Great organizations work with and through others [sic] to create more impact than they
could ever achieve alone.
--Leslie R. Crutchfield & Heather McLeod Grant, Forces
for Good
Does your organization partner or collaborate with other
organizations? If so, have you found these alliances to be exhilarating or
exasperating? If not, are you curious about whether collaborating might be a
wise approach?
You're in good company. The Nonprofit Finance Fund recently
released survey results showing that in 2009 52 percent of nonprofit
respondents partnered with another nonprofit organization as a way of coping
with the increase in demand for services in the middle of the economic tumult.
This type of adaptive action, among others, respondents indicated, would likely
carry over into 2010.
Common sense tells us that partnering can be an effective
and cost-efficient strategy. Leslie R. Crutchfield and Heather McLeod Grant
concluded in their well-researched book, Forces for Good, that partnering provides the leverage you need to
build organizational impact. So, if more organizations are open to partnering
and if indeed it is such a valuable approach, then it pays to learn how to do
it better, what strategies are best, how to overcome challenges, and what your
choices are in case a good collaboration goes bad.
Why Collaborate?
Partnering with others, nonprofit or for-profit, can yield
many advantages, including: -
Allowing
your organization to have a greater impact, as noted previously;
-
The
fulfillment of your mission;
-
The
broadening and/or diversifying of your services into communities that benefit
from your services;
-
Making
limited resources (financial, human, and other) go farther; and
-
Being
able to undertake new projects, programs, or services that you would not be
able to offer otherwise.
4 Strategies for Success
Collaborations come together in many different ways: you or
your partner may see a need or issue that you can address together, or a funder
may suggest the partnership. Success stories about collaborations that work
usually involve one or more of the following strategic criteria:
Core
Competencies. Organizations come together
because of different but complimentary competencies that when focused on a
particular issue yields exponential results. There is no need to duplicate or
reinvent the wheel. For example, the American Academy of Facial Plastic and
Reconstructive Surgery partners with the National Coalition Against Domestic
Violence on a project, called Face to Face. Three hundred surgeons across the
country perform free reconstructive surgery on victims of domestic abuse a year
after the Coalition liberates women from abusive relationships. Neither
organization would be serving its mission by developing services already
offered by the other, but clearly working together Face to Face has
life-changing results.
Benefits-driven. Two organizations come together because they each
bring value that benefits the other. A national educational organization that
champions a successful learning model partners with another larger organization
that supports educators of a different model. The larger organization benefits
because it is able to provide access to information of increasing interest to
its members, and the smaller organization has access to a much wider universe
of potential registrants for its conference, readers of its publications, and
members.
Resource-driven. In this strategy, organizations pool resources
(which may include competencies) to develop a program, service, or initiative
bigger or better than what one could offer alone. The joint effort saves
dollars in the long run.
Last year, for example, I spoke at
three conferences that were co-productions of two different organizations. The
Washington, DC, chapters of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and
the Direct Marketing Association jointly produce The Bridge Conference (where
I'll be speaking again this year). Two nutrition organizations, one serving the
elderly and the other serving people home-bound by disease or illness, convened
in Atlanta. And when I "played" Atlantic City - at the Spartacus room at
Caesar's Palace, no less - I presented to members of the New Jersey and the
Delaware Valley's Societies of Association Executives who convene there each
year. (In fact at the 2009 event, the organizations announced their merger.)
Another example is Pro Bono Net, a
national organization that delivers its mission almost exclusively through two
extensive web platforms and has woven collaboration into its mission and
strategy. In fact last year, one such collaboration
earned the organization recognition from the Lodestar Foundation, which
selected them as a finalist for The Collaboration Prize.
Pro Bono Net with with
organizations to provide specialty information for particular population
sectors - people wrongly committed, immigration advocates, those along the Gulf
Coast who suffered because of Katrina, and many others. The organization's
resources include technology and its membership and its partners bring content
and constituent bases, among other assets on both sides. The collaborative
projects allow the impact of these groups to penetrate more deeply into the
communities who need access to specific assistance and knowledge.
Revenue
or Value. In this model, organizations
exchange value for a cash or in-kind fee. Corporate sponsorship is one such
example. If structured well around the two organizations' business goals, the
partnership can yield tremendous results in support of both organizations'
strategies.
In each of these approaches, being clear about what your
organization seeks to accomplish, what you bring to the table, and what you
need from the collaboration is essential. Investing time here first, rather
than just jumping in enthusiastically though perhaps blindly, will save time
and aggravation later, once you're fully engaged. If, after explorations with
your prospective partner, you conclude that the collaboration is not a fit or
that the other organization brings nothing substantive to the discussion,
proceeding may not be the best choice.
Ingredients for Success
When you do decide to move forward, however, you'll want to
cultivate and adopt a set of best practices. Those that follow are culled from
my own experiences and from discussions with clients and others who've found
success (and learned from frustration) while collaborating:
Trust is essential. You must both engender a trusting
environment and be a trusted partner.
Starts at the top. The vision and commitment comes from you,
the chief executive of the organization. You set the example and blaze the
trail for your staff. Conversely, if you're not invested, your staff is not
going to champion the cause.
Start at the beginning. When you launch the collaboration,
begin with a meeting of all the stakeholders - an opening ceremony, if you will
- so everyone is in alignment.
"Face-to-face is better than fax-to-fax." One of my clients
has a poster on her wall with this line. While the technology has certainly
evolved from the fax machine, you get the point. Meet in person when necessary.
It realigns and reconnects everybody with the project goals and with each
other.
Clarity about your needs. Share your needs with your partner
and encourage your partner to do the same. Work together to accomplish your
interests. In a recent blog post on the Trusted Advisor blog, Sandy Styer describes the Thomas-Kilman assessment.
Collaboration, she notes, is where Assertiveness and Cooperation meet: "Collaboration gets its power because
it uses the energy of Assertiveness--ideas and real points of view, championed
by people who care--and the energy of Cooperation--a willingness to make things work for
all involved. From collaboration comes the best result, the idea or solution
which is fashioned from everyone's input and is better than what any one person
could have come up with on her or his own." No one is served by remaining quiet
about what you and your organization need.
Put it in
writing. Documenting the terms and parameters of your work together is just
plain smart business. It may be a helpful tool later in the life of the
partnership, especially if a leadership or staff change shifts the nature of
the partnership.
Accountability. Besides an agreement, using a project
management tool, even a simple spreadsheet, outlining tasks and deadlines and
identifying staffs' responsibilities, will support workflow and provide a mechanism
for accountability.
Staff needs. Be sure that your staff members involved in
the collaboration have ample time to complete the thinking and subsequent tasks
necessary to execute the project, in addition to their ongoing
responsibilities.
Balance. When we think of collaborating, it's natural to have
flashbacks to the failed group projects in 4th grade, where we got
stuck doing all the work. A better way to look at collaborating, however, may
be to consider the idea of balancing responsibilities over time, not on a
day-to-day basis. Be mindful that your partner has ongoing activities, other
priorities and deadlines. One client has found success by choosing to jump in
and offer help, rather than allowing resentment to build.
Realistic expectations. It's easy to fantasize tremendous
results, but don't allow yourself to become unglued and swept away. Be
realistic and focus on long-term results and impact, not a quick fix.
Resolving Challenges
Despite the best planning and intentions, challenges occur.
Conflicts are inevitable among human beings. These suggestions will help you
resolve the most common difficulties:
Culture
clashes. Remember that you are two organizations - perhaps even two formerly
competitive organizations - now working together towards a common goal. You and
your partnering executive director must work to mesh the two cultures,
fostering an evolution throughout the duration of the project or partnership.
Fear
and resistance. These two go hand-in-hand and are quite natural. However, they
also offer nothing useful towards the outcome. The solution? Build trust.
Turf
issues and politics. Long-time collaborators note that sometimes starting off
on small, non-threatening projects can help the two staffs make incremental
progress together. Be sure that roles and expectations are clearly defined and
understood by those involved.
Inertia
and mixed signals. When confusion and even lack of progress occurs, check CEO
commitment levels. Are you fully embracing the project? Is your partnering
organization's CEO? Are you each supporting the project internally and setting
an example for your staffs? Is there an open atmosphere, allowing staff members
to discuss concerns and challenges and to find solutions?
Miscommunication.
Oddly, we humans, distinct from other mammals by our thinking and language
skills, sometimes don't do such a great job communicating. When you suspect
miscommunication, let that be a signal to come together, face-to-face, to talk
over what's going on. And, of course, don't take things personally.
When Good Partnerships Go Bad
Not every partnership works out, despite high hopes and
carefully planning. You have three options:
Walk
away from the partner; Walk
away from the project; Change
your role and involvement.
Don't feel stuck, trapped, or in need of investing further
resources in a losing proposition. Staff morale, energy, and enthusiasm is too
precious; life is too short. Move on.
How You Benefit
Working with collaborators allows your organization to
expand its service with a relief of funding or without adding significantly to
the operation. The benefits to your staff and organization, in terms of
capacity building and professional staff development and growth, also add up.
You may notice that staff members' communication and listening skills improve,
which will be of benefit internally as well as externally on other endeavors.
Successful collaborations extend your reach into communities
and among constituents in ways that are endlessly beneficial to your mission.
Reaching more people with your expertise, services, messages, and stories
expands your community, your base of supporters, and your impact.
Now it's your decision: are the social value coupled with
the value to your operation and growth of individual staff members compelling
reasons to improve existing or explore new collaborations in your market? |
