Outline for a Two Day Communication Strategy Retreat

Communication Strategy Retreat
EuroCom recommends taking two days out of your year to plan communications at your level.

This is an example outline to help you plan a retreat for your YWAM level. We suggest finding a location that is quiet and peaceful with room to walk and space to brainstorm. The outline is explained in more detail below.

This retreat should produce:


 * A better understanding of the needs in communication and a process or strategy for meeting them.
 * Members reading from the same page when they leave.
 * Concrete plans to improve communications in your area over the next year.
 * A better understanding YWAM at the level they serve and know how to communicate up, down and out to the levels around them.

Day 1

Day 2


 * Commitment to Communicate - have a look at the importance of communication. Give examples of good/bad communication - videos, stories, commercials, quotes, etc. Give a good overview of why you feel this is important for them to Commit - Plan - Monitor communications. Question what proportion you time and your teams time should be spent on communication?
 * W5H Matrix - Designed to help you work through the areas you need to communicate in. As you think about this it is good to write out your expectations from each group/person as well as the expectations they may have from you. What should you communicate to them? What should they communicate to you? When you are finished with the Matrix you should have every group that you should communicate with written out and thought through... Who, What, Where, When, Why and How.
 * Communication Brainstorm - In this time take the finished W5H matrix you have and begin to brainstorm potential problems. As you brainstorm problems or areas you may not be sure about also think through the solutions. This will help you as a group to be informed and to read from the same page as a group. You should come away from this time with any known potential problems being thought through and a known response or method for researching and solving.
 * Possible Projects - This is a time to dream at your level of projects that could raise the bar. Think through some items that could possibly improve communications. Research if anything exists already or if you need to create something new (no need to reinvent the wheel) and plan who will be needed to accomplish the project. Make a plan and put one of the group in charge of making it happen.
 * Network - This is the time to develop your networks. Either start them or continue to update and keep them going. Networking happens to those who take time to connect to others. We must have networks in communications and you must think through possible networks that either you should have in your area or should be connected to.
 * Monitoring - How is your level doing? How do you know? Do you assume or do you have facts? How could you better know the communication needs? This session is a time to think through these type of questions and come up with good surveys or methods of monitoring your level. Also this is a time to check how your level has done in the yearly international survey put out by the International Communications Network for the Go Manual.
 * Group Activity - Make the most of your time together for the purpose of connecting. Maybe plan a movie, games, hang out time or sightseeing adventure.

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