[Partnerships] Are you experiencing "Partnership Paralysis"?

[Claudine Chavanne]

Do you find a certain "paralysis" in your community partnership?  

Don't worry.  You're not alone!

In my other role as a workforce development consultant, I find that people in organizations, education and businesses are still trying to do more with less, and no one has much time to initiate new projects or even inquiries.  This seems especially timely in light of the question Lisa Deyo of SABES recently sent to all of us.  

We all have ways of breaking through the paralysis.  Here's a few examples of what has worked for me so far:


Breaking the inertia ...
 
More often than now, the solution to someone's dilemma is right under their nose, but they don't take (or have) the time to see it!

That's where community planners come in.  Because of our contacts within the community, we know all kinds of people and things that might be of help to someone.

When you can connect a problem with a solution ... big or small ... 
it's amazing to see the "spark of energy" that happens.   

Here's an example ...
 
The Problem:  Business people have often told me that the reason they don't pursue an involvement with schools is that educators never get back to them with concrete needs or requests (other than for money).  "We offer our help but never hear back.  The schools have to take some responsibility and tell us specifically what they need or, at least, how we can help them", observed one business person recently.

The Opportunity:  I brought this issue up with the educator seated across from me during a local high school vocational/technical banquet.  "Looks like a failure to communicate, doesn't it", she replied.   She went on to say that this past year has been very tough on programs due to budget concerns.  "When you don't know if your program is going to be cut or not, it's hard to do any short term follow up, let alone long term planning.  The budget has had us all jumping through hoops, and we never know which side we're going to land on".  Another observation she made is that educators often move around from one location to the other in the course of their jobs, which makes it even more challenging to communicate.   "But I check my email every day", she added.
 
The Solution:  As we talked, I asked her to think about her three most immediate program needs (other than the budget).  She came up with several specific issues that I think we can resolve with a few calls to selected businesses.   I'll make the calls and, at her suggestion, communicate with her via email.  I'll put a reminder in my calendar to check back with her in two weeks to see how things went and whether she needs any further assistance from me.  

The next time you talk to someone in your partnership, ask them what their top priorities or needs are right now and see if you already know of a possible resource or solution!   Just a simple suggestion and a quick follow up can often accomplish a lot of good will and positive energy.


Here's another example ...

The Problem:  At a staff meeting hosted by a local ABE provider, I realized that they really didn't know that much about the other ABE providers and supporters in the county.  I certainly knew I that I was confused about who offered what ABE service and where and when!

The Opportunity:  To get myself up to speed on the ABE providers in my county, I began to make a list of providers.  I then called each provider to get specific information and asked if they knew of anyone else that offered an ABE service or resource. 

The Solution:  It took awhile, but I now have a comprehensive list of all the ABE providers and resources in my County.  When I distributed the list at a recent countywide meeting of Adult Literacy providers, you could feel the "spark of energy" that flowed through the room as people realized what a great resource this could be.  My next step is to make this list available to key sites (i.e. libraries, other ABE providers, guidance counselors, chambers of commerce, regional employment board) and on every website in the County that talks about jobs or training or education.  My hope is that no matter what portal someone uses, they will find the list of ABE resources!

Start small and the big things will happen in our partnership.


Hope this helps.  I'd LOVE to hear what works for you.  Please respond to the list serve or directly to me at claudine at capital.net.  Thanks!

 - Claudine Chavanne

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