Getting to the Table

• Identify a key individual to act as the convenor for a coalition who has the respect of all parties and the necessary expertise and leadership qualities to steer the partners through the very early stages of coalition formation and strategic planning.
• Ensure that all prospective participants are aware of the potential benefits and costs of engaging in the coalition effort. Seek clarification from all partners on the capabilities and capacity they can bring to the table. Discuss recent experiences with coalitions openly among partners and clarify shared expectations regarding the current coalition enterprise.
• Make all efforts to clarify the definition and scope of the intended enterprise, and set clear boundaries.
• Define the criteria for membership of the coalition in advance.
• Bring critical members together at one time, so as to avoid inadvertently creating second-tier membership for those groups that are acknowledged to be critical but are invited to join at a later date.
• Set clear standards for prospective members who wish to join the coalition, including thresholds for size. Employ ‘tiered structures’ to manage the problems of increasing membership. Consider probationary periods for new members, and ‘buddy systems’ to facilitate information sharing and ease their entry into the process.
• Consider establishing agreements regarding the departure of partners from the coalition. Discuss the possible turbulence that might result, and develop strategies to mitigate anticipated difficulties.
• Establish a timetable for revisiting the strategic plan, and avoid the disruption of continual adaptation as new members join the coalition.
• Seek partners or allies among other sectors.
• Encourage open dialogue regarding power differentials in the coalition. Explore strategies for distributing power through the division of roles and responsibilities, information sharing, and capacity building between organizations. Strive for transparency at all times.
• Seek explicit agreement on a common definition of the problem at hand.
• Clarify among partners the proposed locus of leadership within the coalition structure, bearing in mind that the more complex the tasks, the stronger the need for centralized coordination and administration.
• Err on the side of greater seniority and skills when selecting staff.
• Clarify the resources available for the coalition at the outset. Seek explicit commitments and agreements regarding the flow of resources to and from coalition partners. Consider making resource allocation the focus of a sub-group of senior individuals within the coalition, and revisit budgets periodically. Engage with funders directly to address issues of concern regarding resource allocation and the specific needs of the coalition.

Getting to Work: Managing the Coalition & Defining Shared Goals Objectives, Strategies and Tactics.

• Ensure all partners have clear expectations regarding the up-front investment of time and effort needed to develop process literacy and establish trust.
• Establish clear groundrules governing decision-making, and operational procedures. Consider developing a simple dispute resolution mechanism in advance of it being needed. Clarify how partners are to be held accountable to agreed groundrules.
• Define decision-making procedures, and identify fallbacks in the event that an impasse is reached.
• Define a shared vision, mission (purpose) statement, goals and objectives in writing. Secure endorsement of a strategic plan outlining the principal strategies that will be employed to achieve these objectives.
• Anticipate the need to adapt strategies and the need for a diversity of tactics to achieve desired objectives. Where resources allow, seek to accommodate parallel efforts that capitalize on individual partners’ strengths.
• Consider the use of sub-groups to encourage the efficient use of available capacity and capabilities, and strive to diversify membership of such  groups to reflect the breadth of coalition members. Ensure that all sub-groups have a clearly defined mandate and deliverables, a set of boundaries for their efforts, clear reporting relationships, communications protocols, and accountability to the coalition as a whole, and a clear ‘sunset clause’ that defines when that sub-group is to be dissolved.
• Employ joint information searches, guided by explicit terms of reference to address information gaps. Ensure that partners are clear as to how additional information will affect decisions or actions before commitments are made to pursue such information.
• Ensure that reporting relationships for staff are clearly defined. Avoid individuals reporting to committees. Adopt formalized performance management systems where possible, and provide opportunities for staff to offer comment on the management structures which they support.
• Evaluate the leadership function for the coalition periodically, with a view to identifying options for improvement. Adjust approaches on the basis of such evaluations.
• Develop an agreed approach for managing the public profile of various partners and of the coalition as whole. Employ deliberate strategies to allow partners to ‘own’ messaging and activities that should be distanced from the coalition. Consider the use of ‘inside-outside’ strategies.
• Celebrate milestones and the achievement of interim objectives. Claim ‘wins’ but be cautious about sending messages that the issue has been resolved if more work is needed.

Securing Success

• Encourage regular and detailed reporting to parent organizations by their representatives participating in the coalition. Seek buy-in to key elements of the coalitions efforts over time.
• Provide mechanisms for senior representatives of parent organizations to engage with the coalition partners periodically.
• Maintain active liaison an communication with constituencies of support, both for partners and for the coalition as a whole.
• Seek to build a broad base of support for the coalition effort throughout, to increase the likelihood of support for negotiated outcomes. Utilize the networks for coalition partners to extend the reach of communications efforts.
• Anticipate that many partners and even other allies will need to claim their part in ultimate victories.
• Anticipate the need for continued engagement by partners in the monitoring of agreements.
• Evaluate the coalition experience jointly and seek to learn from such experiences. Pass on such learning to parent organizations and others.