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BACKBONES AND CACHIWEBINAR FOR CACHI | MARCH 18, 2019

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Agenda for webinar

1 About FSG

2 Collaborative Structure

3 Backbone Deep Dive

4 Collaborative Governance

5 New Ways of Working

Appendix

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FSG is a mission-driven consulting firm supporting

leaders in creating large-scale, lasting social change

MISSION-DRIVEN

We are a nonprofit consulting firm specializing in strategy, evaluation and

research, founded in 2000 as Foundation Strategy Group by Harvard

Business School Professor Michael Porter and Mark Kramer

INTERDISCIPLINARY

We partner with foundations, corporations, nonprofits, and governments

to reimagine social change in the areas of global development, health,

education, environment, and community economic development

THOUGHT LEADER

Our cutting edge perspectives on philanthropy, corporate social

responsibility and collective impact have been published in HBR, SSIR,

Chronicle of Philanthropy, and the American Journal of Evaluation

GLOBAL

Our team of 150 works in Boston, Seattle, San Francisco, Washington DC,

Geneva and Mumbai, bringing a combination of extensive on-the-ground

experience in the social sector and world-class consulting skills

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HANDS ON SUPPORT

We work on Collective Impact in three mutually

reinforcing ways

Juvenile justice in NY State

Childhood obesity in Dallas

Substance abuse on Staten Island

Cradle to career in King County

Pre-term birth in Fresno

Health in the Rio Grande Valley

Diabetes in Minnesota

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

LEARNING COMMUNITY

www.collectiveimpactforum.org

The Collective Impact Forum is a

field-wide digital resource designed to

help curate and disseminate

knowledge, tools, and best practices

that support effective collective impact

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Collaborative Structure

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The Backbone Role Is Best Understood in the

Context of the Full Collaborative

partner-driven

action

strategic guidance

and support= community

partner (e.g.,

nonprofit, funder,

business, public

agency, parent)Community partners

working on strategies

Backbone

support

• Guides strategy

• Supports

aligned activities

• Establishes

shared

measurement

• Builds public will

• Advances policy

• Mobilizes

resources

Steering

committee

Work

group

Work

group

Work

groupWork

group

ChairChair

Chair

Chair

Chair

Chair

Chair

Chair

Common agenda and shared metrics

* Adapted from Listening to the Stars: The Constellation Model of Collaborative Social Change, by Tonya Surman and Mark Surman, 2008.

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Leadership Is Distributed Across Partners

Community

partner

Working Group

• Individual organizations and members of the community (e.g,

nonprofit, funder, business, public agency, student, parent,)

• Partners should have access to a variety of opportunities to learn

about and engage in the initiative, and will be key to implementing

strategies

• Ultimate “power” resides within the community at large

• Comprised of cross-sector community partners targeting particular

element of common agenda

• Typically led by co-chairs, supported by the backbone

• Designs and implements strategies, involving non-working group

members as needed

Steering

Committee

• Provides strategic direction for the initiative

• Champions the work

• Aligns own work to common agenda

• Some Steering Committee members serve on working groups

Backbone • Provides dedicated staff

• Supports the work of partners by assisting with strategic guidance,

supporting aligned activity, establishing shared measurement,

building public will, advancing policy, and mobilizing resources

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Deep Dive on the Backbone

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Successful backbone support structures have the

following six key functions

Source: FSG Interviews and Analysis

Guide Vision and

Strategy

• Build a common understanding of the problem that needs to be addressed

• Provide strategic guidance to develop a common agenda; serve as a

thought leader / standard bearer for the initiative

Support Aligned

Activities

Ensure mutually reinforcing activities take place, i.e.,

• Coordinate and facilitate partners’ continuous communication and

collaboration Convene partners and key external stakeholders

• Catalyze or incubate new initiatives or collaborations

• Provide technical assistance to build management and administrative capacity

(e.g., coaching and mentoring, providing training and fundraising support)

• Create paths for, and recruit, new partners so they become involved

• Seek out opportunities for alignment with other efforts

Establish Shared

Measurement

Practices

• Collect, analyze, interpret, and report data

• Catalyze or develop shared measurement systems

• Provide technical assistance for building partners’ data capacity

Cultivate

Community

Engagement and

Ownership

• Frame the problem to create a sense of urgency and articulate a call to action

• Support community member engagement activities

• Produce and manage communications (e.g., news releases, reports)

Advance Policy Advocate for an aligned policy agenda

Mobilize Resources Mobilize and align public and private resources to support initiative’s goals

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Illustrative Backbone Effectiveness Indicators

Guide Vision and

Strategy

• Partners accurately describe the common agenda

• Partners publicly discuss / advocate for common agenda goals

• Partners’ individual work is increasingly aligned with common agenda

• Board members and key leaders increasingly look to backbone organization for initiative

support, strategic guidance and leadership

Support Aligned

Activities

• Partners articulate their role in the initiative

• Relevant stakeholders are engaged in the initiative

• Partners communicate and coordinate efforts regularly, with, and independently of, backbone

• Partners report increasing levels of trust with one another

• Partners increase scope / type of collaborative work

• Partners improve quality of their work

• Partners improve efficiency of their work

• Partners feel supported and recognized in their work

Establish Shared

Measurement Practices

• Shared data system is in development

• Partners understand the value of shared data

• Partners have robust / shared data capacity

• Partners make decisions based on data

• Partners utilize data in a meaningful way

Cultivate Community

Engagement and

Ownership

• Community members are increasingly aware of the issue(s)

• Community members express support for the initiative

• Community members feel empowered to engage in the issue(s)

• Community members increasingly take action

Advance Policy • Target audience (e.g., influencers and policymakers) is increasingly aware of the initiative

• Target audiences advocate for changes to the system aligned with initiative goals

• Public policy is increasingly aligned with initiative goals

Mobilize Funding • Funders are asking nonprofits to align to initiative goals

• Funders are redirecting funds to support initiative goals

• New resources from public and private sources are being contributed to partners and initiative

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It’s not always easy to see the value of backbone

support work

The role of backbone support is often described by a metaphor

• “(They are) kind of like the quarterback—doesn’t end up in the end

zone, but they’re the ones handing it off, making a pass or calling a

different play if the defense looks different.”

• “I’m at a lot of events with people in the know who don’t understand

what these backbones do. But they are doing what they are supposed

to do—the work behind the scenes. They both fill a role that, if it

weren’t for them, no one would be pushing certain items.”

• “They are an umbrella that can say, ‘this is an issue, let’s address it

together.’”

• “(The backbone) has also formed a bridge between early childhood

agencies, corporate leaders, and funders.”

Source: FSG Interviews and Analysis

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How backbone leaders conceive their roles

Ross Meyer, Partners for a

Competitive Workforce (Cincinnati)

Susan Dawson, E3 Alliance

(Texas)

Kat Allen, Communities That

Care Coalition (MA)

Chekemma Fulmore-Townsend,

Philadelphia Youth Network

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Backbones require a unique skill set to support

collective impact efforts

• Have a high level of credibility within the community

• Serve as neutral conveners

• Have a dedicated staff

• Build key relationships across members of the initiative

• Focus people’s attention and create a sense of urgency

• Frame issues to present opportunities and difficulties

• Use evaluation as a tool for learning and progress

• Ensure coordination and accountability

• Stay “behind the scenes” to establish collective ownership

Source: FSG Interviews and Analysis

Highlights of Successful Backbones

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There are several common misperceptions

about backbones

That the backbone:

ₓ sets the agenda for the group

ₓ drives the solutions

ₓ receives all the funding

ₓ is self appointed rather than selected by the

community

ₓ is “business as usual” in terms of staffing, time,

and resources

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Six sources of influence enable backbones

to shape and guide without formal authority

1 Competence

• Technical expertise in a

relevant content area,

strategic visioning and

problem-solving

• Interpersonal skills to

manage relationships

• Conceptual ability to take the

bird’s eye view and see

initiative as a whole

2 Commitment

• Track record

demonstrating dedication

to the issue and / or

initiative

• Significant ongoing

effort to the initiative,

inspiring confidence in

others that the backbone

is reliable and persistent

3 Honest Broker

• Objectivity of having no

personal stake and no

competitive dynamic with

those involved

• Inclusivity, creating safe

spaces for difficult

conversations and

representing the needs of

others

4 Data & information

• Quality data and research to

understand the problem,

promote accountability, learn

and improve

• Perspectives from

community members and

those who stand to directly

benefit from the work

• Media channels to

disseminate information

5 Network

• Strong connections to

cross-sector players and

community members,

enabling backbone to

broker and mediate

relationships between

individuals and groups

• Endorsements from

influential champions

6 Visibility

• Awareness about the

initiative and the

backbone’s contributions

among partners and

community members

• Regard for backbone

and recognition of its

supportive role (i.e.

sense that backbone

does not seek to take

credit)

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Collaborative Governance

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GOVERNANCE ELEMENTS

WHAT TO CONSIDER:

PEOPLE

• Leadership

• Staffing

• Member motivation

• Member selection

• Member skills

• Community involvement and

ownership

• Power relations

• Other?

WHAT TO CONSIDER:

PROCESS

• Availability of facilitators /

process guides

• Financial capacity

• Resource capacity

• Individual organization values

• Accountability and

transparency

• Other?

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COLLABORATIVE PREMISE: SHARED

AGREEMENTS

• Shared concern / opportunity that

needs to be addressed

• Identify a need to work together

• Determine how to work together

• Shared understanding of the

information

• Shared definition of the problem

• Agreement on potential solutions

• Agreement on next action steps

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VALUES AND PRINCIPLES TO GUIDE YOUR

WORK

• Transparency and Accountability: Decisions take place in the public eye.

• Equity and Inclusiveness: All interests who are needed and impacted are engaged in the solution.

• Effectiveness and Efficiency: Solutions are tested to make sure they make practical sense.

• Responsiveness: Public concerns are authentically addressed.

• Forum Neutrality: Different perspectives are welcome; the process itself has no bias.

• Consensus-Based: Decisions are made through consensus rather than majority rule.

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DECISION MAKING APPROACHES

Source: http://www.philosophyib.com/3/wholebrain/effective-group-decision-making

Method Description Use Pro Con

Unilateral Leader provides

the final decision

Frequently made decisions

The leader has sufficient

knowledge to make the decisions

Minimal time required to

make decisions

No input received from

the larger team

Consultative Leader makes

decisions after

gathering input

from various

sources

When the leader does not have

the knowledge to make the

decision on his/her own

The leader is well informed

before the decision is made

The requires a fair

amount of time to

gather feedback from

team

Consensus Majority decides

– 50% of more of

the team agree

with the decision

The decision requires a significant

amount of buy-in to ensure

successful implementation

The decision is high-risk

All team members take part in

the decision-making process

Can be problematic if

team members are not

committed to the

process

Team

Agreement

Unanimous

decision

When there must be buy-in from

the entire team

When the team wants to portray

solidarity

Portrays solidarity to people

outside the group/team

The requires a

significant amount of

time to reach complete

agreement

Expert Assigned expert

makes the final

decision

When team members do not have

the skills to make an informed

decision

When the team is willing to allow

the expert to make a decision for

them

Expert can provide

knowledge / insight to the

team

May be quicker than teaching

the team the necessary skills

to make an informed decision

May be difficult to

determine if there is an

expert on the team

No input is received

from the larger team

Sub-team A subset of the

team makes the

decision for the

whole team

When the larger group does not

have the skills to make an

informed decision

When the larger team does not

have the time to make the

decision

Allows the team to focus on

more than one issue at a

team

Can be highly productive

Allows those with expertise to

conquer certain decisions

The team leader may

find difficulty in

managing different sub-

teams

Can lead to a low

commitment

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TERMS OF REFERENCE – POTENTIAL CONTENT

• Vision / Aspiration/ Common

Agenda

• Values and Principles that Guide

the Collaborative

• Scope and Purpose

• Mandate of the Members

• Membership

• Structure and Accountability

• Decision Making Process

• Staff roles

• Conflict of Interest

• Confidentiality

• Review Terms of Reference

Process

• Schedule of Meetings

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MEMORANDUMS OF UNDERSTANDING

• Shared Responsibilities

• Intellectual Property and Copyright

• Termination / Amendment of

Document

• Conflict of Interest

• Conflict Resolution Guidelines

• Indemnity

• Confidentiality

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New Ways of Working

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Examining the characteristics of complex systems

can teach us something about mind shifts

* Adapted from Listening to the Stars: The Constellation Model of Collaborative Social Change, by Tonya Surman and Mark Surman,

2008.

1. Are not predictable in detail

2. Achieve order without central

control

3. Evolve naturally through

emergence

4. Have embedded systems

5. Operate through co-evolution

Characteristics of Complex Systems

Ecosystem of Community Partners

=

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Predetermined

Solutions

Emerging Rules of

Interaction

Predetermined

Rules of Interaction

Emerging Solutions

Current

Behavior

Needed for Large

Scale Change

Collective Impact Intangibles

To thrive in complexity, we need to adopt a new

orientation

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Mindset Shifts for a New Way of Working

Technical solutions

exist

Solutions emerge

from the process

Expectation of a

single intervention

Appreciation of

multiple

interventions

Credit must be

hoarded

Credit becomes

shared currency

Source: Channeling Change: Making Collective Impact Work, 2012; Essential Mindset Shifts for Collective Impact; 2014.

Content expertise

valued most

Context expertise

equally valued

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Appendix

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The backbone needs to take on the following

functions

Source: FSG Interviews and Analysis

Admin Support• Schedule meetings, provide logistical support, manage overall timelines

• Set agendas for SC meeting

• Prepare presentation materials for SC meetings

• Run and facilitate SC meetings

• Communicate regularly with SC members

• Plan for SC leadership

• Support co-chairs in leading meetings

• Manage executive committee

• Data collection

• Analyze indicators to evaluate progress

• Manage process of defining and refining common

indicators

• Monitor and communicate baseline data

• Develop measurement capacity of partners

• Set agendas and prepare material

• Identify information needed to make decisions

• Conduct research to support decision making

• Connect WG to others in community

• Provide progress updates on shared indicators

to the WG

• Create WG reports to SC and identify areas of

overlap/coordination between WGs

• Create communications plan

• Develop communications collateral

• Support development of major progress reports

• Support SC and WG members in communicating

publically

• Support SC/WC community engagement plans

• Develop plan for furthering policy agenda

• Track all funding and potential funding sources

Steering Committee Leadership Shared Measurement

External Communications and

EngagementWorking Group Support

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Five reasons to engage the community

1) Understand pressing systemic

community challenges • Understanding the issues

• Clarify questions that arise about the

challenge

1) Co-create solutions• Spark innovative problem-solving

rooted in the “lived experience” of the

community

• Identify and spread unique solutions

that exist within the community

1) Verify the direction• Get feedback on specific strategies

and indicators from selected

communities, particularly those who

will be the ultimate beneficiaries

1) Expand the reach of strategies

• Expand the reach of adoption of

initiative strategies

• Evoke and sustain the will to take

aligned action

1) Build community capacity to lead

and sustain change

• Train stakeholders in skills of

effective collaboration and strategy

execution

• Share resources and learning

across the community to support

scaling best practices

1

2

3

4

5

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The spectrum of community engagement

Source: Adapted from Adapted from Paul Schmitz’s Community Engagement Toolkit and the International Association for Public Participation (IAP2).