Following the 2003 Biennial Session of the Supreme Council, SGC Ronald A. Seale, 33°, appointed a Strategic Planning Committee for the purpose of establishing a Long Range Plan for the Southern Jurisdiction of the United States of America. Over the last two years the committee has met to review and develop the Strategic Objectives identified from evaluating our Scottish Rite. The analysis indicated several organizational needs to support the future success of our organization.
They include:
- Building Teamwork
- Recognizing the need for member education
- Improving communication
- Providing leadership training
- Defining roles and responsibilities at all levels
- Developing measures of accountability
- Supporting change
The committee spent many hours identifying our strengths, weakness, opportunities for improvement, and threats. Numerous issues were reviewed, including the balloon in membership during the middle of the twentieth century, the recent trend of declining membership, the social significance of the Scottish Rite, cultural changes in our society, the influence of our philanthropies, financial aspects of our operations, and the over-all organizational structure of our beloved Order. It also reviewed the correlation between the Masonic Fraternity and the Scottish Rite. From this analysis, the Strategic Planning Committee held a peer review with the Supreme Council members, refined Key Strategic Objectives, and developed a set of Key Strategies to meet those objectives. The Strategic Plan was reviewed and unanimously adopted by the Supreme Council during the 2005 biennial session.
The Strategic Plan involves five Strategic Objectives, each further involving several Key Strategies. They fulfill the stated purposes of the Scottish Rite.
1. Build a Positive Public Image of Freemasonry and the Scottish Rite
It has been widely discussed in Masonic circles that one of our main problems is that too many people don’t understand who we are and what we are about. This holds true for Symbolic Masonry, as well as for the Scottish Rite.
How many times have we found that our goals and purposes have been misunderstood or misinterpreted? How many times have we been attacked for being “devil worshippers,” “Satanists,” and the like? How many times have we been approached by people who think that we are a “secret society,” or a cult with sinister or nefarious motives? And, how many times have we seen a friend, a co-worker, or a relative who would make a good addition to our fraternity, but to whom the idea of membership has never occurred? They might knock on the door of the Lodge if they could only find it!
A well coordinated campaign to generate a better public image of our fraternity will help in assuring the future of the Scottish Rite and of Freemasonry. The Key Strategies for this objective are:
- Establish a Public Relations Department within the Supreme Council.
- Expand the public awareness of our philanthropic activities.
- Establish a media relations strategy.
- Establish means to utilize well-known members of our Order to accomplish the objective.
- Establish initiatives to educate the public about the core values of the Scottish Rite.
A Public Relations Department, headed up by an individual working at the House of the Temple, will be essential in coordinating activities that will enhance our members’ knowledge of the Rite as well as informing non-Scottish Rite Masons and the public about us. Some of the methods that could be used to “spread the word” include the increased use of Public Service Announcements and the outstanding stories of our philanthropies. The training of some of our members to better deal with the media will be essential.
2. Support and Expand Our Philanthropic Activities
Some of our members mistakenly think that our charities are the main reason for the existence of the Scottish Rite and that without our charities our Rite would not exist. The truth is that Masonic charities reflect the character of our individual members. In attempting to live according to the ideals and principles taught in the various degrees, it is only natural that our members would want to do good for their fellow man. In providing assistance to those around us who are in want, we thereby further the basic aim of our Rite—to help make the world around us a better place for all mankind. Several Key Strategies are proposed:
- Evaluate the current operating structure of our RiteCare Centers.
- Establish standards of quality and care for our RiteCare facilities.
- Establish a national resource for RiteCare Centers, for operational as well as financial purposes.
- Evaluate our scholarship and other programs and create standards.
It has been noted that of 165+ RiteCare Centers currently in the Southern Jurisdiction, few operate in an identical manner. While this is not, in and of itself, a negative, it will be to the advantage of our Centers to operate in a more cohesive style. Thus strengthened, our main philanthropy should be to move forward and reach even more people in need of the valuable services that we provide.
3. Fulfill the Promise of Additional Masonic Knowledge Through Education and Training
A central motivation of men joining the Scottish Rite is to gain Masonic enlightenment beyond that provided in the Symbolic Lodge—to extend their exposure to the intellectual, philosophical, and moral lessons that are the focus of the overall Masonic experience. Further, many of our members have a sincere desire to receive enhanced leadership training, including organizational skills, personnel management, financial planning, and public speaking. In short, Masons desire to improve themselves in many ways, and it is important for us to fulfill the promise that we made that their experience in the Scottish Rite will achieve this goal. The Key Strategies that have been developed are:
- Establish training programs to provide on-going knowledge and skill development.
- Develop programs to train members in coaching and mentoring.
- Establish knowledge standards for all members.
- Establish resources for continued learning from a basic to advanced level.
In fulfilling this goal, our members not only will have a greater knowledge of the content and meaning of the Scottish Rite, but also will gain enhanced abilities to fulfill their duties outside of our organization.
4. Provide a Framework for Effective Leadership to Ensure the Stability and Long-Term Successof the Fraternity
To continue to succeed, any organization must have sound leadership to steer it through the myriad problems that it constantly faces, and the Scottish Rite is no different. In fact, it was for this very reason that Grand Commander Albert Pike established the Court of Honour in 1870—to provide a pool of members that could be drawn upon to provide the leadership for the organization. Even with this system in place, however, it will be essential that our leaders be better trained and better able to provide the vision to carry our organization forward in the years to come. Too many times, a member is appointed to a position in his Valley or Orient, only to have little idea of what is really expected of him. The following Key Strategies will develop more effective leadership for the future:
- Review the entire organizational structure of the Scottish Rite and evaluate its effectiveness, efficiency, and utility for providing a platform for stability and core for success.
- Establish formal training programs for all levels of the organization.
- Improve and enhance communications capabilities throughout the organization.
It is not anticipated that these Key Strategies will result in a complete overhaul of our governmental structure; it is not necessary for us to “re-invent the wheel.” It would be foolhardy, however, to try to move ahead without a complete self-analysis. Should organizational changes be needed, then they should enhance our future and not detract from it. Further, it will be important for our leaders to have a full understanding of their positions and how best to fulfill the duties of their respective offices.
5. Provide a Financial Process to Ensure the Stability and Long-Term Success of the Fraternity.
Masonic organizations are facing financial challenges that can best be described as daunting. While some Scottish Rite Valleys have endowments and other resources to properly support the financial operation of their buildings and their daily operations, many others are struggling to operate in a financially healthy way. While other problems can be dealt with when convenient, financial problems must be dealt with before they lead to the demise of an organization. The following Key Strategies address finances:
- Create an organization that has strong and progressive financial planning capabilities for the entire organization—Supreme Council, Orients, and Valleys.
- Make changes to the organizational structure that will result in strong internal accounting and financial controls to ensure the protection of our assets.
- Implement a prudent but progressive investment policy, for all funds, built upon responsible investment theory that will optimize long-term return.
- Develop policies and controls to manage the organization’s facilities to support our mission while optimizing the economics of the operation of our facilities.
It is the intention of the Supreme Council that every part of the organization—Valleys, RiteCare Centers, Scottish Rite Clubs, and the Supreme Council itself—operate in a manner that provides freedom from financial uncertainties and in accordance with all local, state, and federal regulations. Considerable effort has been exerted in the past towards this goal, but it will be necessary to emphasize these efforts more firmly to insure the success of our fraternity well into the future.
The Strategic Plan as is as comprehensive as the committee felt possible, and yet, is not something that will be extremely difficult to understand or implement. It will involve every member of the Scottish Rite in one way or another, and will allow our beloved Order to move forward into the future with vitality and solidity. Having voted unanimously to endorse and implement this plan, the Supreme Council earnestly solicits the support of each and every Scottish Rite Mason of the Southern Jurisdiction in helping to make it a reality, and thereby insuring the long-term success of our beloved Rite.
The path forward begins with the upcoming Leadership Conferences with every Valley represented. The Strategic Planning Committee will attend and share the Plan, listen to Valley leaders, and take from these important meetings the information to move to the next level of implementation.
Together we are building our future on the traditions of the past.
The path forward begins with the upcoming Leadership Conferences with every Valley represented. The Strategic Planning Committee will attend and share the Plan, listen to Valley leaders, and take from these important meetings the information to move to the next level of implementation.
