stirling Morris for Collin County Democratic Party Chair.

www.stirlingmorris.com/donate

Turning Theory Into Practice, Politically Speaking

Since the beginning of this year, I've spoken with hundreds of people in Collin County who have had no interactions with the Democratic Party or have made attempts to with little to no reply. I've interviewed dozens of progressive leaders who have expressed similar sentiment.

With hundreds of people saying this candidly, I have to wonder how many of the tens of thousands of registered Democrats in Collin County feel similarly? And, in light of Democrats not winning offices in decades, I wonder how many of the (over) half a million registered voters in Collin County expect much from Democratic Party at all?

A few months ago, I recommended a brief overview of a plan that embraced this fundamental need for change to local party leadership. One of the core components of the recommendation is the creation and implementation of a written Strategic Development Plan.

To ensure its functionality for short and long term initiatives, the plan is phased. The phasing also allows for adequate input from an Executive Steering Committee, the County Executive Committee, and, most importantly, input from the community at large. This infrastructure re-development initiative will then transition into the written Strategic Development Plan.

The written plan will be a living document, serving as a template for future county party leaders and volunteers to fall back on as needed. Nearing one million people, Collin County grows and changes daily. And this plan will allow the party the opportunity to continuously redevelop the role the Democratic Party, the party of the people.

Over the next few weeks and into the new year, I'll release more of plan specifics. Here are some highlights for now:

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Infrastructure Redevelopment Initiative:

Redeveloping the party's infrastructure will assist in providing a vision to guide the party, help find better ways to unify activities with the community-at-large, and, ultimately, help the party win offices. Some key components of this phase of development include creating:

• Strategic Development Plan
• Vision Statement
• Revamped Mission Statement
• Revamped Leadership Model
• Executive Steering Committee
• New and Revamped Action Committees
• Committee Guides
• Operations Management Initiatives
• Administrative Guidelines
• Training Guides
• Volunteer Guides

---

Strategic Development Plan:

Once an effective infrastructure is established, a comprehensive written Strategic Development Plan for continuous improvement will be set in motion. This involves redirecting our operations management and practicing continuous improvement exercises all while still honoring the Democratic Party agenda. Some key components of this phase of development include implementing:

• Regular Strategic Planning Reviews
• Leadership Retreats
• Volunteer Appreciation Programs
• Train-The-Trainer Programs
• Educational Program Outreach
• Community Outreach Initiatives
• Legislative Affairs Management
• Political Activism Coordination
• Public Relations Initiatives

Are you ready for progress? Progress takes change.

#ProgressTakesChange #Vision #Unity #Empowerment #CollinCountyDemocraticPartyChair

Empowering Community

HOW CAN WE BETTER EMPOWER THE COLLIN COUNTY COMMUNITY to get involved and stay involved?

Continuing a series of interviews called Building A Better Collin County with the goal to reach out to our county and North Texas community and create a sustainable path to our future:

Among similar interviews with other organizations I've worked on, this interview is with Terri T. Thomas, President / Founding Member, Collin County Black Chamber of Commerce. As I note in all these videos, this not an endorsement of me or the Democratic Party.

Until equality is realized for all citizens, organizations like this are vital to our future locally, nationally, and globally. #ProgressTakesChange#Vision #Unity #Community #Empowerment

Stirling Morris for Collin County Democratic Party Chair

www.stirlingmorris.com

Good Citizen

Continuing a series of interviews called Building A Better Collin County with the goal to reach out to our county and North Texas community and create a sustainable path to our future:

Among similar interviews with other organizations I've worked on, this interview is with Saif Islam representing both Good Citizens DFW and DFW for Beto. As I note in all these videos, this not an endorsement of me or the Democratic Party directly.

That said, I fully support both of these groups and am honored to get to know Saif better. His support of DFW and humanity represents the best of our ability to provide positive, proactive efforts in Collin County and across the metroplex.

#ProgressTakesChange #Vision #Unity #Community #Empowerment