Tornadoes of Opportunity & Whirlpools of Despair
Staff supporting a collective effort need to take care not to be caught in either the tornado of opportunity or the whirlpool of despair.
Telling Stories of Systems Change
What do mushrooms on toast have to do with systems change? Read on to learn more. Bon appetit.
Collaboration, contracts and covenants
The language and practices of organizational leaders often don’t translate into the work of civic collaboratives. Perhaps we should focus on forging covenants more than crafting contracts.
Emergent Collaboratives Endure
Collaboratives that emerge endure more than those that are announced. Three tips for launching a collaborative so it will endure.
That Doesn’t Mean What You Think It Means
The term “collaboration” is becoming so popular, it’s being used to describe just about every kind of human interaction. That can be a problem.
The Scarcest Community Asset
Achieving enduring, positive community change requires more than resources, it demands a particular type of leadership.
Dealing With Disruptors
Not every member of a collaborative is supportive. Some are downright disruptive. Here’s a few tips and tactics to cope with Billy the Bully or Reluctant Rey.
Succeeding in the Messy Middle
Supporting a collaboration means you’re working in the messy middle. Here are three tips for navigating the messiness.
3 Types of Community Conversations
How we talk to each other shapes what we do together. Only one type of community conversation is likely to result in enduring, positive change.
Building while Flying
Sustaining a civic collaborative is akin to building a plane while flying it; success depends on the processes, structures and capacity that are used to facilitate collective decision-making.
5 Reasons to Say No to Collaboration
We can often avoid a lot of pain and wasted resources if respond to calls for collaboration with a strong “not now.”
Granting & Earning Generous Authority
Partners in a collaborative need to grant generous authority to their facilitator and then the facilitator needs to continue to earn that authority by helping the partners move forward together.
On Cats, Rafts & Collaboration
Collaboration is like getting cats to raft through Class V rapids, not easy, but exhilerating.
Clarity, Unity & Adaptability
Collaborating to disrupt the inequitable status quo of our civic systems is demanding, difficult work that is made easier if the partners involved are clear, united and adapt.
Questions about “System Change”
Increased calls for “system change” — fueled by a global pandemic and growing racial and economic inequity — rarely are accompanied by clear statements about what is meant by that term and how it is achieved. If we are to achieve system change we should first ask a handful of foundational questions.
Credit, Contribution & Collaboration
The positive outcomes generated by collaborations are, of course, the fruits of the work of many. Yet, it is all too common for partners in a collaboration to take credit for those outcomes in ways that attempt to elevate their own stature and diminish the contributions of others. This need for credit can crush a collaboration.
Building a Learning Culture
Successful collaborations sustain a learning culture. Three practices help support such a culture.