The Power – and Pain - of Collaborative Partnerships

1. The Power – and Pain - of Collaborative Partnerships

2. Objectives for This Hour Examples of collaborative partnerships Leadership skills needed How to bring new leaders to the table Strategies that are being used

3. Examples of Collaborative Partnerships • State and Local • Collaboratives built around a common purpose • Getting a community to ban environmental tobacco smoke • National • National Non-Profit Organizations • Providing seed money to pursue smaller yet important initiatives – that haven’t gotten attention from national funders

4. Comprehensive Cancer Control (CCC) • CDC Definition: “an integrated and coordinated approach to reducing cancer incidence, morbidity, and mortality through prevention, early detection, treatment, rehabilitation, and palliation”

5. CCC Program Relationships • The Importance of Relationships in CCC • No one organization can do the work that needs to be done • We can be more powerful and effective working together than alone • The process is as important as the product • Good relationships in CCC are just the same as good relationships in ‘real life’. Trust, communication, respect, listening to each other.

7. Evaluation of The Partnership • Dr. Fran Butterfoss – “Evaluating Partnerships to Prevent and Manage Chronic Disease” • To be effective and sustain themselves over time, public-private partnerships must make evaluation a priority. • Evaluate: • Infrastructure, function, and processes • Programs designed to achieve their mission • Changes in health status and the broader community

8. Butterfoss, Cont. • Engage stakeholders • Describe partnership • Focus the evaluation design • Gather credible evidence • Justify conclusions • Ensure use and share lessons learned • Butterfoss FD. Evaluating partnerships to prevent and manage chronic disease. Prev Chronic Dis 2009; 6(2). http://www.cdc.gov/pcd/issues/2009/apr/08_0200htm. (Accessed 09/20/2009)

9. Identify Leadership Skills • Himmelman • Partnership Toolkit • Common Roles Played by Orgs in process • Convener • Catalyst • Conduit • Funder • Advocate • Community Organizer • Technical Assistance Provider • Capacity Builder • Partner • Facilitator • http://msdh.ms.gov/msdhsite/_static/resources/2766.pdf • “Resolving Conflict: Strategies for Local Government Margaret Herrman, ed. Wash, D.C.: International City/County Mgmt Assoc, 1994, pp.27-47.

10. Himmelman’s Definitions • Networking • Coordinating • Cooperating • Collaborating

11. Collaborating • Exchanging information, altering of activities, sharing resources and enhancing the capacity of each organization to achieve a common goal • Requires the highest level of trust, share risks, responsibilities and rewards • Enhancing each other’s capacity to be the best that they can be

12. Partnership Challenges “It’s mine! No, It’s mine! No, It’s mine!

13. Examples of CCC Relationship Challenges • Time consuming • Turf issues • Old baggage • Not everyone is a group player • Confusion between separate and joint agendas • Recruitment • Sustaining the work

14. Bringing New Partners to the Game • WHY? • Solve challenging problems? • Better represent those we are trying to help? • Bring new resources to the table?

15. Exercise

16. Challenges to Overcome • Not enough time to offer right now • Don’t know how I’d be able to help • Another meeting???? • How do you know that this is what you should be doing?

17. Sustaining Partnerships

18. Case Examples • See if you can identify or come up with strategies to deal with these real life examples: • Established coalition hires new manager. Organizational partners attend meetings, are not happy about the choice of manager, but will not bring up their distress in meetings. Instead they sabotage efforts and create hostile and destructive environments for committees and other partners. What is going on and what should the manager do?

19. Case Examples • State health organization funds the state Tobacco Control Program but is unhappy with the Program’s progress. State health org. approaches the state CCC Coalition and offers a large amount of funding to take over the Tobacco Program and clean up its operations. CCC Coalitions declines offer, but not until Tobacco Control Director hears about the possible change and boycotts all CCC activities. What can be done to rectify this situation and who is responsible?

20. Case Example • Partnership of approx. 20 organizations band together to pass a tobacco tax – all originally determine that the money isn’t the issue, that reducing youth smoking IS the issue. In an earlier legislative session, one of the orgs broke away to go after millions of dollars alone, and ruined the push for the rest. Now the partnership, including the errant member, has regrouped for a second run at the legislature. How can they keep the derailment from happening again and be most effective addressing the state legislature?

21. Case Example • Gentleman approaches the leadership of the CCC Coalition who has lost his wife to ovarian cancer and wants to do something so at least some other women won’t have to live through what she did. Result is an Ovarian Cancer Taskforce is formed, supported and facilitated by the state CCC Coalition. Taskforce grows and starts getting close to the edge about its recommendations and creates controversy. Taskforce decides it wants to break away from the CCC Coalition and become its own non-profit entity. What role should the Coalition take, and how much support should the Coalition continue to provide?

22. Sustaining Partnerships: Strategies • Assess each of the obvious “lack-of’s” • Communicate changes to partners • ASK if their involvement is working! Listen and adjust where necessary • Give recognition • Get re-commitments

24. Sustaining Partnerships: Strategies • Get media attention for the CCC effort • Clearly define and communicate meeting purposes, outcomes and actions • Report back to the group on progress

25. Accountability: A key element to sustaining the partnership • If you don’t ‘have’ to do something, you won’t • Accountability approaches: • Organizational sign-up to lead tasks • Set reasonable and clear expectations • Communicate, communicate, communicate • Publicize progress (internally and externally) • Adjust if it isn’t working

26. When nothing else works… People can be motivated to work hard and be good by not telling them that hell is a place where they will burn, but by telling them that it is an unending committee meeting. On judgment day, the Lord will divide people by telling those on his right hand to enter His Kingdom and those on His left to break into small groups. -- Unknown, “The Consultant’s Craft” Sue DeWine

27. Sustaining Partnerships: When and How to Make Changes • Change is inevitable • Leadership • Formality of the group • Resources • Structure • Members

28. Ideas to monitor change • Ask members – what is working & what is not • At on-site meetings • By a written survey • By asking people informally • Get specific suggestions for improvement, not just complaints • Ask leaders what is working & what is not

29. Sustaining the Partnership: Managing Changes • Clear communication about the change • What you have seen work in other settings • Seek input from members • Set a deadline for input • Decide what the change will be • Set a timeline for the change process • Communicate the change details • Check back on how the change is working

30. Bottom Line… • Make it easy for people to be involved • Make it meaningful for people to be involved • Ask partners what works for them and have them come up with their own strategies, including • system of accountability • process for monitoring progress

31. How’d We Do? • Collaborative Partnerships • Do you know what they are? Recognize one if you saw one? • Leadership Skills Needed • How many can you name? • Bringing in new members • Why? Why not? What’s the worst case that you turned around? • Strategies that some others have used

33. One last thing…

34. Thanks for your…. • Time • Participation • Feedback