Tip Sheet: Building Community Partnerships
/If you want to do something quickly and see it fade away, then by all means go it alone. If you’re out to create lasting community change, then strong partnerships are essential. Whether you’re quickly scrambling to build partnerships during an emergency or intentionally building collaboration for the long-term, the work is largely the same.
Here are some top tips that we’ve found create lasting, impactful partnerships.
10 Tips for Building Great Partnerships
Go slow to go fast.
Especially in times of crisis, it’s tempting to jump in fast and start creating. But you’ll save yourself time in the long run if you pause at the beginning to do it right. Building real, collaborative, trusting partnerships is not a game of speed — it’s a game of endurance. Take the time to clearly think about what you need and who the right partners are, to build trust, and to lay the groundwork for a partnership that can last. (Keep reading for ways to do that.)Say, “I might be wrong.” Say it again and again.
Before you even start thinking about partnerships, say this phase out loud. Say it again as you approach partners and start getting to know them. Say it again as you start laying out a plan and actions. Say it again as you evaluate results. Whatever you do, start with humility and the assumption that you might not have all the answers or the best ideas.Find friends and get acquainted.The first step is identifying partners, and that can be harder than it looks. Start by taking a look around your community and identifying groups, committees or organizations that you already know are working toward the same things. But don’t stop there. Look further for groups that you might never think of as partners, but actually might have some common goals or needs. Look to businesses and for-profits, teams, churches, service or special interest organizations, government agencies and more. Create a long list of potential partners and prioritize getting to know each other. Read their websites and materials and have lots of conversations. The best partnerships don’t just include groups and members that all think alike — rather, they bring together members with very different strengths and ideas.
Know yourself, your values, and your vision.
Sometimes groups want to team up just because they think they should. Those partnerships often fail. Good partnerships are rooted in common ground. It doesn’t mean that partners have to agree on everything, but they have to share some base values and vision. Be clear about the purpose of the partnership — joint action, or just sharing? Start by articulating these for yourself. As you start finding partners, make sure you’re in line on the things that matter.Support first, then create.
Before you create a new project or partnership, look hard at similar efforts that already exist. Are there collaborations or groups you could join, support, or amplify? It’s more exciting to create your own, but it’s very hard to keep lots of groups and efforts running. Don’t create something new unless you know you’re filling a critical gap and that others value it too. And don’t create hard feelings by overlooking or undervaluing groups who’ve been doing the work for a long time.Get tactical and avoid perfection.
Once you’re ready to start working together, it pays off to avoid perfection. Accept that you’ll have to compromise — not everyone will do things the way you’d like. Don’t worry about creating a perfect, long-term plan. Embrace the design thinking approach and go for “lighter, quicker, cheaper” actions. They will help you stay nimble and change course if you find something isn’t working.Mark the lanes (then stay in yours).
Nothing kills a partnership faster than a lack of clarity about roles and responsibilities, or ignoring clear lines that do exist. Partners can easily get territorial or resentful if they feel that someone is stepping on toes or not pulling their weight. The best way to head off these problems is to be very clear about responsibilities and systems at the start — who’s doing what, who makes decisions and how, how the group will communicate, and how to handle conflict if it does arise. Then, no matter how tempted you are to get involved in others’ territory, don’t.Make asks and offers.
Good partnerships involve lots of give and take. it’s tempting to just reach out to partners when you need something, but they’ll see through that pretty quickly. Start instead by offering something, or asking how you can help. You can also make “asks and offers” a regular part of your partnership meetings or work. Get in the habit of offering things to each other and asking for what you need. It takes practice to get good at collaborating, and this is an easy exercise to help.Get a backbone.
If you’re planning any kind of robust partnership with ongoing actions and collaborations, know that it won’t run itself. It takes solid work, time and skills to keep partners communicating well, evolving together, and acting with purpose. Collective Impact is one of the most robust partnership models around, and an essential ingredient is a neutral, dedicated “backbone organization” that can provide infrastructure and staff support.Keep asking questions and checking in.
Don’t assume that you can set up a good partnership and have it run forever. You and your partners will need to keep asking questions and checking in. Create regular systems and checkpoints to consider a number of things. Is your partnership work accomplishing anything? Are there changes that would improve it? Are there partners who want to leave or join? Is there new information or different conditions that change our plan?Is the structure working for everyone? Is the partnership still needed and valuable? Don’t get too attached — the best partnerships will evolve and perhaps even dissolve over time. And don’t forget to celebrate each other and your accomplishments, no matter how long the partnership lasts.
Need some tools to keep your partnership tuned up and working effectively? Check out our Digital Toolbox for Rockstar Community Organizers.