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  • 1.  Community Conversations - 6/24/24 - Lesson Learned: Wisdom from Animal Wellbeing Leaders on Navigating Change

    Posted 06-20-2024 12:01 PM

    Updated 6/24/24 at 2:52pm PT: Recording now available to watch on-demand!

    We hope to see you on the next Community Conversations call on Monday, 6/24/24 at 11am PT for a panel discussion titled, "Lesson Learned: Wisdom from Animal Wellbeing Leaders on Navigating Change." This will be our last call until August as we take a summer recess for the month of July.


    Join us for a panel discussion on navigating change, featuring experts from the animal wellbeing space. Discover the do's and don'ts of managing transitions, with real stories of successes and missteps. Learn from the panelists as they share their greatest challenges and insights on leading teams through uncertainty. Gain practical advice and inspiration to handle changes with confidence and resilience.


    Guest Speakers:
    @Bobby Mann, Chief Program Officer at Humane Rescue Alliance

    @Geraldine D'Silva, Maddie's National Director of Programs and Partnerships at Open Door Veterinary Collective

    Dr. @Cristie Kamiya, Chief of Shelter Medicine at Humane Society Silicon Valley

    Register for Community Conversations hosted via Zoom: https://maddies.fund/CommunityConvoRegistration2024


    As always, this discussion thread will be updated with the recording and resources so you can watch and share whenever you'd like.  After you watch the recording on-demand or attend the call live, be sure to complete the June 2024 entry form to enter to win up to a $5,000 grant: https://www.maddiesfund.org/weekly-community-conversations-jun24-giveaway.htm


    #EducationandTraining
    #OrganizationalManagement
    #PeopleManagement(includingVolunteerIntegration)

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    Maddie's Pet Forum Admin
    Maddie's Fund
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  • 2.  RE: Community Conversations - 6/24/24 - Lesson Learned: Wisdom from Animal Wellbeing Leaders on Navigating Change

    Posted 06-24-2024 02:51 PM
      |   view attached

    Thanks to the 168+ people and pets who joined us on today's Community Conversations call! The recording is now available to watch on-demand and share with colleagues. Below you'll find a recap of today's call and the resources shared.  As a reminder, we will be taking a summer break for the month of July for our calls and will see you again on August 5th.  If you watch any recordings in June, you can still complete an entry on our giveaway form until the end of the month to enter to win up to a $5,000 grant: https://www.maddiesfund.org/weekly-community-conversations-jun24-giveaway.htm

    6/24/24 Community Conversations Call Recap

    • Welcome from hosts
    • Question of the Day: What has changed in your life between last week and this week?
      • "I'm a year older" - Alexsey Dobberstine
      • "I guess since last week I've better organized my personal life goals haha" - Jackie Va
      • "Not much...  But that can be good." - June Thomas
      • "We might drive to Boston from Indiana instead of flying for our vacation like originally planned, because flying is bananas and we're cheap! 🤣" - Amanda Coburn
      • "I planned a trip to go to Mammoth with my boyfriend and his family :)" - Lauren Carver
      • "I've been dealing with a roof leak since last week- Florida rain" - Amanda Gray
      • "Back from a 2-week vacation so slogging through the inbox." - Kristin Moro
      • "I'm preparing for Disney!" - Cindy Leopard
      • "Launched Kitten College as a national organization!" - Marnie Russ
      • "Vacation in California with Daughter" - Janette Martin
      • "I lost a pound!" - Suny Simon
      • "My nerves are better, after a presentation went well. My yard is mowed and trees trimmed. My dogs are cleaner after baths 😄 !" - Shonyae Johnson
      • "paid bills so my bank account is less" - Jodi Nohra
      • "My hometown team could be Stanley Cup Champs!" - Michelle Meckelborg
      • "My son got married!" - Kriss Harrigian
      • "We are on the last week of a huge push to s/n well over 100 feral/community and super breeder cats! Knowing the end of this huge effort is close is bittersweet." - Karen Jealous
      • "from last week to this week, we committed to 7 puppies and their mom. They were scheduled to be euthanized." - Kim Jackson
      • "Nothing unusual.  Just the 'normal' chaos." - Debra DeVries
      • "Last week we had solutions summit with AAWA - recordings are up! https://learning.theaawa.org/solutions-summit" - Shonyae Johnson
      • "Went from 0 foster kittens to 5! Enjoying some kitten joy this week" - Charlotte Otero
      • "We have 5 adoptions left to exceed our prior years June adoptions to meet our Best Friends Bring Home the Love event!" - Shanna Gundlach
    • National Updates
    • Panel Discussion - Lesson Learned: Wisdom from Animal Wellbeing Leaders on Navigating Change – Weekly Community Conversations 6/24/24
      • Guest Speakers:
      • Related Links
      • Question from Bobby during presentation: "Use the chat and describe something that you are going through change management with. Whether it's a program or a strategy or a vision. I'd love to hear from you on some of the challenges or opportunities you are facing right now."
        • "We are changing our Donor CRM! Big step but for the better." - Jackie Va
        • "we just added staff" - Kristen Baltrum
        • "We are trying to raise money for a new shelter. So not new management but new location." - Lisa Brinlee
        • "Formalizing some of our processes that have never been considered before - no more flying by the seat of our pants hah!" - LeAnne Christoffel
        • "Leadership transition" - Lisa Coscino
        • "Shelter Intervention program change from parttime to fulltime with new staff person" - Christy Schilling
        • "Learning Management System change" - Elkie Wills
        • "We are changing our PIMS and updating our website." - Cindy Leopard
        • "Trying to change the overall culture" - Ashley Ray
        • "Helping volunteers know that they have the power and permission to make an impact!" - Misty Valenta
        • "Donor CRM from Excel spreadsheets" - Shanna Gundlach
        • "We are updating our volunteer programs and having some staff turnover, too" - Shelley Joaquin
        • "We had a big change in leadership 2 years ago and it is still beautifully unfolding" - Lola Victor
        • "Reshuffling of key staff to create better collaboration" - Sara Fitzpatrick
        • "we are in the process of staff leaving and new staff coming on" - Jennifer Lynn Bethke
        • "Operational overhaul over here" - Alexsey Dobberstine
        • "Still undergoing change in career from org director to software evangelist" - Chris Fitzgerald
        • "Change culture and do DEI work" - Adrienne McHargue
        • "Volunteer campaign" - Suny Simon
        • "We recently had a major construction project. New roof, HVAC, clinic remodel. Leadership changes." - Chelsea Bower
        • "Beginning of capital campaign" - Shanna Gundlach
        • "Fostering campaign" - Elise Blue
        • "Still searching for new top leadership, so learning to function as an organization as a team." - Kristin Moro
        • "I just started in the shelter. Volunteer management needs attention" - Yvonne Haddox
        • "I'm working to get the various non-profits to cooperate to help each other." - Karen Vandersall
        • "Leadership change and animal shelter software change" - CaSandra Nash
        • "Spay and neuter challenge for owned pets program" - Kim Jackson
        • "Organization in transition, changes in leadership, culture, and beyond. Great things ahead!" - MeLissa Webber
        • "Opening our Lifesavings Partnership Hub" - Kelly Furnas
        • "1st capital campaign & 1st Dir. of Dev." - Claudia Labbe
        • "Different leadership positions" - Sunny Levine
        • "Formalizing performance management. It's an investment." - James Pawlowicz
        • "Adding positions, implementing SOPs across the organization that had not been previously formalized, completing DEI training for all community-based team members, and formalizing budget planning. <3" - Erika Skouby-Pratte
        • "Yes, to keeping animals in the community and preventing them from entering the shelter environment." - Julielani Chang

    • Highlights from the Chat
      • "I can speak to firsthand to how Geraldine will always, always make time to speak with anyone- community member, volunteer, staff, donor, etc. No matter how busy she is, she will never make you feel that way. It is one of the many practices I have learned from her and taken with me in my career!" - Lauren Rogers
        • "Thank you, Lauren! I am so proud of how you have evolved as a leader." - Geraldine D'Silva
      • "And only our own kind understand our mysterious honeybee dance" - Chris Fitzgerald
      • "there is now a term called a 'Hive" for group work." - Michelle Russillo
      • "I love the way you just outlined the parts of creating a culture of inclusion! Super insightful. Thank you" - Lola Victor
      • "Love your bees analogy to wrap up your talk. Beautiful poppies! Thank you" - Julielani Chang
      • "Change often feels isolating, so glad to see others going through change" - Clare Callison
      • "Great diagram" - June Thomas
      • "Such a great point bringing awareness to reactivity in response to change and changing that to a more people-center response to change! Love the ADKAR format provided here to allow more ease with this, and that managing complex change visual is on point. Thank you!" - Lola Victor
      • "I miss providing the incentives and resources resulting in the resistance and frustration for sure!" - Shanna Gundlach
      • "Start with WHY" - Chris Fitzgerald
      • "The ADKAR format is on target! The Vision/Skills/Incentives/Resources/Action Plans screen exceptionally useful!  Thank You Bobby Mann!" - Debra DeVries
      • "Buy-in makes it so much better." - Janette Martin
      • "The Five Domains Model is a modern concept for assessing animal welfare that considers five domains that contribute to an animal's mental state:
            Nutrition: Access to clean, balanced, and varied food and water
            Environment: Comfort through temperature, space, air, odor, noise, substrate, and predictability
            Health: Absence of disease, injury, impairment, and good fitness level
            Behavioral interactions: Varied, engaging, and novel environmental challenges through sensory inputs, exploration, foraging, bonding, playing, and retreating
        and Mental state: Subjective feelings and experiences" - Alison @ Maddie's Fund
        • "5. Mental State - satisfied, engaged, comfortable, affectionate, playful, calm, encouraged" - Chris Fitzgerald
        • "Love that the parallel of animal well-being and human well-being was identified." - Irene Chansawang
      • "Change leadership, yes!" - Michelle George
      • "Ugh...so many mistakes in making change for my kennel staff." - Shanna Gundlach
      • "The key is that the update/change is actually an improvement. So many times, you get an 'upgrade' that creates a mess/crash." - Donna Miller
      • "Love change but it doesn't mean that everyone does and have to be empathetic to that." - Christina Avila
      • "I like how you guys are expanding on incentive." - Nicole King
      • "It was a group decision to change our software." - CaSandra Nash
      • "With software, I always evaluate the user manuals and training too. It's not clear so often because it's written by people who already know the program. Sometimes, it's worth the effort to rewrite a quick reference internally." - Penny Leisch
      • "'Change is hard' because change can be (so) slow and often changes require revision of expectations." - Julielani Chang
      • "We try to focus on the benefits too. Benefits help overcome resistance. Everyone wants more good things for their benefit." - Penny Leisch
      • "Move at the speed of Trust. Love this!" - Shelley Joaquin
      • "Thank you, learned several ways to navigate change." - Nicole King
      • "Good information exchange today!!!  I appreciate the opportunity to participate in Maddie's Community Forum and get to interact with each of you!  Enjoy the Summer Break everyone!  Have a happy and safe 4th of July!" - Debra DeVries
      • "Awesome!  Thanks to everyone on the panel!" - Kathy Duncan
      • "Thank you.  Perfect timing for new information and reminders how to handle and adjust to change" - Mary Linn Lombardo



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    Charlotte Otero
    Community Strategist at Maddie's Fund
    she/her
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    Attachment(s)

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    CommunityConversationsSlides_62424.pdf   10.64 MB 1 version
    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Community Conversations - 6/24/24 - Lesson Learned: Wisdom from Animal Wellbeing Leaders on Navigating Change

    Posted 06-24-2024 02:54 PM

    Unanswered question from the chat for panelists:

    "Probably for most of us in mission-driven work, the incentives are going to be intrinsic. Are there creative ideas for more extrinsic (fun) incentives to get the ball rolling when a little extra push is needed?" - Sara Fitzpatrick 

    "I think recognition for participating in the change because they are part of the team of participation leading the change." - Christina Avila



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    Maddie's Pet Forum Admin
    Maddie's Fund
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    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Community Conversations - 6/24/24 - Lesson Learned: Wisdom from Animal Wellbeing Leaders on Navigating Change

    Posted 06-24-2024 04:29 PM

    We are all about celebrating wins, no matter how small or how big. It might be as simple as giving a shout out to a team member at a team meeting (we carve out a few minutes at each meeting for this), or on particularly hard/busy days we'll have boba drinks or Jamba Juice delivered. We will sometimes gamify things. I am not in surgery often but when I am, we have a friendly "race" where the team's goal is to not let me finish my tea over the course of the surgery day. I bring a full mug or 2 or 3 of tea and drink it in between surgeries while waiting for the next patient. I love seeing the communication/collaboration between the techs to make sure they're on it, keeping up, paying attention, and their timing is right so I don't get to finish my tea, they get the satisfaction of winning, and we have a really productive day that ends early. :)

    Organizationally, we have created the PET team (People Enrichment Team), made up of staff from all levels tasked with planning events and fun stuff for staff. We've had some really cool events - spring picnic themed lunches, carnival with leadership members in dunk tanks, coffee carts during the winter, and in a month we'll have a casino night as our staff appreciation event.

    These are all the fun stuff that are great in the moment of providing some immediate relief from the workday (as long as it does not cause more stress to be away from their work), but probably not enough on its own. We really do focus on wellness and we mean it - from making changes in HR policies to add PTO for pet bereavement, increasing the number of free sessions through EAP, making health care more accessible/less out of pocket for staff, redefining monthly wellness allowance from just gym membership, to whatever the employee defines as wellness - could be a massage, mani/pedi, workout outfit, whatever. Also provide opportunities for professional development, opportunities to learn more or different things, take on more responsibility/projects, etc., learn new skills. This requires getting to know your staff and their strengths and weaknesses, and their special interests. This is how we've been able to increase the scope of care we're able to provide internally over the last 12 years, where today we have the collective medical capability that rivals any high end private practice.



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    Cristie Kamiya
    Chief of Shelter Medicine
    Humane Society Silicon Valley
    CA
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    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: Community Conversations - 6/24/24 - Lesson Learned: Wisdom from Animal Wellbeing Leaders on Navigating Change

    Posted 06-25-2024 08:16 AM

    Thanks for your generous reply, Cristie! I love the great tea race. I'll be thinking of ways to adapt something similar, although my team's focus is more abstract.

    Sounds like you have an elightened organization there. Good for you! I'll keep your other ideas in my pocket for my chats with our philanthropy and HR leadership, although we're doing pretty darn well with the resources we do have. 

    I wonder how different your place looked at the beginning of your time there.



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    Sara Fitzpatrick
    Community Engagement Manager
    Santa Fe Animal Shelter & Humane Society
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    Original Message


  • 6.  RE: Community Conversations - 6/24/24 - Lesson Learned: Wisdom from Animal Wellbeing Leaders on Navigating Change

    Posted 06-24-2024 02:56 PM

    Unanswered question from the chat for panelists:

    "Do you have any recommendations/resources to continually review and refine the organizational values and how to best communicate and align them with staff/volunteer/etc?" - Lola Victor

    "Check out the Change Management webinar that Dr Kamiya presented - it's on Maddie's University - https://university.maddiesfund.org/products/change-management-principles-to-make-hard-changes-simpler" - Alison @ Maddie's Fund



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    Maddie's Pet Forum Admin
    Maddie's Fund
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    Original Message


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