Collaboration: What Makes It Work

by Paul W. Mattessich PhD, Kirsten M. Johnson

Overview

This third edition of Collaboration: What Makes It Work—written nearly 25 years after the first edition was published—is an example of the enduring importance of collaboration.

Reaction to the first edition, published in 1992, showed that researchers and practitioners alike found it a useful tool. They appreciated its emphasis on providing a practical reference for decision-making that built upon credible, research-based information. The 21st century has brought with it rapid changes and increasingly complex challenges. This third edition in large part responds to the complexity witnessed daily in the authors' work with community, nonprofit, and government organizations. It offers new research and insights paired with practitioner wisdom, adding a “how-to” perspective to help readers put the success factors to work. Nearly 25 years after the first edition was published, it is not just the "how" of collaboration that has changed—who we are collaborating with has changed as well. Today, nearly every collaboration involves some degree of working across difference. Bringing together diverse people, organizations, or sectors in a way that will foster collaborative success requires a unique set of skills.

This third edition will ground you in the factors that support successful collaboration and assist you in incorporating those factors into your work.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781683367925
Publisher:	TURNER PUB CO
Publication date:	06/26/2018
Edition description:	3rd ed.
Pages:	104
Product dimensions:	8.50(w) x 11.00(h) x (d)
Age Range:	16 - 18 Years

About the Author

PAUL W. MATTESSICH, Ph.D., is Executive Director of Wilder Research, which dedicates itself to improving the lives of individuals, families, and communities through applied research. Mattessich has assisted local, national, and international organizations with strategic planning, organizational improvement, and evaluation. He travels regularly to Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom, where he learns from, and consults with, organizations addressing youth development, community development, and the promotion of peace and acceptance of diversity among groups from divided communities. Mattessich has been involved in applied social research since 1973 and is the author or coauthor of more than three hundred publications and reports. He has also served on a variety of task forces in government and the nonprofit sectors. He received his Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Minnesota, where he currently serves as an adjunct faculty in the School of Social Work.

KIRSTEN M. JOHNSON is the Director of Community Engagement and Systems Change at the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation where she manages a portfolio of community-driven projects aimed at creating equity. Johnson’s work focuses on engagement, collaboration, and systems change addressing complex challenges impacting the communities that Wilder serves. Johnson brings the lenses of emotional intelligence, intercultural competence, and network weaving to all of her work. Johnson studied Political Science and Women’s Studies at the University of Minnesota and has worked in the nonprofit sector on collaboration and community development for over fifteen years. Prior to coming to the Wilder Foundation, Johnson’s work supported a variety of nonprofit organizations including the StreetWorks Collaborative, VEAP, and Arc Greater Twin Cities.

Table of Contents

About the Authors Acknowledgments Preface to the Third Edition What's New in the Third Edition? Goals of This Book Chapter 1: Collaboration: An Effective Way to Work "Collective Impact" = or = Collaboration? Addressing Key Questions Working Definitions A Theoretical Basis for Collaboration How to Use This Book Chapter 2: The Twenty-Two Success Factors Factors Related to the ENVIRONMENT Factors Related to MEMBERSHIP CHARACTERISTICS Factors Related to PROCESS AND STRUCTURE Factors Related to COMMUNICATION Factors Related to PURPOSE Chapter 3: Understanding the Factors Factors Related to the ENVIRONMENT Factors Related to MEMBERSHIP CHARACTERISTICS Factors Related to PROCESS AND STRUCTURE Factors Related to COMMUNICATION Factors Related to PURPOSE Factors Related to RESOURCES Chapter 4: Putting the Factors to Work Factors Related to RESOURCES Factors Related to PURPOSE Factors Related to COMMUNICATION Factors Related to PROCESS and STRUCTURE Factors Related to MEMBERSHIP CHARACTERISTICS Factors Related to the ENVIRONMENT An Important Question: When Should Organizations Collaborate? Chapter 5: Collaborating Across Difference Understanding Culture Navigating Power Dynamics Avoiding Tokenism and Brownwashing Equitably Collaborating Across Differences in Organizational Size Collaborating Across Sectors Chapter 6: Examining Your Own Collaborative Project The Wilder Collaboration Factors Inventory Suggested Uses for The Wilder Collaboration Factors Inventory A Case Example: Using The Wilder Collaboration Factors Inventory Chapter 7: Summary and Conclusions What We Have Learned Using the Information To the Future Appendix A: Definition of Collaboration Appendix B: Methodology 1. Identification and Assessment of Research Studies 2. Systematic Codification of Findings from Each Study 3. Synthesis of Findings from Individual Studies Appendix C: Collaborating Across Difference—Our Process Appendix D: Author Factor Matrix Appendix E: Reflection Questions 1. History of collaboration or cooperation in the community 2. Collaborative group seen as a legitimate leader in the community 3. Favorable political and social climate 4. Mutual respect, understanding, and trust 5. Appropriate cross section of members 6. Members see collaboration as being in their self-interest 7. Ability to compromise 8. Members share a stake in both process and outcome 9. Multiple layers of participation 10. Flexibility 11. Development of clear roles and guidelines 12. Adaptability to changing conditions 13. Appropriate pace of development 14. Evaluation and continuous learning 15. Open and frequent communication 16. Established informal relationships and communication links 17. Concrete, attainable goals and objectives 18. Shared vision 19. Unique purpose 20. Sufficient funds, staff, materials, and time 21. Skilled leadership 22. Engaged stakeholders Bibliography

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

Praise for Collaboration: What Makes it Work, 2nd Edition

"Essential reading for anyone interested in collaboration. A well done summary of what the latest research says!" -- Sharon Kagan, Senior Associate, The Bush Center for Child Development and Social Policy, Yale University

"The list of factors will be very useful." -- Terry Donovan, Senior Project Manager, Anoka County Human Services, Anoka, MN

"This book should be required reading for anyone committed to collaborative efforts." -- Jane Asche, Vice President and Director of Membership Services, The National Association of Partners in Education, Inc.

"This is very helpful to me, especially to have a structure to shape our mission for the future." -- Barbara Stone, Health Care for the Homeless Project in Ramsey County

Preface

Preface to the Third Edition

The Wilder Foundation has had a long-standing interest in the power of partnerships among community-based organizations. The first Wilder operation to promote collaboration appeared in 1915 with the initiation and work of the Central Registration Bureau (Jarchow, 1981). This third edition of Collaboration: What Makes It Work—written nearly 25 years after the first edition was published—is an example of the enduring importance of collaboration.

Reaction to the first edition, published in 1992, taught us that researchers and practitioners alike found it a useful tool. They appreciated its emphasis on providing a practical reference for decision-making that built upon credible, research-based information. The 21st century has brought with it rapid changes and increasingly complex challenges. Amidst this complexity, the need for effective collaboration has become more essential. We must both learn from those who have come before us and continually develop new skills and knowledge adapted to new environments. We wrote this third edition in large part to respond to the complexity we witness daily in our work with community, nonprofit, and government organizations. We sought to update and expand the scope of this resource for those seeking to collaborate to meet the needs of the 21st century. We wanted to seek out and review new research, to determine whether it would validate the collaborative success factors identified in the earlier editions and to see if research provided evidence of any new factors. We also wanted to offer new insights by pairing the research with practitioner wisdom, adding a “how-to” perspective to help readers put the success factors to work. Finally we wanted to recognize that nearly twenty-five years after the first edition was published, it is not just how we are collaborating that has changed—who we are collaborating with has changed as well. Today, nearly every collaboration involves some degree of working across difference. Bringing together diverse people, organizations, or sectors in a way that will foster collaborative success requires a unique set of skills.

We hope that this third edition will ground you in the factors that support successful collaboration and assist you in incorporating those factors into your work.

What’s New in the Third Edition?

This edition, like earlier editions, establishes important theoretical groundwork for successful collaborative practice, based on the results of research. It provides a working definition of collaboration and distinguishes between collaboration and other forms of partnership such as coalitions and networks. It also expands the number of success factors to twenty-two and discusses how these factors influence collaborative success.

This edition builds upon the previous editions in several ways:

• Our review of the collaboration research from the past 15 years led to substantial confirmation of the original factors and also led us to add two additional factors that the research shows support successful collaboration. “Evaluation and continuous learning” was added as a factor, recognizing that measuring the effectiveness of our collaborations and intentionally learning from our experiences in collaboration directly impacts the success of collaboration. Research also showed that one of the resources impacting collaborative success is successful connections to external stakeholders, captured in our new factor, “Engaged stakeholders.”
• We have enhanced many of the factor descriptions with updated practical implications and have added perspectives about collaborating across differences in culture, sector and organizational size.
• We added content to Chapter 4: Putting the Factors to Work, creating a more expansive how-to resource based on the experience of collaborative practitioners who put the factors to work on a regular basis.

Finally, this edition has an entirely new chapter, Chapter 5: Collaborating Across Difference. This chapter discusses how, increasingly, collaborative work happens across cultural differences. In this chapter, we bridge the success factors, practice-based wisdom, and insights about culture to create a resource that broadens our perspectives and knowledge and moves us towards more effective action.