By Greg Ellison

(May 6, 2021) The Ocean Pines Strategic Planning Committee continued charting its progress during its most recent meeting in late April.

Co-Chairman Bernie McGorry reviewed the groups’ work since it was reconstituted earlier this year.

“We’re starting to get our legs,” he said.

McGorry said the community lacks a strategic plan on which to plot future moves.

“We’re expected to lead efforts for development of recommended Ocean Pines long-range plans,” he said. “It’s up to us to drive the bus.”

After the committee inducted a batch of new members in January, Director of Finance Steve Phillips and Accounting Manager Julia Johnson began consulting with the committee.

“It’s great to have the finance team involved, because it is going to, at some point, tie to the budget,” he said.

In March, the committee began formulating strategic planning techniques, including preliminary SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) outlines.

McGorry said developing SWOT charts helps to develop clear strategies.

“Where you have a weakness, [that] turns into something to address or work on,” he said.

By April, the committee began soliciting input from Ocean Pines department heads and finalizing benchmarking criteria for comparable communities in Maryland and Delaware.

“We’re starting to build momentum,” he said.

McGorry said the intent behind establishing benchmarks standards is to examine methods other communities use that might be applicable to Ocean Pine’s pursuit of improvement.

“The point is to compare and contrast,” he said.

Committee members were tasked with researching online to identify key differences with nearby HOA communities, with their findings returned to co-chairs McGorry or Moe Delcher by May 14.

Among primary points of consideration when examining comparable neighborhoods are total size, available amenities and if HOA governance is handled in-house or through a management company.

Board liaison Dr. Colette Horn has talked with President Larry Perrone about how to proceed.

“His preference was to get input from department heads first and then convene an executive council meeting, where we would be getting input from the chairs of each advisory committee,” she said.

Horn said an executive council meeting would likely be scheduled later this month

“After the executive council meeting, the board will review a synopsis report,” she said.

The goal is to review the information from association staff and the executive council to identify common themes.

“The board will likely prioritize items, as all will have a dollar figure associated,” she said.

Committee member Wes Blackley expressed mixed sentiments.

“I feel really confident we will develop a strategic plan,” he said. “My lack of confidence — is it going anywhere?”

Committee member Jenny Cropper Rines concurred that the success of the planning effort will be contingent on engagement.

“The key to it leaving our group and being used is going to take buy-in from the board and the staff,” she said.

Rines said success will depend on conveying the need to follow the plan to subsequent board members of newly hired association staff.

“New people should be informed to know it’s something that needs to be perpetuated,” she said.

The committee’s next meeting is May 27 at 9 a.m.