How the ULC Used Strategic Planning to Accelerate Advocacy, Leadership Development and Research

The Challenge 

ULC has long served as a hub for collaboration among large urban public library systems, helping leaders share insights and advance innovative programs that strengthen communities. While the organization had a strong foundation of member engagement and issue-focused initiatives, it had not undertaken a formal strategic planning process in about 15 years. At the same time, the environment for public libraries was rapidly changing. Libraries were navigating workforce challenges, new technology demands and growing expectations to provide community services ranging from workforce development to digital access. ULC’s leadership recognized that the organization needed a more clearly defined strategic direction — one that would strengthen its leadership role within the field and help urban libraries elevate their voice in national policy conversations.

The Solution

McKinley Advisors partnered with ULC to conduct a comprehensive strategic planning process that engaged the organization’s membership, leadership and staff in defining its future direction. The process included member surveys, focus groups and extensive engagement with ULC’s Board and strategic planning task force. Through these conversations, the organization clarified the areas where it could have the greatest impact and built strong alignment across its highly engaged membership. The resulting strategic framework focused on three core priorities: advancing leadership development within the public library field, strengthening ULC’s role as a research and data resource for urban libraries and investing in advocacy to ensure public libraries are represented in national policy and funding conversations.

Program Structure

The strategic planning engagement unfolded through a comprehensive, research-driven process designed to gather input from across ULC’s membership and leadership while building strong alignment around the organization’s future direction.

1. Immersion and data review: McKinley began the engagement with an immersion session and a review of existing research, reports and organizational data to develop a deep understanding of ULC’s current initiatives, member value and strategic challenges.
2. Stakeholder research and engagement: To ensure the strategic plan reflected the perspectives of ULC’s diverse membership and partners, McKinley conducted extensive stakeholder outreach. This included interviews with key members and partners, multiple focus groups and an electronic survey designed to capture perceptions of ULC’s value and the emerging priorities facing urban libraries.
3. Strategic Planning Task Force collaboration: Throughout the process, McKinley worked closely with ULC’s Strategic Planning Task Force through a series of check-in sessions to review insights, test emerging ideas and build alignment around strategic priorities.
4. Strategic planning session and framework development: Insights from the research phase informed a facilitated strategic planning session with ULC’s Board and staff leadership. During the session, participants explored opportunities for impact and worked together to define the core priorities that would shape the organization’s future strategy.
5. Strategic plan development and validation: Following the planning session, McKinley partnered with ULC leadership to develop the draft strategic plan and refine it through iterative discussions. Additional stakeholder interviews were conducted to test and validate the emerging strategic direction.
6. Strategic plan finalization and implementation planning: The engagement concluded with the delivery of the finalized strategic plan, along with a year-one operating plan and KPI dashboard to guide implementation and track progress against the organization’s strategic priorities.

Outcomes

Since adopting its strategic plan, ULC has accelerated several major initiatives that are already shaping the future of the organization and the field it serves.

1. Launching the ULC Academy: One of the plan’s most significant outcomes was the creation of the ULC Academy, a leadership development initiative designed to prepare the next generation of public library leaders. The program expands ULC’s longstanding commitment to executive leadership by creating learning opportunities for professionals earlier in their careers, including branch managers and emerging leaders across large urban library systems. By investing in leadership development across the talent pipeline, ULC is helping strengthen the long-term capacity of the public library field.
2. Expanding Research and Data Capabilities: The strategic plan elevated research and data as a core component of ULC’s mission. In response, the organization created a dedicated research and data role and launched several initiatives designed to provide actionable insights for library leaders. These efforts include the Library Insights Survey, ULC’s flagship annual report capturing trends across more than 120 urban library systems serving over 90 million residents, as well as additional research examining topics such as the economic impact of central libraries and compensation trends among library CEOs. Together, these initiatives help library leaders better understand the evolving role of public libraries and make informed decisions about programs, investments and community impact.
3. Elevating Advocacy for Public Libraries: The strategic plan also empowered ULC to take a more proactive role in federal advocacy on behalf of urban public libraries. With the support of its membership, the organization invested in professional government relations expertise and began building relationships across Congress to ensure policymakers better understand the role public libraries play in workforce development, digital access and community services. These efforts have already produced meaningful outcomes. ULC played a role in advancing policy discussions that recognized the contributions of public libraries in federal workforce legislation and helped communicate the value of continued federal investment in the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The organization also worked with partners to address a major licensing change that would have significantly increased technology costs for library systems, ultimately securing free Microsoft Office access for public library public-access computers nationwide.
4. A Stronger Foundation for the Future: By aligning its membership around a clear strategic direction, ULC has positioned itself to respond more quickly to emerging opportunities and challenges facing public libraries. The organization has strengthened its leadership development programs, expanded its research capabilities and elevated the voice of urban libraries in national conversations while maintaining the strong member engagement that has long defined the organization.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

Strategic planning is about more than defining priorities. It is about building the alignment and momentum organizations need to move from vision to action. McKinley Advisors partners with associations and nonprofits to create strategic plans that clarify direction, engage stakeholders and position organizations for long-term impact.