For us, Thanksgiving is more than a once-a-year celebration. It’s something we practice every single day.
Gratitude is an integral part of who we are at Reach Partners. Collectively and individually, we are thankful for the work we do, the clients we partner with, and the communities we serve. The past year has been packed with new opportunities and new relationships. It’s been filled with occasions to deepen the partnerships we’ve already made. In the process, we have been blessed and have had a lot of fun along the way. Here is a sampling of the things we are grateful for in 2017!
What are you grateful for?
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It's always fun to be part of something big, which is why we were so grateful to put our project management skills to work on some grand opening events for the new Sanford Medical Center Fargo earlier this month. (Congrats to Sanford Health on this amazing milestone!)
We assisted the Sanford marketing team with some of the activities that took place during the three-day celebration. Of course, considerable planning and coordination happened beforehand, but here's a glimpse of what the actual week looked like from our perspective.
It’s hard to believe that the time has come when I am approaching the end of my internship with Reach Partners and the end of my college career. I am very thankful for my time at Reach Partners in many ways. I have learned an abundance of new knowledge from Anita and Rachel, and this experience is one I will always have and be able to look back on as I start my career.
There were many lessons taught and learned during my time at Reach Partners that helped me learn not only about project management, but also about myself and what I want to do with my chosen career path. I learned the ins and outs of project management and got to witness first-hand the behind-the-scenes work that goes into planning and executing an event. Interning at Reach Partners has also taught me lessons that have helped me along in my job search. Because of skills learned during my internship, I am able to elaborate on this new set of skills on my resume and in interviews for full-time positions. During my time at Reach Partners, I sat in on committee planning meetings, drafted communication plans, and helped out during events that Reach Partners executed. It was a great experience for me to be able to see the different stages of the event planning process from committee discussions to the wrap-up. All of my experiences at Reach Partners have been very rewarding for me. The skills I have learned and developed during my months at Reach Partners will help me in my future career, whether it is planning staff events, creating communication plans, or even sitting in and coordinating meetings. This new set of skills will help me to feel confident in my abilities after graduation and as I start out in my career. —Olivia, Event Strategy Intern Some of our favorite projects include those where most people don’t even know we’re involved. That was the case when H2M, a Fargo marketing agency, needed an extra hand to work on an advertising campaign. H2M had to identify locations where out-of-town videographers could film backdrops for a federal credit union commercial. When H2M asked Reach Partners to take on this part of the project, we had about a month to find 20 diverse locations that could each host a video team for 30 to 45 minutes. In addition, H2M asked us to schedule the locations to limit travel time between each site. Anita started calling – both places where she knew people and places where she didn’t. She soon had a list of locations and the times each site could be used. Then the work started. “The schedule was a big puzzle where I had to start inserting pieces and then move them around,” Anita says. Within six working days, she handed H2M a schedule and secured permissions from each location. In addition, she had traveled to each site and took photographs so the out-of-town videographers had some visual information ahead of time. “We were completely in the background with this project,” Anita says. “The H2M client didn’t even know we were involved.” Check out the commercials:
Every company gets to the point where it needs to hire an outside vendor or consultant.
Maybe you’ve hired someone to assist with marketing materials or accounting needs. Maybe you’ve contracted with someone to help you determine future staffing opportunities or to complete a one-off project. At Reach Partners, we often step in when a business’s internal team is too busy to complete a job or an organization needs our expertise in planning and problem-solving. We’ve been asked to determine the best way to move 18,000 people from numerous parking lots to an event site in less than three hours. Our clients have hired us to launch a seminar series in three states and to keep a coalition of experts on task. Every single time, we see ourselves as partners – not just vendors or consultants, but actual partners. Huh? What’s the difference? For us, being a partner means we’re a seamless extension of another team. We bring value and structure to a process, but we don’t take it over. Our favorite successes are when a client’s clients or colleagues don’t even know we’re part of the process. So, how do you know when you’ve hired an actual partner – and not just somebody who completes the job?
Enjoy your partnerships! We are fortunate to work with so many great partners, which is why we are thrilled to share some of the exciting projects we’re doing with them. The Fargo Project is one of those. Working with The Fargo Project has been fun. It combines project management with public art, conservation, collaboration, community development and more – all areas that we are passionate about. A little background: In 2010 the City of Fargo partnered with the renowned ecological artist Jackie Brookner. She interviewed community members and identified stormwater ponds as natural resources that could be transformed by involving the surrounding community in creative placemaking. The pilot project at Rabanus Park (in southwest Fargo) also was initiated to demonstrate how local governments could actively involve residents in the planning and design process of projects. Brookner, who lived in New York state, facilitated the initial planning and collaboration. After Brookner’s death in 2015, local leaders managed the project as it moved into the construction phase.
However, the team needed assistance to coordinate communication among its various stakeholders and partners, which grew to more than 50. The leadership team also needed help with event and volunteer coordination. Reach Partners filled this role. “Clear communication is crucial when a project is moving forward and there are lots of different stakeholders and participants,” says Nicole Crutchfield, city of Fargo. “Thanks to Reach Partners, everybody on the planning team and advisory committee understands what’s happening and when. Rachel has become integral with the overall project management structure, helping the team strategize and achieve project outcomes. We’ve also been able to keep our other partners and the general public creatively engaged as the project progresses.” Our work with The Fargo Project is ongoing – and we love every minute of it. Check out its good work by clicking below or – even better – visit the site in person! We’re excited to announce that Rachel will be one of the featured speakers for this month’s Group Think. The topic is walls.
She and Dr. Fauzia Haider, board of directors on the Center for Interfaith Projects, will start the conversation. It will quickly open up to a Q&A and table conversation. “We hope that people will share their personal stories with walls and bring those experiences into a global context,” Rachel says. “One of the challenges with walls is they’re two-sided. Nothing in life has only two sides.” To prepare for this month’s Group Think, reflect on these questions:
Join the discussion: 5:15 p.m. Monday, March 6. Sons of Norway Troll Lounge 722 2nd Ave. N., Fargo Reserve your seat. Reach Partners is grateful to be able to sponsor this month's GROUP THINK. This month's format will feature 60 minutes of facilitated small group conversations at tables. The theme is a public conversation about who we know and who we are. How does the composition of your street or neighborhood compare or contrast with the demographics of your city? Which eight people outside of your immediate family and coworkers do you spend the most time with each month? How many of those people share your race? What do you have in common with a majority of the people whose social media posts you see each day? Do you have close friends whose fundamental convictions clash with yours? How many times each week do you have meaningful conversations with someone of a different race who has comparable professional or socioeconomic status? When did you last comment on power or privilege in your social circles? How many groups do you interact with each month in which a majority of members have a racial identity different from yours?
Artists, community organizers, program directors, designers, urban planners, large community developers, small HUD offices, mayors, directors, university fellows converged in Phoenix at the generosity of ArtPlace America to explore, share and learn from the observations of those involved in creative placemaking across the country. I was one of the grateful 250 to inquire and learn from the exquisite experts, poets, social organizers and disruptors who shared space.
Artplace America is 10-year collaboration of private and public funders with a focus on community planning and development with arts and culture at the core. I attended because of involvement as Communication Manager with The Fargo Project, a 2014 grantee of the National Placemaking Fund. I don’t want to forget. So what follows is the summary of the connections I made from notes, conversations, and speakers at the 2016 ArtPlace America Summit. With openness and vulnerability each was willing to share their pieces of discovery and the passionate well of curiosity from which they draw and apply to the work (or is it play?) within their place. Together we learned some of the characteristics of great creative placemaking, the challenges, sources of discovery, the advocates, and distinguished the markers of success. Reach Partners is excited to work with three partners offering special events. #HungerFreeND
The Creating a Hunger Free North Dakota Coalition will bring together passion people and organizations united in their vision for a hunger-free North Dakota to the Creating Hunger-Free Communities Summit in Bismarck on September 17-18, 2015. A “Stone Soup” event for the public in the evening of September 17 is also planned. #WHCBismarck Improve the messages from your inner voice, get up and move, and learn how character register for the Women's Health Conference and Preview September 27 & 28. An event featuring activity and conversation focused on women's wellness, nutrition and fitness. Worksite Wellness Summit Improve Employee Health • Decrease Health Care Costs • Increase Productivity and Morale Research shows you can expect those results from a worksite wellness program. Attend the North Dakota Worksite Wellness Summit on October 13 in Fargo to get the information, tools and motivation you need to build or strengthen a culture of wellness in your organization. |
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