As ACCP celebrated its 40th birthday in October, members had the opportunity to reflect on the College’s rich history and its progress over the years. Apparent in this reflection is the College’s clear and consistent focus throughout its history. Although much has changed over the past 40 years, ACCP’s mission and core values have remained a constant. ACCP’s continuous strategic planning process is one of the primary ways in which the College maintains its focus. This process, which relies on member input, results in 1) the development of committee and task force charges focused on strategic initiatives, 2) initiatives that involve stakeholders both within and outside ACCP, 3) ongoing monitoring of plan progress, and 4) revisions to the strategic plan, when needed. The College completes a structured and formal update of the strategic plan every 3 to 5 years. This continuous process and frequency of structured revision allows ACCP to respond to changing dynamics in the environment while maintaining its focus on long-term goals. Although the College’s mission and core values are not expected to change significantly over time, they are still reviewed and reaffirmed at the outset of each strategic plan update cycle. However, changes in the vision for the organization, vision for the profession, or critical issues of focus for the College do occur from cycle to cycle, as one might expect.; Once the critical issues are finalized, strategic directions (broad, directional statements of organizational intent) are developed to address each critical issue. After the strategic directions are clarified and affirmed, specific and measurable steps to address each direction are written in the form of S-M-A-R-T objectives (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely).

The College began a structured revision of the 2017 strategic plan in the summer of 2019 with an environmental scan. Following a review of member input, the Board of Regents used the environmental scan to identify and assess organizational strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (i.e., a SWOT analysis). This exercise allowed the board to review the current mission, core values, vision, and critical issues in the context of contemporary issues and opportunities during its October face-to-face meeting. The three critical issues articulated in the 2017 strategic plan will be retained in the 2020 strategic plan. That is, the plan will continue to focus on developing, advancing, and positioning clinical pharmacists to fully contribute their unique expertise to patient care. Moreover, several new, potential strategic initiatives emerged through the environmental scan and SWOT exercises. In December, the ACCP membership was surveyed to determine the initiatives of highest priority. Almost 1000 members responded to the survey and provided valuable information to help shape strategic directions and objectives.

In January, the board reviewed and analyzed the comprehensive survey results, reaffirmed the three critical issues of the 2017 strategic plan, and drafted a set of initial strategic directions. The board will continue to look for opportunities to seek additional member input as the strategic directions are refined and objectives are developed and finalized throughout the spring and summer. Board approval of the 2020 strategic plan is anticipated in October 2020. A finalized plan will be provided to the membership shortly thereafter on the ACCP website and in the ACCP Report.