1. ACSA: The Next Phase
June 23 2014

2. If there was one key to happiness in love and
life and possibly even success it would be to go
into each conversation with this commandment
to yourself front and foremost in your mind:
JUST LISTEN.
Be more interested than interesting, more
fascinated than fascinating and more adoring
than adorable.
-Dr. Mark Goulston

3. It is the dawn of a new day at ACSA.
But what we have done is not the end of what
we will do.
Thanks to you ACSA is now a stable organization.
Yet, Stabilization is not Success.

4. The work of transforming
ACSA into a
high - performing
organization remains.

5. Tools for Transformation
Strategic Plan
Core Values/Strategic Priorities
Operating Principles
The most important tool: YOU

6. In truth, the most important tool is
YOU + Operating Culture
Culture is more powerful than any other force
for organizational success.

7. In order for ACSA to achieve ongoing success we
now must commit to doing very differently than
we have done before.
What We Do represents one time success
How We Do is the formula for creating
ongoing success

8. At ACSA, we have operating principles in order
to ensure that we all have a common
understanding of How We Do
To be clear, let’s review what the operating
principles are and what they mean

9. ACSA Operating Principles
• Give. Give. Give. Ask.
• Default to the Doer.
• Maximize Transparency.
• Engage in Productive Conflict.
• Plan. Do. Review. Learn. Share.
• Maximize Effectiveness and Efficiency and
Excellence.
• Solutions Start with People and End with
Systems.

10. Give. Give. Give. Ask.
You Give clear instructions and
expectations about what needs to occur.
You Give resources and support to make
the desired objective a reality.
You Give time to allow for a product to
be developed.
You Ask for a quality result that meets
high standards.
You Ask for a high level of performance
on an ongoing basis.
You Ask and you expect excellence.

11. Default to the Doer
When a problem has been identified, you
seek the solution from the person closest
to the problem.
You understand that a problem cannot
be resolved without a discussion with the
person that the problem impacts.
You are not satisfied with the solution to
a problem until the solution is
satisfactory for the person closest to the
problem.

12. Maximize Transparency
You work to ensure the people around
you know what you are doing and why
you are doing it
You share information before it’s
necessary
Your motives and objectives are clearly
understood by others
When situations require your
confidentiality you explain that limitation
and then share as much as you can
without violating your obligation to
maintain confidentiality

13. Engage in
Productive Conflict
When you see something you say
something.
You are willing to have the difficult
conversation to ensure the work gets
done the right way.
You engage your colleagues with respect
for their ideas and expertise. When the
conflict stops being productive you stop
engaging.
You commit to the philosophy of “best
idea wins” and when the best idea has
been decided, you move on to the next
item on the agenda.
You are committed to ACSA having the
best whenever possible.

14. Plan. Do.
Review.
Learn. Share.
Plan
Thought before action.
Do
Action without delay.
Review
Take time to assess what happened.
Learn
Every experience is a learning
opportunity.
Share
Communicate best practices to others
who may benefit.

15. Maximize Effectiveness
and Efficiency and
Excellence
Only when a solution meets all three
requirements is it a true solution.
Never stop asking:
Does this initiative/activity/expense best
support the overall mission of the
organization?
How can ACSA do this better and
decrease costs?
Does this result meet the highest
standard of performance?

16. Solutions Start with
People and End With
Systems
Start with People
You have a bias towards action
You have the courage to take action
You are willing to act even if “it’s not
your job” - you pick the trash up off the
floor
End with Solutions
Your actions are strategic and are
intentional about what you are, and are
not, trying to accomplish
You identify root causes and get beyond
treating symptoms

17. ACSA’s operating principles articulate how we do
things at ACSA.
Now comes the hard work of making these
principles a reality in our everyday work
For all of us, this means working in ways that
will be both uncomfortable and unfamiliar.

18. ACSA is committed to creating
GREAT EXPERIENCES
for students, staff, parents, vendors and each
other.

19. In the past, ACSA had a commitment to
Education. Just Different.
Going forward, ACSA has a commitment to
LEADERSHIP. AT EVERY LEVEL.
Leadership at every level means that everyone is
responsible for doing their part to contribute to
ACSA’s creation of great experiences.

20. In its Strategic Plan ACSA has identified the
qualities listed below as its Key Leadership
Attributes
Vision – an easily understandable view of the future and the greatness that is possible
Commitment - a willingness to do the work necessary to achieve the desired result
Communication – providing helpful information in a timely manner to all key stakeholders
Decision Making – the executive functions necessary to commit to the path of action most likely
to produce positive outcomes based on the information available at the time
Team-Building - a focus on developing others to maximize their potential for success
Passion – a sense of urgency combined with a belief in the ability to succeed despite the obstacles
Character –self-awareness, integrity and resilience

21. Leadership Attributes are how you manage
yourself and your own independent work
Operating Principles are how we manage our
work with each other

22. Yet, we must always remember that most of our
independent work involves working with each
other.
In other words, the commitment to leadership that each ACSA
team member has must be based on the operating principles of
the organization.

23. Yet, we must always remember that most of our
independent work involves working with each
other.
One important way to understand the maxim above is to take a
moment to understand what the commitment to leadership is
not at ACSA.

24. At ACSA Committing to Lead is NOT
1) Impressing the CEO for the sake of impressing the
CEO
2) Working in silos
3) Making yourself/your team look good at the
expense of progress
4) Making yourself/your team look good at the
expense of others

25. Making yourself look good vs.
Others
• Working to create success at the cost of others
shows bad character and low integrity
• ACSA does not tolerate bad character
• It always leads to a bad work environment and
usually leads to a bad work product even
when there is short term success

26. Making yourself look good vs.
Progress
Part of the development process is that there will be mistakes,
there will also be times when each of us may be uncertain about
what to do next
Hiding these mistakes and uncertainties is a recipe for failure.
The recipe for success is to accept that there will be mistakes
and uncertainties. In Silicon Valley, they call this “Fail Faster”.
In other words, the sooner you make the mistake, the sooner
you can fix it. The sooner you can identify the uncertainty, the
sooner you can address it.

27. Working in Silos
• Each group executes on their objectives with little
coordination
– Everyone does their own thing
• Work that requires coordination suffers
• Alienation and suspicion occurs between
departments
• Only works well when areas are independent
– E.g. aircraft engines and blenders at General
Electric
• Does not work at all at ACSA

28. Impressing the CEO
In small organizations (and ACSA is a small
organization) it is easy to confuse impressing the
CEO with success.
At ACSA we have created a strategic plan and
organization vision – as captured in our
operating principles and strategic priorities -
that defines success. The purpose of this is that
everyone within the organization can easily
define success and that ultimately success can
be defined as success.

29. Impressing the CEO
Yet, ACSA has a CEO. And the CEO is a human
being. This means the CEO has the possibility of
being impressed for the wrong reasons.
In a perfect world, the only time an ACSA CEO
would be impressed would be when an
employee produced a great experience in
alignment with ACSA’s strategic priorities and
operating principles. And in a truly perfect
world, the CEO would be impressed every time
this happened.

30. Impressing the CEO
Since we do not live in a perfect world, there will
be times when it may feel that a choice needs to
be made between impressing the CEO and
creating a great experience.
As your CEO, let me be extremely clear on this
point: The right choice is ALWAYS to create a
great experience.

31. Creating a Great Experience

32. All work starts as a result of one person asking one of
two questions:
1) Is there a need?
2) Is there an opportunity?
People think that the CEO is the one asking this
question, but what usually happens is that everyone
else in the company brings items to the CEO and they
fall into one of the two questions listed above.

33. Needs
• School schedule
• Bus schedule
• Expense reimbursement process
• Security system
• Grounds maintenance plan
• Hiring process
• Etc.
• Etc.
• Etc.
Opportunities
• Curriculum Program – Biggest Winner
• Morale Improvement – Holiday Party
• Financial Compensation – Mileage Payouts
• Organizational Focus – Strategic Plan
• Talent Attraction – Recruitment Team
• Organizational Identity – New Website
• Etc.
• Etc.
• Etc.

34. Once a need or opportunity has been identified ACSA’s
operating principles are put into practice by one or
more individuals choosing to actualize ACSA’s
leadership attributes.

35. Give Clear Expectations
Give Resources
Give Timeline to Produce
Maximize transparency on end
goal.
Engage in productive conflict
on best way.
Develop a solution that is
Effective, efficient and
excellent.
Plan and do the solution.
Review what works, learn
from it, modify and share the
results.
Solutions Start with People
Solutions End with Systems
Need/Opportunity
Identification
Doer of the Work

36. The important takeaway is that there can be no
leadership without a way to lead – operating principles.
AND
Operating principles are only as effective as the people
who put them into practice – leadership.

37. Give Clear Expectations
Give Resources
Give Timeline to Produce
Maximize transparency on end
goal.
Engage in productive conflict
on best way.
Develop a solution that is
Effective, efficient and
excellent.
Plan and do the solution.
Review what works, learn
from it, modify and share the
results.
Solutions Start with People
Solutions End with Systems
L
E
A
D
E
R
S
H
I
P
Operating Principles
Operating
PrinciplesOperating
Principles
Need/Opportunity
Identification
Doer of the Work

38. Most important of all is that the key to everything is
individuals taking ownership of a situation and then
working together to make it better.

39. Need/Opportunity
Identification
Doer of the Work
Give Clear Expectations
Give Resources
Give Timeline to Produce
Maximize transparency on end
goal.
Engage in productive conflict
on best way.
Develop a solution that is
Effective, efficient and
excellent.
Plan and do the solution.
Review what works, learn
from it, modify and share the
results.
Solutions Start with People
Solutions End with Systems
L
E
A
D
E
R
S
H
I
P
Vision
Commitment
Communication
Decision Making
Team Building
PassionCharacter

40. When everybody embodies ACSA’s
Key Leadership Attributes then high
performance will be an everyday event
Vision – an easily understandable view of the future and the greatness that is possible
Commitment - a willingness to do the work necessary to achieve the desired result
Communication – providing helpful information in a timely manner to all key stakeholders
Decision Making – the executive functions necessary to commit to the path of action most likely
to produce positive outcomes based on the information available at the time
Team-Building - a focus on developing others to maximize their potential for success
Passion – a sense of urgency combined with a belief in the ability to succeed despite the obstacles
Character –self-awareness, integrity and resilience

41. Working Differently

42. Starting today, ACSA School Support Center staff
need to embrace change and collaboration at a
level that is unlike what we have experienced
before.
A similar expectation will be rolled out to school
leaders and staff in the weeks and months
ahead as teachers return and school resumes in
August.

43. At this point, each of us must accept that it is
not what we say, but what we do, that matters.
Or as one of my mentors would say:
Mr. Say ain’t nothin’. Mr. Do is ‘da man!

44. On the slides ahead, you will read some specific
action items for what steps ACSA will take to
move forward and truly transform into a high-
performing organization.
But first I must apologize to each of you and
thank all of you for all that has led to this point.

45. THANK YOU
Thanks to each of you for everything - from your kind words in the hallway, to the birthday cake, to your
willingness to be open to a new leader who is also a first time CEO.
We have gone through more together in 23 months than many organizations experience in two decades and
thanks to the work of each and every person reading this presentation we have not only survived, but we have
thrived.
The success of Landry-Walker’s unification is you. Free dinner meal service for our neediest students is you. The
new ACSA office is you. The turnaround of Fischer and Mc32 is you. The ability to secure the InspireNOLA
contract is you. The ability to perform functions seamlessly despite staff transitions is you. 100% SPED
compliance is you. Achieving a Free and Reduced Lunch rate above 90% for all campuses is you. $1 million
dollars from the Arnold Foundation is you. Approved School Improvement Grants for Fischer and Mc32 is you.
A new strategic plan is you. Zero findings on the state SIS audit is you. A new Google platform is you. Milestone
Academy is you. An hour on WBOK full of complimentary calls for ACSA is you. New talented team members is
you. A clean financial audit is you. 3 new schools in Shreveport is you. Over 4,000 students receiving a great
education everyday is Y-O-U!!!
And when I walk through the halls of Suite 2001, I see a level of enthusiasm to do even more. I thank each of
you for not only all you have done but for your willingness to take on new challenges as the bar continues to
raise. I look around and I see that you, like I, ‘ain’t no ways tired’. I can never thank you enough for that.

46. AN APOLOGY
Yet I also see the frustration and exasperation that exists for many of you and for that I truly apologize.
It is still unclear to many how your work contributes to the greater whole and how you can make a greater
impact. Many of you have embraced the operating principles on a personal level, only to be stymied by
managers and colleagues who have not yet made the change. We are almost in July and all of you continue to
await offer letters, even though we were able to deliver the same for teachers in May. And many of you are
working on equipment that is outdated and malfunctioning and have been for far too long. For these, and a
whole host of other shortcomings, I take full responsibility.
I will not insult you by patronizing you with a litany of excuses and a host of promises to do better. What I will
do, right now and right here, is share my thoughts on how we get this right and how we work together to make
things better starting today. Even though many of these issues will still take some time to fully resolve.
This doesn’t mean that there won’t be more frustration and disappointments and errors on my part. There will
be. And sometimes I will cause some grief without even knowing what wrongdoing I created.
What it does mean, is that the commitment to get it right is greater than in the past. In fact, it is the top
priority - both because it is the right thing to do, and because it is the one thing we must do, if we are going to
fulfill the strategic plan and be successful in new schools and with new programs.
And this leads to my final apology which is to share with you that more will be required than your hardwork
and effort. In fact, in a few cases, some of you are working too hard when you need to work differently.
Obviously, hard work is important and valued, but the real value will be in each of us figuring out how to work
better together to create great experiences for all.

47. ACTION PLAN

48. Action Plan – Key Components
1. CEO Commitment
2. Extreme Interpersonal Engagement
3. Initiatives with Impact
4. A Supportive Culture
5. Operating System

49. I Accept Responsibility
This is not just a plan and a proposal. It is a commitment and a contract. As ACSA’s
Chief Executive Officer, my commitment to you is to move in the direction outlined in
this document.
There will be some false steps and some mistakes. Yet we will continue to make
progress and we will make course corrections as needed.
And when you think that isn’t happening, you need to step up and speak up to voice
your concerns to me, or to whomever you think can help make things better.
Adrian L Morgan
Chief Executive Officer

50. The most important part of this plan is the focus
on getting SSC staff to work together.
This is why we need
Extreme Interpersonal Engagement
Extreme because there will be a hyper focus on making this
happen. Interpersonal because it is all about connecting you to
the people around you – the more you connect as people, the
more you will connect as co-workers and colleagues and
connecting is what Engagement is all about.

51. Initiatives with Impact
1. Management by Walking Around
2. Listen to Learn Meetings
3. See Something and Say Something
4. Shared Electronic Calendars
5. ACSA Calendar of Events
6. New Initiatives Resource – Google Drive
7. Electronic Suggestion Box
8. Insert Your Idea Here

52. Management by
Walking Around
The idea is simple – forget the reports,
the check-in meetings, the scheduled
presentations.
Instead just go to where the work is
happening and see how it’s going.
My first two years were Morale by
Walking Around. People seeing me in the
office and in their school buildings in a
supportive way.
Eyes were averted to obvious problems
that didn’t have an easy fix or weren’t
critically important.
The support doesn’t change but now
there is a concerted effort to find out
what’s not working and to work with you
to make it better.

53. See Something
Say Something
Walking around is the easy part.
It takes some more effort to react to
what you see.
Now the focus becomes how do I work to
help you make things better when I see
something that needs to be improved.
And soon you too will be helping your
colleagues make things better when you
see something that needs to be
improved.

54. Listen to Learn
Meetings
In the next few weeks, I will meet with
each member of the School Support
Center staff to learn what is working,
what is not, and what I can do to make it
better.
No need for anybody to prepare
anything.
Most of these meetings will be less than
20 minutes – longer if necessary.
The only goal is to provide everyone with
a genuine opportunity to share their
thoughts on how we do a better job of
working together to take ACSA to the
next level.

55. Shared Electronic
Calendars
In the next few days you will receive
guidance on how to share your calendar
with the other members of your
department.
Executive team members will share their
calendars with each other.
Everyone will now be able to more easily
schedule meetings with each other.

56. ACSA Electronic
Calendar
An ACSA calendar will be established on
Google that will have all board meetings,
committee meetings, school holidays,
school graduations and other events that
will make it easy for staff to know what is
going on at schools.
Every effort will be made to provide
information on this calendar months in
advance of events to provide the ability
for plenty of advance planning.

57. ACSA Electronic
Suggestion Box
If you have an idea, comment, question
or concern, but are unsure about sharing
your concern, you will soon have a way
to express yourself anonymously.
Even though ACSA strongly encourages
everyone to step forward and Engage in
Productive Conflict and we want a
culture where everyone feels
comfortable sharing legitimate concerns,
what is most important is that real
problems get addressed no matter how
they are identified.
A new account:
suggestionbox@theacsa.org will be
created. Anyone will be able to log into
this account and send emails to the CEO
anonymously.

58. ACSA Electronic
New Initiative Resource
Using Google Drive, or a similar
technology, ACSA will develop a
document that captures what new things
are going on in the organization.
This will include projects that are being
launched by a single individual and
efforts that involve the entire
organization.
It is likely the list will change frequently
and will include some items that may not
come to fruition.
But what it will also do is help to create a
common knowledge of what’s happening
in the organization.

59. Insert YOUR
Idea Here
If you have thoughts about things we can
do to increase collaboration and
communication, please share them.
You can email me.
We can discuss in the Listen and Learn
meetings.
You can use the new suggestion box.
We can discuss at All Hands.
But no matter what, please make sure it
gets communicated. Everyone has great
ideas and we need all of them to make
ACSA a great organization.

60. A Supportive Culture
YES
A Commitment to Help – Not Just Inquire
A Respect for the Way You Work
Finding the Harmonious Balance between Mediocrity and Progress
NO
Angry Outbursts, Fist Pounding or Unreasonable Demanding
Expectations of Overnight Success

61. Operating System
Phase I
Aug 2012 – June 2014
REGULAR MEETING SCHEDULE
All Hands
Staff Council
Executive Team
Principal Meetings
SOM Meetings
Department Meetings
1-on-1
Project Specific Meetings

62. Operating System
Phase 2
July 2014– June 2019
REGULAR MEETING SCHEDULE
MANAGEMENT BY WALKING AROUND
REGULAR REPORT SCHEDULE
We will develop these. Everything from
staff tardiness to interim assessments to
financial management to classroom
observations. If we can record it we will
soon report it. And everyone will use
the information to make things better.

63. If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up
people to collect wood and don’t assign them
tasks and work, but rather teach them to long
for the endless immensity of the sea.
-Antoine de Saint-Exupery

64. ACSA
LEADERSHIP. AT EVERY LEVEL.

65. References
• ACSA Strategic Plan
• Netflix Powerpoint on Culture
• Lincoln on Leadership
• The Little Prince