REMINDER & AGENDA: Collaborative Networks Community of Practice Call 5/28, 9:30-11 AM PT
Odin Zackman
Dear Collaborative Networks Colleagues—
Thanks again for your interest in an ongoing dialogue about network building for social change!
I look forward to speaking with those of you who can make our call next week on Wednesday, May 28th at 9:30 AM PT. Please register here to RSVP: http://www.anymeeting.com/PIID=EA56DB82834638.
We still have not resolved how to engage/invite others, so if you have a colleague who might be interested in joining us, please forward this message. We’ll be discussing how to further expand this group on next week’s call.
Here are the log-in/call-in details via AnyMeeting for your reference (you’ll receive an e-mail with this information once you register at the link above):
You can log in at https://www.anymeeting.com/139-071-567
You can also call-in by dialing: 213-416-1560, Access Code: 872 0417
I’ve shared a proposed agenda below for our time together, and welcome any participants who have a network profile, success story, practice, or challenge they’d like to share. Alternately, I am suggesting we come prepared to discuss practices, successes, challenges, and lessons learned around a particular theme (I’ve recommended “Building Network Culture” as a start). I’d like to work with a standing agenda format for these calls to support our learning and connection, but am open to your suggestions of what feels most valuable.
If there is anyone who’d like to volunteer to take notes so that we can share with both attendees and those interested who couldn’t make the call, that would be great.
The initial concept for this community of practice and comments/ideas that others have shared can be found here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SMq4IBwnBZ-aLUj5vJAawNHCHB38HYXVtkplJCAeykc/edit
The proposed agenda is ultimately up to us all, but this is what I’d like to recommend (number represent elapsed minutes!):
Collaborative Networks Community of Practice
MAY 2014 Monthly Call Proposed Agenda
May 28, 2014 9:30-11 AM PT
:00 Welcome and Introductions
· Opening quote
· Name, affiliation, place
· Agenda review and expectations
:10 Highlights and Challenges
· Popcorn style opportunity to hear about 3-5 highlights or challenges from participants
· Reflections, reactions, and recommendations (as requested)
:30 Monthly Network/Practice Profile or Theme
· What is a network success, practice, or challenge you are having? (one person/team rotating monthly on a volunteer basis), OR
· What experiences, tools, questions do you have regarding…Building Network Culture
· What questions or ideas does this raise? (3-6 questions and comments, depending on number of participants)
· What are applications for your practice? (3-6 lessons learned, potential applications, reflections, depending on number of participants)
:60 CoP Infrastructure
· What structures or practices should be in place/improved to support our learning?
o Listserv and shared on-line folder?
o Inviting others?
o Regional gatherings?
o Group mapping survey?
o Team/rotating facilitation, note-taking, logistics?
· Who is willing to take a next step on implementation?
:75 Next Steps, Feedback, and Reflections
· Review our next steps/roles moving forward
· Provide feedback on the call and upgrades for future calls
· Check-outs/reflections
:90 Monthly Call Concludes
Please see brief notes from last month’s call below (mostly focused on value and direction of this community of practice). We’ll be sure to post these to a location where all can view/refer to them, in addition to other materials.
Again if you’d rather not receive these monthly e-mails, please let me know and I can remove your name from this list.
Hope to talk with you next week!
All the best,
Odin
Collaborative Networks Community of Practice
APRIL 2014 Monthly Call NOTES
April 30, 2014 9:30-11 AM PT
“I’ve learned an incredible amount about the value of continuing to work together with people even if you have some fundamental disagreements, and I have seen the breakthroughs that can be created by staying in relationship with others and keeping the dialogue going by maintaining an open channel of communication.”
—Julie Snyder, Housing California; Steering Committee Member, ClimatePlan
Participants included: Mac Johnson, Cincinnati, OH; Ron Milam, Los Angeles, CA; Renee Fazzari, San Francisco, CA; June Holley, Athens, OH; Derrick Rhayn, Tacoma, WA; Odin Zackman, Berkeley, CA; Ken Vance-Borland, Portland, OR; Kristin Johnstad, Minneapolis, MN
Exploring What We Want to Create Together
· What would be of value in an ongoing community focused on collaborative networks?
o What we are doing needs to make a difference, debriefing about our work (how did it go presenting maps in a network leadership context for KVB)
o Need to share the new ways of doing this work, to support and challenge the predominant way of funding collaboratives, networks, collective impact
o Generate some relevant topics and definitions around this work (concept documents, overviews)
o Context and relationship—how to apply this work and learning conversation to bring distilled concepts to the field?
· Review initial proposal and comments (found on-line at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SMq4IBwnBZ-aLUj5vJAawNHCHB38HYXVtkplJCAeykc/edit
o Regional clusters as complements to national learning conversation
o Surveying group
o Having a repository for information and case studies are good, but need to experience this…when I’ve learned the most about networks is when I’ve experience it
o Create a network map of this group of where we are working and on what
· Engaging others
o Need to create opportunities for us to model network practice and co-lead this effort—rotating facilitation, opportunity to present examples and exercises for practice
o Looking at who is in core and in periphery to be able to engage everyone and maximize the learning and participation
o How do we resource this effort in the long-term?
o How do we look at the membership dynamics and identity of the group?
o Wasn’t sure that I belonged on the call…interesting to create a space or website that outlined where people have come from/how they know each other?
o This isn’t as big as we want it to be…absolutely need to define this as a space for practitioners (whether you are a funder, consultant, network facilitator, participants)
Next Steps and Reflections
· Debriefing about what we’ve done (ie how it went for Ken when he presented maps in a network leadership context)
· Local organizing – regional – national level to balance learning, practice, collaborative opportunities and relationship-building
· Exploring and understanding different types of approaches: distinctions in collaborative models, networks, collective impact, etc.
· Definitional Work: distill concepts for people to grab onto
· Map the field/Map the group – use a web-based white board system, what is needed, supporting the field overall, people on a map that are in the field – what do you want, what are you doing, what do you need
· Case studies nationally and regionally – repository where this stuff is stored
· Issue of initiation into networks – how does this work, how do we be inclusive
· Collective impact trend, funders participation as practitioners rather than lurking; working with philanthropy to best help them support networks
Odin Zackman
Principal
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