Spring is traditionally a time of renewal.  Many people plant vegetables or flower seeds, do a major house cleaning, or plan outdoor activities to take pleasure in the changing season. 

Why not make spring a time for renewal in your agency as well? 

You can start with small efforts that will help re-energize your organization and the staff that is helping to carry out your mission. 

Following are a few springtime suggestions you might try in your agency:

Renew and energize your work team.  Use 10 or 15 minutes at each staff meeting for team-building activities or to ask for your staff’s suggestions on ways to improve the organization.  Spend some time at a staff meeting discussing your agency’s mission and how each person’s work helps carry it out.  At the next, have each employee describe his or her job and tell how others can give support.  Or ask the staff to talk about ways to develop your services or better serve your clients.  You may be surprised at some of the great ideas and suggestions you get.

Refresh your work environment.  Think about freshening up the office, getting rid of clutter and rearranging furniture to improve its appearance.  Involve all staff as you clean out file cabinets and storage cupboards, throw away unnecessary materials and send essential old files into long-term storage.  Keep in mind how your offices currently look to your clients, volunteers or donors when they visit—and what impact the office appearance has on them.

Build your relationship with your Board.  Schedule some time to call or meet with each member of your Board of Directors to ask for their suggestions about improving the agency or the Board.  Ask staff leaders to make short presentations at Board meetings about new features in your programs or report on client success stories.

Thank your volunteers.  Schedule an informal coffee or tea for your volunteers to thank them for all they do for the agency.  Include a brief talk about future plans for the agency or a short presentation to explain your various programs to them.

Make personal calls to thank key donors.  You and your management team can take 15 minutes every week to call and thank your major donors and those who have been long term supporters regardless of amount.  Tell them what is going on in the agency and what new programs or activities are planned for the remainder of the year.  Just 15 minutes of your time can make a big impact on donors.

Review your key programs.  Look at your major programs to see what small changes would improve or update them.  Gather suggestions from past and present clients and staff.  Even a seemingly minor change such as revising written material to make it more readable or making it available in a language besides English can greatly enhance your services. 

Renew yourself.  Most Executive Directors have a huge job with little time for themselves.  It is hard to be a creative and inspiring leader when you are chronically overloaded and tired.  Take the time now to do something that you find rejuvenating, such as spending time with a good friend or loved one, getting a massage, taking a weekend away from home, or going to an interesting lecture or class.  Try to start a new habit of leaving work by a regular and earlier time.

Most of the suggestions above don’t require large amounts of your time.  

Keep it small and involve all your staff—you’ll be surprised at the big differences some small changes will make this spring!