Strategy

i.c.stars’ initial vision of 1,000 leaders by 2020, was fitting from its start-up days through now, but it is clear that a huge social and economic shift has changed the mood in our country and the world. As a result, the bar needs to be moved and raised to meet the challenges and opportunities that exist in communities for 2009 and beyond.

The tone for the next 25 years is being set in Washington right now, and it is one of community and equal access to opportunity. Equal access to education, equal access to health care, equal access to create a business, equal access to finance a business, and equal access to markets are now all considered basic human rights. This shift is just beginning to call upon citizens to invest personally for the greater good of the whole. Where a lack of transparency and a centrally planned system of “too big to fail” entities has reigned over the past 25 years, rebuilding community and a truly free and transparent market will be the spotlight for the next 25.

The bold new policy agenda for this country mandates the development of 1,000’s of “Level 5 Leaders” who are capable of envisioning and building these great new communities.

The strength and consistency of i.c.stars model as well as the progress we’ve made toward expansion, gives us confidence that we can think bigger than the original objective and increase our impact several orders of magnitude, e.g. developing 10,000 community leaders per year by 2020.

And what does community really mean? Community for many of us is our neighborhood, town, or city. Today’s generation of youth has a different definition of community. Their definition is global and in many cases digital. Like the WWII “greatest” generation, today’s Millennial generation will be called upon to work together as community contributors in the wake of the most significant economic decline since the 1930s, and to be peacemakers in the ongoing global battles between ignorance and truth, fear and trust, protectionism and trade. They have been raised since youth that community, teamwork, and family are more important than self-ambition. The current Administration agrees and policies are taking root to reflect this.

i.c.stars can play a central role by scaling its model for identifying and developing resilient individuals who, through overcoming adversity, have a stronger set of problem solving skills, crisis management experiences, and sense of purpose. Individuals with this experience are the only one’s with the potential to be the global leaders we need in the 21st century.

Think of the possibilities!! At the state level, community is being called upon to turn a corrupt state rightside up and bring respect back to our politics. Community will be called upon to insure the great city of Chicago stays relevant as banks consolidate and we look to be at the center of the next ‘big thing’ (life sciences, alternative energy, bio-fuels, material sciences, advanced information technology, etc…). Community will be called upon to care for our elderly, sick, and poor. Community will be called upon to buy homes and build businesses. Community will be called upon to be more inclusive and will demand greater contribution from everyone touching the community; however it is defined.
Enter the evolution of i.c.stars. This is an organization which has transformed almost 200 people’s lives directly by building bridges between resilient individuals and employers. In turn, how many lives have been touched by the positive ripple of these individuals re-entering their communities with a new found future? These are young adults who love and embrace the struggle. Individuals who recognize that anything easy is not worth anything. Individuals who struggled to find the right role models, struggled financially, struggle to find a way to reverse the cycle of life in their immediate surroundings and bring a sense of purpose in the new world of hope; a new future of responsibility and contribution. They found community in i.c.stars. But, we as an organization will have failed them if we think too small about the possibilities and don’t hold ourselves and them accountable to think bigger, act bigger, and deliver a bigger impact.

First, going forward, the impact of the program must be measureable in the community. Every community, civic, and business leader in Chicago (and beyond) should be acutely aware of the financial, social, civic, and business impact i.c.stars is having in the communities around Chicago. When community leaders are asked what organizations have influenced their community the greatest, the answer will be ‘i.c.stars’. When i.c.stars Alums are in their job, neighborhood, and broader community, they will proudly site i.c.stars as one of the top reasons for their success and will more importantly spotlight and promote the organization. Leadership “Metrics” and PR will define the next phase of this organization.

Initially, the impact will be measured in Chicago, but the organization will be crafted to be copied or franchised globally. Yes, we have ten years of track record in Chicago; demonstrating longevity and the crafting a foundational seed program that needs to be optimized for Chicago and then nationwide and worldwide expansion.
Accomplishing this requires an executive leadership team who has experience moving beyond the fragility of a start-up and bringing forth a robust model that harnesses the passion of i.c.stars’ current leaders and supporters. This leadership will ensure sustainable funds, alignment with government(s) and university organizations, remodeling a program for greatest community impact and future expansion.

In order to accomplish this, the i.c.stars vision and story need to be packaged and told, and funding must be raised significantly beyond the current levels to a sustainable funding stream. This should incorporate government funding, alignment with university programs, corporate funding, and all of the above. With the current Administration’s policies reflecting the next “New Deal”, this is exactly the type of program that would align and support President’s vision.

The i.c.stars Board will be called upon to make connections that will lead to funding success.

i.c.stars is meeting history at the right moment in time. So, everyone around i.c.stars will be called upon to think big with this vision and make it a reality.

Forget about 1,000 community leaders in 10 years. Forget about an IT only focused curriculum. We must focus on community impact. This means training people with core skills that the community needs: strategy, analysis, problem solving, planning, hiring, growing, social, financial, service. These skills can then be bridged to whatever industry is needed in that community: IT, life sciences, alternative energy.
Achieving this requires engaging i.c.stars students and alums such that they are activists on behalf of the program. Graduates will be the army needed to make this vision happen. We need their stories told (video, social networking, PR to universities, public, corporate). These will become the faces of i.c.stars and just as each of us has been touched by these stories, we will touch the world with these stories, raise ample amounts of expansion funding, and find a way to adjust and amplify this program for Chicago and the global stage.

We will know i.c.stars is successful when graduates of this program are seen as enablers in their local and extended communities, and there is a huge pipeline of people entering the program who have been referred and “filtered” by the community.

We will know i.c.stars is successful when civic and business leaders attach themselves to this program and actively find ways to help make the vision a reality.
The future of the Board will be a Board committed to holding each other accountable to make this happen. They will embrace being held accountable and act.

Summary
There is a crisis in America and i.c.stars will be a vehicle to unleash the potential of resilient community leaders on the world for greatest impact.