About the Strategic Plan
Culminating a process that lasted over a year, Cal Athletics announced its strategic plan Thursday, laying out a set of priorities, as well as a mission, vision and list of core values, intended to guide the department through the next five years.
“A well-conceived and thought-out plan is essential for our success, providing clear direction for our department and a framework for the months and years ahead,” Director of Athletics Jim Knowlton said. “Through a comprehensive approach, I believe we have a document that will allow us to unify our efforts. This plan sets a course of action through seven distinct priorities, and we will use it to guide our decision-making through short-term and long-term goals to allow us to take organized and deliberate steps forward.”
The strategic plan begins with a mission statement for the athletic department – To Educate, Compete, Serve and Excel … Developing Leaders of Tomorrow – and features seven priorities, each supported by a goal and group of objectives.
Strategic Priorities
- Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging
- Departmental Culture
- Student-Athlete Experience
- Academic Success
- Competitive Success
- Financial Resources
- Campus Integration
“We want to ensure that student-athletes at Cal have every opportunity to thrive in the classroom, on the field of play and in the course of their professional lives as alumni,” Chancellor Carol Christ said. “We want to have a world-class program with a responsible, sustainable financial model supported by philanthropy, innovative revenue generation and diligent fiscal management. We want to have an environment where every student-athlete, coach and staff member feels a sense of belonging because they are supported, respected and welcome at Cal Athletics and across the campus. We are confident that the new strategic plan provides the necessary framework and foundation for the program to achieve all of these goals.”
Using a thoroughly collaborative approach, the roots of the strategic plan date back nearly 18 months when Collegiate Sports Associates began a chancellor-commissioned review of the department. The final CSA report, issued in the spring of 2018, featured input from alumni, faculty, staff, student-athletes, coaches and members of the Berkeley community.
When Knowlton became director of athletics in May of 2018, he instituted Listening Days, an in-depth analysis of each of Cal’s 30 intercollegiate sports programs and 15 administrative units. Over the ensuing months, he continued to seek and receive feedback from a broad array of stakeholders within the University community. The formal process to build the strategic plan began in earnest six months ago, and soon after, 85 coaches and staff volunteered their time to work on committees that developed and refined the goals.
“The result is a living, working plan that we will continue to refine as we make progress toward our seven priorities,” said Knowlton, adding that he and department staff will be accountable for taking and meeting measurable action steps to reach the specific goals. “Aspirations are high, as they should be at the University of California, Berkeley. We now have an obligation to take the steps necessary to implement what we have created and a responsibility to use it to its full potential.”
Letter from the Chancellor Carol Christ
Dear Cal Athletics Community:
The completion of Intercollegiate Athletics’ strategic plan is an important milestone and a necessary step for a program committed to continued excellence. Since the start of Jim Knowlton’s tenure as Cal’s Director of Athletics, he and I have talked extensively about the need for, and value of, a clearly defined vision for the department – a roadmap that will ensure our decisions and priorities are consistent with our values and objectives. As many of you know, the campus completed its over-arching strategic plan last winter, providing a framework and foundation for Cal Athletics’ own efforts to set the stage for a new era of achievement, leadership and opportunity.
This shared commitment to comprehensive excellence is central to the Berkeley ethos. We strive to be national and international leaders in everything we do – teaching, research, public service and athletics. Our history offers ample evidence of Cal Athletics’ sustained excellence: 97 national team titles in 16 different sports and more than 200 Olympic medals. Go Bears, indeed!
Intercollegiate Athletics is an integral part of who we are and an important contributor to the quality and unique character of our University. One of our most important goals, as enshrined in the campus strategic plan, is to “expand opportunities to create the leaders of tomorrow.” There is no doubt that Cal Athletics is an important training ground for leadership development, providing our students with the opportunity to compete in their sports at the highest level and to develop the qualities of mind and character that highly disciplined, team-based sports build – qualities that are valued and required for success on campus, in the workplace and throughout one’s life.
Cal Athletics also helps to build and sustain the ties that bind us together as a community. Participating in and attending competitions provides students, faculty, staff, alumni, parents and friends of the University unique opportunities to come together, and to celebrate our University’s spirit and identity. And, for many of our alumni, sporting events play an indispensable role in their continuing relationship with, and support for, our University. The heart and soul of your new strategic plan is focused on our most important values and objectives: We want to ensure that student-athletes at Cal have every opportunity to thrive in the classroom, on the field of play and in the course of their professional lives as alumni. We want to have a world-class program with a responsible, sustainable financial model supported by philanthropy, innovative revenue generation and diligent fiscal management. We want to have an environment where every student-athlete, coach and staff member feels a sense of belonging because they are supported, respected and welcome at Cal Athletics and across the campus. We are confident that the new strategic plan provides the necessary framework and foundation for the program to achieve all of these goals. This is a wonderful time to be a Golden Bear!
Sincerely,
Carol Christ
Chancellor
Letter from Director of Athletics Jim Knowlton
Dear Friends of Cal Athletics:
Starting with my introductory news conference to become your athletic director in April of 2018, I have spoken almost daily about our need to create a mission, vision and strategic plan for Cal Athletics. And after more than a year of thorough and intensive work, I am excited to share it with you today.
A well-conceived and thought-out plan is essential for our success, providing clear direction for our department and a framework for the months and years ahead. Through a comprehensive approach, I believe we have a document that will allow us to unify our efforts. This plan sets a course of action through seven distinct priorities, and we will use it to guide our decision-making through short-term and long-term goals to allow us to take organized and deliberate steps forward.
The process to create our strategic plan began more than 18 months ago, before I arrived at Cal, when Collegiate Sports Associates (CSA) began a review of our department, commissioned by our Chancellor and funded by several of our generous donors. The final document featured feedback from many of our stakeholders, including alumni, faculty, staff, student-athletes, coaches and members of the Berkeley community. Upon completion of the report, Chancellor Christ stated that “the core of our commitment to Athletics must be the student-athlete experience – the opportunities afforded students both in their sports and in their academic programs, their success in the classroom and their development as individuals in all aspects of their character and experience.”
We couldn’t agree more – the student-athlete experience must be our primary focus and it continues to be with the release of our strategic plan. Given CSA’s familiarity with our department and the data it accumulated, we utilized CSA as consultants to help us develop our plan. We also made sure to nest our focus and priorities within the campus strategic plan that was released this past December.
I am proud to say that we were truly collaborative in this process. We began with our Listening Days last summer by analyzing each of our 30 teams and 15 administrative units. Input and perspective came from meetings with alumni, donors and fans around the country and in individual meetings with faculty and campus administration. We had 85 members of our athletic department volunteer their time on working committees that developed and refined our goals and objectives.
The result is a living, working plan that we will continue to refine as we make progress toward our seven priorities. I sincerely believe it allows us to be exceptional, and I hope you take the time to read and understand it. You are as much a part of it as we in Cal Athletics are. Aspirations are high, as they should be at the University of California, Berkeley. We now have an obligation to take the steps necessary to implement what we have created and a responsibility to use it to its full potential.
Go Bears,
Jim Knowlton
Director of Athletics
