Oncology Nursing Society environmental scan 2004.

E76 E nvironmental scanning is a systematic effort to obtain information about the world that will affect an organization. Scanning is important in managing change and avoiding costly mistakes. The Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) conducts an environmental scan at three-year intervals, consistent with its strategic planning cycle. This environmental scan builds on previous work by incorporating a variety of methods, including • A 2004 survey of ONS members • A review of current business, healthcare, government, and association management literature • Information provided one-on-one by nursing organization executives • A review of the ONS membership database • ONS financial reports. The intention of environmental scanning is to understand external trends affecting all organizations, those trends that affect our members’ operating environment, business trends that influence the ways in which associations like ONS operate, and internal facts and statistics about ONS itself. Environmental scanning is the first step in a strategic planning process in which trends are analyzed for the purpose of identifying the major implications for ONS. ONS leaders will use the implications that arise from this process to help them determine the major strategic directions for ONS to pursue from 2006–2009.