Monthly Archive for November, 2007

Carol Lukas and Rebecca Andrews have identified four keys “essential to a well-functioning collaboration”:

1) Clarify the purpose: misunderstandings can occur when people don’t recognize and agree on a way of working together. You may think you’re getting together for just a few meetings while your colleague has the whole year planned out for both of you! Working together involves varying levels of intensity, from cooperation (low-level) to coordination (mid-level) to collaboration (high-level). Lukas and Andrews provide a useful chart that clarifies this further. Ultimately, “it’s important that everyone understands and agrees to the purpose of the collaboration, the degree of commitment required, and the expectations of the partners involved in the effort.”

2) Let form follow function: “Just as there are different ways of working together, there are also different types of collaborations.” The three main types of collaboration include 1) administration, 2) development/advocacy, and 3) service delivery. View the chart on their website to learn more about how to determine the level of difficulty, time, and impact, as well as the degree of intensity, for each type of collaborative.

3) Involve the right people: “As a rule, work with as few people as necessary to get the job done. The more people involved, the greater the number of communications; the greater the intensity; and the greater the difficulty of learning about each other, balancing power, and coordinating your work.” Ask yourself these questions when choosing partners:

• Do you share the same goals?
• Do they have the required capabilities and resources?
• Do they have credibility in the community?
• Do you have a trusting relationship?

4) Get it in writing: “The most common reason for a collaboration meltdown is disagreements and uncertainty about operating norms.” To avoid this, it is helpful to put the following items in writing: “the collaboration’s mission and purpose; values and assumptions; vision, timelines and milestones; members and membership policies; roles and contributions, policies (competition, conflicts of interest, financial relationships); and norms (participation, decision-making, communication, conflict, meetings). It’s especially important to decide what the agreements are for leadership and decision-making.”

They conclude, “Collaboration is a powerful way to accomplish what no single organization can. It’s also a complex way to work. Following these four keys will increase the likelihood of your success—and of ultimately getting the results you’re after . So take heart and remember—struggle precedes growth!”

Source: Fieldstone Alliance