By Donna Hilton

The six subcommittees of the Clark County Strategic Plan are prepared to begin working, thanks to a training session Monday afternoon. Ed Bee, director of Taimerica, the firm hired to facilitate the planning process, gave the leaders of the subcommittees some guidance about their duties.

Each subcommittee has two or three co-chairmen, several community advisors and members made up of county residents and students from high schools and colleges in the county. The purpose of the subcommittees is to allow for a more thorough discussion and a broader range of opinions and ideas. It also allows for concentration of expert knowledge and discussion of significant issues in greater detail.

One of the more important duties of the co-chairmen is to serve as moderators for the meeting. The co-chairmen set the agenda for the meeting and keep discussion moving. “You’ve got to use your time efficiently,” Bee said.

The co-chairmen will make reports to the overall committee each month, to present ideas and gather more information.
Dr. Alan Wright, co-chairman of the overall committee, presented information to assist leaders of each subcommittee in defining their mission. There are several steps to the strategic planning process, Wright said. The first is examining the current environment, establishing a mission, setting desired goals and objectives and developing action plans.

In assessing the environment, a systematic, thorough analysis of both the internal and external elements is needed, he said. He gave examples of each of those, saying an internal strength could include financial resources, human resources and others. But internal weaknesses could include a lack of, or inefficient use of, any of the resources.

“Each committee will have its own priorities,” Bee said. Personnel from Taimerica will be available two days a month in Arkadelphia to assist with the process. They will also be available by conference call and e-mail when needed, Bee said.

Southern Bancorp will provide someone to take minutes for each subcommittee meeting and post them to the CCSP website so that everyone can stay informed.

As soon as meeting times are set, the subcommittee meetings will also be posted. The entire CCSP committee will meet at 6 p.m. today at Central Primary School to hear Bee present results of the community survey.