Collective Impact is working with the Joint Commission on Sports Medicine and Science (JCSMS) to engage its membership in the Collective Impact approach. JCSMS serves as a convener and catalyst for cooperative ventures. The Collective Impact approach is a commitment of a group of individuals from different sectors to a common agenda for solving a specific social problem, using a structured form of collaboration. The concept of collective impact hinges on the idea that organizations need to coordinate their efforts and work together around a clearly defined goal if they are to create lasting solutions to social problems on a large-scale. This approach was highlighted in a Stanford Social Innovation Review article titled “Collective Impact”. More recently, with financial support from the Wallace Foundation, the Teachers College of Columbia University engaged in research relating to collective engagement around education reform. Their report (Collective Impact and the New Generation of Cross-Sector Collaborations for Education) describes the development of cross-sector collaborations and presents findings from a scan of initiatives across the United States. With assistance from Collective Impact, JCSMS membership is exploring how the model might be used to address relevant issues facing their member organizations.
The Child Support Enforcement Program (CSEA) is a federal, state, and local effort to collect child support from parents who are legally obligated to pay support. Program guidance and oversight are provided to the CSEA by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, Office of Child Support Enforcement. FCCSEA contracted with Collective Impact, LLC to facilitate a strategic planning process resulting in the production of a three-year strategic plan for the organization. The plan was developed to help intentionally guide the organization into the future and better position the organization to realize financial sustainability while continuing to pursue its mission.
One of the more common failures resulting from strategic planning is the lack of implementing the completed plan or as is often said “putting the plan on the shelf.” FCCSEA certainly did not follow this “dead end” path and instead has taken definitive actions to assure that the strategies identified in the plan are executed and that the entire staff of over 250 are actively engaged in the process of implementation, documentation, evaluation, and being overall partners in the change management process! FCCSEA leadership has identified a strategic structure with working teams to get the work done … and done well. A data collection system has been designed to help teams track the outcomes and results of their efforts. An annual staff celebration was recently held to further momentum and recognize the good work being done by all to revolutionize the organization and ultimately, improve outcomes for the children and families served.
"The Wayne Family Resource Network has had the privilege of working with Collective Impact in many different capacities over the years, such as strategic planning, community development, town hall conversations, and housing. Collective Impact is dynamic and understanding to the different cultures and needs in our communities and organizations. Bruce and the Collective Impact team work diligently to make each project a success. They provide their client with resources, tools, and guidance to move towards achieving their goals. Any community or agency would benefit greatly with assistance from Collective Impact. Collective Impact empowers their clients to achieve their goals by working together to as one to maximize their success. We look forward to working with them again in the future." ~ Charity Damron - Coordinator, Wayne County Family Resource Network, Wayne, WV
More and more, innovation is springing not from particular industries or disciplines, but rather across them, says Frans Johansson, author of The Medici Effect: Breakthrough Insights at the Intersection of Ideas, Concepts & Cultures. "When you step into an intersection of fields, disciplines, or cultures, you can combine existing concepts into a large number of extraordinary new ideas."
See the Prime Time Morning interview of Frans Johansson about The Medici Effect.
