Objective: Work with the superintendent to design and implement strategies and systems that provide the organizational and financial stability the district needs to be able to focus on raising student achievement.
What we do
ViKiwi provides the capabilities of a “Big 4” management consulting firm without the “Big 4” price. While we leave educational strategy to the Chief Academic Officer, we apply good business practices to help create a financially stable, high performing organization that enables the district’s educational strategy to be effective.
Through daily interactions with district personnel at many levels, Vikiwi consultants have developed an appreciation of the challenges facing school districts and the complexity of the environment, especially within the context of No Child Left Behind, and an uncertain funding climate. Drawing upon our experiences working both in business and with school districts, we help the leadership establish an environment that maximizes the district’s energy and resources to educating students.
How we do it
ViKiwi uses a four-stage, collaborative approach:
- Problem definition and data gathering
- Analysis
- Development of solutions
- Implementation
We consider all stakeholders: the board, the community, families, students, the district’s employees, foundations, and state and federal agencies all as potentially, part of the problem and part of the solution. While ViKiwi is aware of practices that have been successful in certain districts, we usually do not import solutions wholesale, but rather design solutions that are customized for the particular characteristics of each district.
ViKiwi will collaborate with the district leadership to develop a strategic plan that will incorporate the recommendations and which will serve as a plan-of-action for the district. The strategic plan might address:
- Organization
- Finances
- Communications
- Human resources
- Technology
- Facilities
Once the key stakeholders have accepted the strategic plan, ViKiwi will help the district with implementation, adding the tactical details to embed the plan into operations, and building in a performance management system to track progress towards the goals.
Links to interesting news articales and case studies:
- Making K-12 budget cuts less painful for students
- Turning a strategic plan from words into actions
- Filling the gap with an interim Technology Officer
- Getting the best ROI for technology spending
- An organizational structure for accountability
- The case for strong project management
Links to interesting white papers:
