The existing ABF Strategic Plan was developed in 2012 to cover a 5 year period starting in 2013. It was  reviewed and rolled forward by the ABF Management Committee in 2014.

In 2015, the ABF is again reviewing and updating the plan. The Mission, Vision and Values remain the same. At the recent mid-term meeting and with  Ben Thompson facilitating, Council walked through revised goals and priorities, developed with input from all Councillors via questionnaires and feedback.

Overall priorities were discussed and accepted. Domestically, we agreed that more resources should be put in the areas of teaching, marketing, club support, and directing. Internationally we will continue to develop our relationships with the WBF and other bridge playing nations and continue our focus on improving performance of our international representative teams

The meeting output is summarised on the 1-page diagram below.

Some other key comments were:

• A number of formal roles are needed, with associated costs. We will try to find suitable skills in the ABF community.
• As well as “grassroots” support for club directors, there will a need over time to develop and provide experience for future directors at congress, state and national levels while recognising the limited market and difficulties of entry.
• It is desirable to engage further with youth and youth-interested players to further develop high-level plan on best approach (e.g. schools / unis / online)
• We may need multiple channels to provide useful support for clubs, including website material, resource kits and club support officers.
• We should seek to do a better job of “telling our own good news”, perhaps via a national media & government relations officer.
• Ways to create value from online events and material were discussed. A monitoring program for online developments may be desirable.

The next step will be for the Management Committee to develop implementation plans based on the priorities as discussed and noted by Council.

Bruce Neill
November 2015