Last updated on May 19th, 2022 at 12:02 pm
Do you belong to a meet host organization that runs swim meets? Creating a Seasonal Swim Meet Prep Plan at the beginning of the season helps. It takes a lot of people to run a successful swim meet. However, there are usually a few key leaders who do the pre-planning and prep. Many are volunteers. Some are new to running meets. Most don’t have a lot of extra time. However, this small investment of time at the beginning of the season, does a lot to reduce stress for these key leaders later on.
Contents for Seasonal Swim Meet Prep Plan
What is a Seasonal Swim Meet Prep Plan?
An overview of:
- All the meets the host will run during the season
- Key tasks for each meet, including a responsible person assigned to each and deadlines for completion
Why Create One?
A Seasonal Swim Meet Prep Plan:
- Helps the meet host make the best use of resources, including time
- Coordinates effort and helps to share the workload
- Facilitates integration of staff and volunteers. This helps save money.
- Enables effective delegation and shared effort
- Helps new people “learn the ropes” within a safe framework
- Gets key leaders thinking and preparing for the meet early in the season
What Are Some Keys to Success?
There are many ways key leaders can collaborate and create a successful plan. Well planned meetings, held face-to-face either in person or via digital communication, like Zoom or Teams, yield much in a relatively short amount of time if the right information and people are there. After the initial meeting, technology opens other options for follow-up, including conference calls, email, texts, and more. However, there are a few key elements that help promote success regardless of the collaboration method used.
1. Oversight
One person should head up the seasonal swim meet planning process for the meet host. In some organizations, this person may also serve as the meet director for each meet. Others may choose to use a different meet director for each meet and have someone else head up the planning process. Even if only hosting one meet during the season, it is helpful to do a meet plan to help get key leaders “on the same page.” Do what works best for your organization.
If possible, it’s good for the person heading up the planning process to have some experience hosting swim meets. If they know and understand the meet planning and prep process, it’s easier to answer questions and mentor others. This person sets up and prepares the first meeting or collaboration opportunity. They include everyone who may be given a key leadership assignment and then follow-up on assignments throughout the season. This helps the group overcome potential obstacles and keeps meet prep going forward as planned.
2. Collaborate
When people collaborate, they work together in a cooperative way. It’s important for those with meet leadership responsibilities to give input during the planning process. People become more engaged when they feel they have both “say” and influence. Most people are more likely to help if they can decide, at least in part, how they will do their assignment. Collaboration also gives people the chance to agree, decline, or modify an assignment. This aides both follow-through and accountability.
Initial collaboration may take place in a variety of settings. It might include a face-to-face planning meeting, conference call, text and email threads, or another way of communicating. In fact, many ways of communication will likely be employed in the process.
However you communicate, it’s important to give everyone the chance to give input, ask questions, receive instructions, and make plans. By planning several meets at once, some prep may be combined or piggy-backed. Keep the dialog open so ideas can flow freely during this phase.
3. Clear, Agreed-Upon Assignments and Deadlines
It’s important to agree upon clear assignments and deadlines. The Seasonal Swim Meet Prep Plan file towards the end of this post is one way to do this. But there are others too. Choose what works best for you.
Dividing Responsibilities
First, find the key meet tasks which need to be divvied up. Depending on your situation, you may need to divide larger tasks into sub-tasks done by different people. One example of a divisible task is processing entries and fees. Try not to get too detailed at this point. Instead, remember these are your “key leaders,” or the meet host “middle management.” They are capable of working out the details of their assignments. However, some may have questions. This is a great time for them to ask, and figure out how their “piece” fits into the overall meet “puzzle.”
Dealing with Overlap
Pay special attention to where areas assigned to different people may overlap. For example, who collects the entry fees? Is it the person receiving the entries before the meet, the meet director at the meet, or both? Who reconciles paid meet fees with entries to ensure all who entered, paid? Clearly defining areas of potential overlap early on helps things move smoothly later. As it’s almost impossible to identify every area of potential overlap, consider pointing out that the possibility of overlap. This might seem like a “no-brainer” at this point. But, when in the depths of meet prep, it’s might help people remember to coordinate and clarify responsibilities. Doing so will reduce the number of important items that slip through the cracks or people “stepping on other people’s toes.”
Be sure to record the name of the person responsible for each assignment. It’s also important to record an agreed-upon deadline for completion. If the assignment is large and won’t be completed until the meet, it might be good to agree on specific check-in times or benchmarks to make sure the assignment is on track for completion as needed. The Seasonal Swim Meet Plan below makes keeping and sharing a written record easy.
Governance Tip: Be aware of governing body deadlines when planning. Set your deadline well before any required deadlines to allow for problem-solving, if needed.
Each person with an assignment should receive:
- A copy of the plan, including all specific task(s), assignment(s) and deadline(s)
- The opportunity to give input
- A chance to accept, decline or change it, with the approval of those affected by the change
5. Follow-Up
The person heading up the meet planning process should follow up with each assigned person. Are they feeling okay about their assignment? Does it look like they are on track to complete it by the deadline? Answer questions and mentor along the way, to help make sure all assignments are done on time.
Afraid of micromanaging? Check out Micromanaging Revisited by Al Switzler, author of one of my favorite books: Crucial Conversations.
Summary
A Seasonal Swim Meet Prep Plan is a great tool to meet hosting organizations. It helps preserve key leadership by sharing the workload in an organized way that promotes accountability. Because it’s done early in the season, it makes the most of available resources, including time. It also allows for the integration of staff and volunteers which can save money. Key points for a successful plan include
- Good oversight
- Collaboration
- Clear, agreed-upon assignments and deadlines
- Keep a written record and share it
- Effective follow-up.