Do you struggle to balance the aspirations of your organization
with the realities of its resources?
Do you dream of exponential change but can’t imagine
how you will get your stakeholders to rally around your vision?
with the realities of its resources?
Do you dream of exponential change but can’t imagine
how you will get your stakeholders to rally around your vision?
For many years, San Diego Zoo Global (SDZG) wrestled with its purpose . . . until it implemented a new breed of strategic plan known as The Call. This groundbreaking book details how SDZG transformed itself from an entity known primarily for its excellence in managed animal and plant care to a
|
conservation organization focused on leading the fight against extinction. Written by SDZG’s former chief strategy officer, Beth Branning, The Call provides engaging stories and time-tested advice for leaders in any field who want to deliver on their organization’s mission.
|
SYNOPSIS

In the early 2000s, San Diego Zoo Global (SDZG) reached a crossroad: after decades of helping wildlife, the non-profit realized that it needed to evolve into a true conservation organization to ensure a future for plants and animals.
The Call is the story of how SDZG developed, launched, and lived its new strategic plan, setting out on a multidecade odyssey to lead the fight against extinction. Through many setbacks and steps forward, this strategic plan eventually led SDZG toward its desired future, providing a road map to achieve a vision that was beyond the imagination of anyone involved at the time.
Written by Beth Branning, The Call captures the colorful stories and exciting steps involved in SDZG’s journey. It highlights the value of strategic leadership, calling readers to a new type of planning and execution that will enable them to rally their own supporters, rise above their own barriers to success, and deliver on their own unique mission.
AUTHOR
Beth Branning
Author of THE CALL - The Strategic Plan that Empowered San Diego Zoo Global to Lead the Fight Against Extinction

Beth Branning is the former chief strategy officer and director of Vision, Innovation, and Strategy (VIS) at San Diego Zoo Global (SDZG). The SDZG strategic planning process she developed received the 2013 Association for Strategic Planning (ASP) Goodman Award—the top international prize for strategic planning innovation and implementation.
For 15 years, Beth oversaw major planning efforts not only at San Diego Zoo but also with dozens of collaborators. Many of Beth’s “clients” were endangered animals in desperate need of worldwide conservation strategies, including elephants, koalas, giant pandas, and desert tortoises. She helped multiorganizational groups—from the county of San Diego to the continent of Australia—collaborate to save wildlife. Beth also oversaw the strategic planning efforts for many nonprofit associations, including the American Alliance of Museums and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
Beth was first hired at SDZG as a writer in 1988, creating animal habitat graphics and marketing education programs. Eventually, she became head of strategic communications before she took the helm of the Vision, Innovation, and Strategy group. In 2017, Beth left SDZG to open Branning Strategies (branningstrategies.com), a strategic planning consultancy specializing in helping mission-driven organizations and associations to realize their potential. Beth has a degree in journalism and is also certified as a Strategic Management Professional (SMP), the top certification offered by ASP. She has served on both the local and international boards of ASP and has received its distinguished Janice Laureen Award for outstanding leadership and guidance, as well as awards of excellence from the American Alliance of Museums, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the YWCA, and Athena San Diego.
For 15 years, Beth oversaw major planning efforts not only at San Diego Zoo but also with dozens of collaborators. Many of Beth’s “clients” were endangered animals in desperate need of worldwide conservation strategies, including elephants, koalas, giant pandas, and desert tortoises. She helped multiorganizational groups—from the county of San Diego to the continent of Australia—collaborate to save wildlife. Beth also oversaw the strategic planning efforts for many nonprofit associations, including the American Alliance of Museums and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
Beth was first hired at SDZG as a writer in 1988, creating animal habitat graphics and marketing education programs. Eventually, she became head of strategic communications before she took the helm of the Vision, Innovation, and Strategy group. In 2017, Beth left SDZG to open Branning Strategies (branningstrategies.com), a strategic planning consultancy specializing in helping mission-driven organizations and associations to realize their potential. Beth has a degree in journalism and is also certified as a Strategic Management Professional (SMP), the top certification offered by ASP. She has served on both the local and international boards of ASP and has received its distinguished Janice Laureen Award for outstanding leadership and guidance, as well as awards of excellence from the American Alliance of Museums, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the YWCA, and Athena San Diego.
1-800-358-0560