10 Keys To Success

10 Keys to Success in Collaborative Practices

To introduce and initiate collaborative practices in your state agency, you may want to use these "Keys
to Success" as a checklist.
*Created by Kitchen Table Democracy (formerly the Policy Consensus Initiative)
1. Find champions among leaders who can help achieve high level buy-in and
support.
New government programs tend to thrive only when they have support from top-level
leaders. The agency head and/or other high level leaders need to champion the use of
collaborative practices. It is especially helpful when leaders are involved visibly. This
may include attending training sessions, tracking and reporting progress, and rewarding
individual and group accomplishments. These and other conspicuous efforts by top
officials can be very effective in promoting a program.
2. Employ a program manager or coordinator who can provide skillful strategic

direction.
Introducing a new program and practice in an agency is a time consuming endeavor.
Doing it effectively requires assigning someone the responsibility. Designating a staff
person to serve as a Dispute Resolution Coordinator will be extremely beneficial. "DR
Coordinators" perform a range of functions-from providing leadership and obtaining
agency support to assessing needs, addressing barriers, and assisting with program
development. To carry out their various functions, DR Coordinators must have some
knowledge of, and experience with, dispute resolution and collaborative problem solving.
Also important are characteristics such as leadership, communication skills, knowledge
of the agency, and ready access to agency leaders.
3. Provide continuous education and training to build capacity

While the concepts underlying collaboration and conflict resolution are not extremely
complicated, they are new for many people. You will want to employ outreach,
education, and training to obtain support among potential users, agency officials, and

leaders. Educational activities range from general efforts to inform

agency personnel and others about the existence of the program, to skill building.
4. Use a collaborative approach, involving staff and users to develop your program
Collaboration involves identifying agency leaders, staff, and users at the earliest possible
opportunity and involving them in conceptualizing a new program. State agencies that
use these processes have learned that gaining input from internal and external
stakeholders is critical when introducing a new program. By giving stakeholders
opportunities to provide input and feedback, and to have a sense that their input makes
a difference, you will help reduce resistance and enhance the probability of success.
5. Follow the four basic steps to initiating a program:
Assessment: This is the initial step in developing a plan. You need to conduct an
analysis of both the structure and mission of the agency as well as its current system
for managing problems or disputes. You should also examine the barriers that must
be overcome, and the opportunities, incentives, and potential sources of support.
Planning and Program Design: Think big but start small! Determine the most
pressing needs and which process or processes are appropriate for addressing those
needs. The plan you develop may be comprehensive, with a number of phases to
fully implement it, or it may focus on developing just one particular program. In either
case, it should spell out the goals, objectives, and steps the agency will take in
implementing the program or project.
Demonstration: A pilot project allows your agency to begin on a small scale in order
to see how well the program will work. The agency can learn lessons from the pilot,
correct any problems that arise, and then implement the program on a larger, more
permanent scale.
Evaluation: This helps your agency determine whether the program is meeting its
goals and functioning effectively. Evaluation data are useful in gaining the necessary
feedback for making decisions about program direction, and in obtaining resources for
continuing or expanding successful programs.

6. Employ a systems approach, adopting procedures to prevent as

well as resolve disputes
A systems approach involves employing a variety of methods and procedures to change
the way people handle their disputes. It requires you to look at ways to prevent disputes,
and ways to assist people in resolving conflicts before they become full-blown disputes.
Once the dispute has occurred, it provides a spectrum of methods to help resolve the
dispute.
The components of a system for handling problems or disputes should be arranged in a

low-cost to high-cost sequence. If parties are unable to reach a joint decision through
negotiations, then agency heads, hearing officers, arbitration panels, or courts may
become the designated decision-makers. Appeals from that decision may be made to a
higher review body. The design of a system should permit skipping steps when a
judgment is needed quickly. It may also be desirable to provide a way to return to earlier
steps, in the event that parties discover negotiation may be a better alternative.
Another important component of a systems approach is education and training. This

helps build staff skills, enabling them to deal with issues differently and adopt and use
new procedures and practices for handling conflicts and disputes.
7. Create incentives and remove disincentives to the use of collaborative practices

The existing incentives and disincentives for using collaboration in an agency will affect
the ultimate success or failure of any program. You will need to develop strategies to
take advantage of existing incentives, and to overcome disincentives. Disincentives are
likely to include resistance to change, lack of resources, and concerns about loss of
control or power.
A number of federal and state agencies have created incentives by changing hiring and
promotion practices; adding job performance rating categories for use of negotiation,
collaboration and dispute resolution; and establishing awards programs. Incentives may
also include complying with statutes or executive orders, saving time and resources,
developing long-term solutions, and improving working relationships. Identifying and
employing appropriate new incentives is crucial.

8. Develop policies and guidelines in support of the program

Depending upon the nature of the program, you may find it useful to formulate policies or
program guidelines setting forth the agency's purpose for instituting collaborative
practices. These guidelines may:
o Declare high level agency support and gain attention within an agency and with
the public it serves
o Identify sources of delay or inefficiency in existing procedures
o Establish implementation goals, incentives and timetables
o Begin the process of educating agency personnel about these processes and
their utility
o Begin to change agency "culture" to encourage informal efforts to address

problems and prevent and resolve conflicts.
You may also want to establish agency policies to ensure that principles of fairness,
impartiality, and quality are followed. But it is important that these policies and
guidelines not be overly prescriptive about the collaborative methods themselves. The
hallmark of the program should be flexibility, so that the processes serve the agency's
unique mission, address the issues, and serve the parties.
9. Ensure adequate resources to support the program

One of your key tasks is identifying the resources that will enable the agency to use
collaborative practices successfully. Essential resources include money for personnel
and services. Depending on the nature of your program, resources may be available
from within your agency or from other agencies, from federal programs or grants, or from
public-private partnerships with other stakeholders who will benefit from the program.
Leaders and DR Coordinators should not hesitate to get help implementing a program,
from key personnel within their own agencies, from counterparts at other agencies, or
from other states with similar programs.
10. Reward and celebrate accomplishments

Studies of successful projects universally rely on a strategy of "Do

something - Celebrate - Do something - Celebrate again!" When an implementation
effort is designed with immediate doable steps that are publicized or celebrated, it
creates positive momentum that helps keep people engaged.
Recognition and reward for personal accomplishments are also important motivators.
When agency leaders play a role in recognizing the accomplishments of those working
to implement these programs, it can signal to other employees that the activities have
value.
For example, the Office of Dispute Resolution in Massachusetts makes two awards
annually to state employees. One is the John Dunlop award for promoting use of ADR in
a state agency. The other is the MODR award for resolving a public policy dispute.
The Conflict Resolution Consortium in Florida presents an annual leadership award-in

memory of a highly regarded public servant-to both public and private sector leaders
who have championed consensus building and problem solving on public issues.

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10 Keys to Success in Collaborative Practices

*Created by Kitchen Table Democracy (formerly the Policy Consensus Initiative)

2. Employ a program manager or coordinator who can provide skillful strategic

3. Provide continuous education and training to build capacity

leaders. Educational activities range from general efforts to inform

5. Follow the four basic steps to initiating a program:

6. Employ a systems approach, adopting procedures to prevent as

The components of a system for handling problems or disputes should be arranged in a

Another important component of a systems approach is education and training. This

7. Create incentives and remove disincentives to the use of collaborative practices

8. Develop policies and guidelines in support of the program

o Identify sources of delay or inefficiency in existing procedures

o Establish implementation goals, incentives and timetables

o Begin to change agency "culture" to encourage informal efforts to address

9. Ensure adequate resources to support the program

10. Reward and celebrate accomplishments

Studies of successful projects universally rely on a strategy of "Do

The Conflict Resolution Consortium in Florida presents an annual leadership award-in

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