Greetings,

I am looking for information on strategic plans for tourist railroads/museums. I am updating the business plan at the Chehalis Centralia Railroad Museum in Chehalis, WA and would like to view similar plans to get some ideas.

Does anyone have a url for their strategic/business plan online?

Does anyone have a copy of their plan they could email to me?

Please contact me at: aaron.schwarz@gmail.com

Thanks!

Aaron Schwarz

Chehalis Centralia Railroad Association and Museum

Hi Aaron - I think Harold wrote it back in 1958. He probably has a copy around somewhere.

dave

Hi Aaron:

The best srategic plan I've seen was produced by the Wiscasset, Waterville & Farmington group up (down east?) in Maine. The plan was very detailed and comprehensive considering that the group is all-volunteer. I have no contact info but I'm sure someone from that group reads the interchange and can chime in. I do have a copy but its at least a year old and I suspect has been updated since.

Of course, I have not seen very many strat plans from other groups, so I have to assume that there are other good ones out there.

IMHO, the real problem with these types of things in an all-volunteer group like ours is: 1) Having someone with the requisite writing skills who is willing to start drafting the basic document (you'd be surprised how many of your fellow leaders can't or won't write a coherent paragraph); 2) Convincing the other leaders in the group to take the effort seriously; 3) drafting the document and then discussing it as a group; 4) Using the plan as a viable planning document throughout the year.

A good strat plan is difficult to write because a lot of thought has to go into them and, therefore, a lot of time has to be taken to do it right. Of course you can spend a few hours on it and have a half---- product at the end. But that effort would be wasted if the plan is no good or isn't used as a management and development tool.

Most of the above "problems" relates specifically to the leaders in the group. Are they busy running the railroad/trolleys to spend the time necessary to develop the strat plan? Do they have family/church/hobbies that takes their attention away from the task at hand. Do they think the effort is worth the time and energy that needs to be put inot it. In other words, how committeed is the group's leadership.

Thanks!

The WW&F's strategic plan is available from their website (www.wwfry.org) home page. Just drop down to the bottom of the page and find it. It's in PDF format and takes a while to download.

A committee of five people developed the plan after taking two surveys of the membership. They worked on the plan for a year before it was ready to go, and the museum's board has been tackling several sections of the plan at board meetings. The final, revised draft will come out when all sections have been reviwed and revised by the board.

As is the pattern at the WW&F, the planning document was developed through consensus among the five members of the committee, and the revisions come about through consensus by the board.