Creating Effective Coalitions

1. Creating Effective Coalitions

2. What is a coalition? • Have a stated or similar position • Share a mutual concern • Are interested in working together toward an action-oriented goal • Can be individuals or organizations • Combine efforts, resources, and skills • May be permanent, ongoing, or temporary • May be disbanded once goals reached or abandoned

3. What are the characteristics of an effective coalition member? • Willing and able to give the time required • Reflect self-confidence • Believe in the tasks at hand • Project positive attitudes • Demonstrate effective communication skills • Be open-minded rather than judgmental • Work well under pressure • Refrain from arguing with adversaries • Willing to share personal expertise • Appreciate the talents of other members

4. What are the advantages of belonging to a coalition? • Create clout • Build ongoing power base • Maximize number of people and organizations to advocate • Share information • Coordinate strategies • Divide up the labor • Pool resources • Share different points of view to solve problems • Safety in numbers

5. What are the chief obstacles in developing a coalition? • Takes commitment • Turf issues and hidden agendas • Conflicts due to main issue inconsistent with a member’s agenda • Effort to reach consensus slows process • Need procedures to resolve differences

6. What are the key steps in creating an effective coalition? • Determine who can help • Develop structure and rules • Build capacity for planning and action • Set strategies • Evaluate

7. What are the key skills to needed to lead a successful coalition? • Leadership • Facilitation • Communication and Internet • Media • Funding and Resource development

8. What makes the coalition successful? SUCCESS! • Establishing a processto identify mutual goals • Ensuring that each group maintains own identityand autonomy • Understanding that total consensus in every area is not a requirement • Recognizing that internal group conflict is inevitable

9. What makes the coalition successful? • Striking a balance of an atmosphere of openness, a sense of inclusiveness, equal participation, and preventing one group’s domination over another • Accepting and dealing with differences in values, attitudes, and styles of communication • Realizing that appropriate negotiating and bargaining are basic to success

10. Tips for Success! • Plan for meetings and discussions • Be sure everyone understands what each organization represents and the purpose for the proposed coalition • Encourage each organization to share goals and philosophy, and its capabilities for assuming fair share of workload • Jointly prepare an “action plan”

11. Coalition leaders should • Keep a low profile and recognize needs and resources of participants • Analyze and appreciate difference personality types and leadership styles • Help discourage divisive competition and instead encourage creative competition and collaboration • Sustain the spirit of members by keeping interest high during periods when “nothing is happening” • Help group determine the organizational style most comfortable and best suited for achieving purpose set forth

12. Key Components • COOPERATION • COLLABORATION • CONSIDERATION