1. Develop and Maintain Networks & Collaborative Partnerships
CHCPRP001
Develop and Maintain Networks & Collaborative Partnerships

2. Collaboration is a working practice where individuals work together to achieve benefits for their clients, themselves or their organisation

3. Community service organisations generally collaborate to:
improve the quality or scope of service to their clients, and/or
provide administrative or service delivery efficiencies.

4. Collaboration in the workplace means;
Thinking and brainstorming ideas to provide solutions
Gives the team members a strong sense of purpose
Equal participation within the group

5. Other forms of collaboration are;
Informal
Formal
& Virtual

6. Memoranda of Understanding
Documents called Memoranda of Understanding or Letters of Intent are all instruments which are used to signify an intention to negotiate a contract in the future.

7. SWOT
Strengths
Weaknesses
Opportunities
Threats

8. Strengths:  What are the advantages your collaboration will have?
Will it fill a need in your organisation as well as their own?
What do you do well? (What do you boast about?)
What do they do well?
What benefit is there to clients and staff?

9. Weaknesses:
What could be improved by having a collaboration?
What should be avoided?
What things should can a collaboration be doing that it isn’t already working?

10. Opportunities:
Where are the good choices in forming a collaboration?
What are the next steps?
What are the trends in your community that your collaboration could be in a position to make the most of?
Are there new opportunities from the community, funding sources, grant makers, industry or community group bodies that could help the collaboration to grow or to sustain it?

11. Threats: What is your competition doing, or planning to do?
What obstacles does your collaboration face?
What is your competition doing, or planning to do?
What are your funding sources doing? Are there any trends?
Are the required specifications for your services changing?
What is the demand like for your services? Are your clients less satisfied or more satisfied? Do you need to re-target your collaboration or its activities?
Do you have finance or cash-flow problems? Could you do a better job of approaching grants or fundraising opportunities?
Is collaboration knowledge spread broadly, or would a gap be left if individuals moved on? Have you ensured you have "deputies" ready to step in to the breach?

12. Identifying Barriers to Success
Anticipate potential barriers’
Turf battles in organisations with similar services
Difference in Organisational cultures
Rigid policies over intellectual property or copyright
Real or perceived conflict of interests

13. Monitoring and Evaluating
Is required in order to
Adapt to competitive or regulatory environment changes
Expand, reduce or shift the focus of a partner relationship
Reduce negative effects
Respond to the reorganisation or departures of key personnel from an organisation

14. Gap Analysis
Ensure all goals identified are accurately outlines and defined as SMART GOALS
SPECIFIC
MEASURABLE
ATTAINABLE
REALLISTIC
TIMEFRAMED

15. Mission
Vision
Goals
Policy and process

16. Vision; a broad timeless statement about the long term future of the business or organisation and the community it serves. It is the desired end result of the organisation for staff, organisation as a whole and the clientele of the organisation

17. Mission; a statement about the purpose of the organisation, which describes how any organisation will fulfill the vision.
This should be a statement which is easy to remember and is inspiring for staff and the clients.

18. Goals; these are concrete definitions of the major steps the staff of any organisation needs to achieve the mission and the vision.

19. Service Matching
Understanding the services of each possible collaborator means looking for areas where working together can be beneficial, ensuring the policies on staffing, safety and compliance issues match, that similar work practices and ethics match as well as legal requirements.

20. Due Diligence

21. Is the company a legitimate business?
Do they have a website?
Do they deliver complimentary services beneficial to clients?

22. Has the firm or individual been the subject of a class action, suspension, investigation, legal action or negative publicity?
Check Compliance sites such as for age care or child care in Australia where certain standards are required and the status of each organisation
Check Media reports on firms and individuals involved in development projects, including reports of investigations and allegations of wrongdoing
Check Court records on firms and individuals involved in development projects, these will be a matter of public record.
Check with prior clients, employers and donors, local NGO’s and trade associations and local media sources

23. Does the firm have the capacity (experience, personnel and resources) to do the proposed work?
Check if a prospective partner, contractor or consultant has the necessary experience and resources to perform the proposed contract:
On-site background checks for smaller or local firms
Check references with prior collaborators and donors, local business directories and trade associations.

24. Does a proposed collaborator have the educational credentials and experience claimed?
Check with previous collaborators, other organisations and staff
Use general sites on the internet.
Compare proposals to other submitted for the same purpose; check references from prior collaborators.
On-site background checks for smaller or local organisations by checking references and contacts such as staff members and past staff members.

25. Are further background checks on firms and individuals who are the subject of allegations or concerns required?
These can be obtained by reading public records of class actions, legal proceedings, using specialist organisations such as Dun and Bradstreet
On-site background checks on individuals through websites such as blue card requirements
Undertaking federal police checks of individuals
Understanding the reputation of the proposed collaborates.

26. Networking
"Networks deliver three unique advantages: private information, access to diverse skill sets, and power (Ostlund, 2016).

27. Conventions and Conferences
A conference is the perfect place to walk up to strangers, get to know them, and swap information speed-dating style.
Give a presentation or speaking on a panel are good ways to have people approach you.
The same is true if you man a booth

28. Chamber of Commerce
Chamber of Commerce probably hosts classes and meet up opportunities and talks as well as networking events.
Giving a talk, or getting involved with a Chambers effort are better ways to guarantee those close connections.

29. Trade Shows
Trade shows exist in part for networking. They are an easy and obvious place to meet people relevant to your field. If you want people to come to you, man a booth.
The tricky part is staying in touch with people after you’ve dropped your business card. Follow-up s and social media connections work well for this purpose.

30. Peak Body Membership
They hold regular meetings for their members where networking and trust relationships can be formed as there is an assumption if you are a member you share the same values.

31. Professional Meetup Groups
Staff should be encouraged to attend meetups. See which ones you like best, these can be online through social media, specialised groups on Facebook, or Linked In as examples. Stick with those and you’ll make connections, guaranteed

32. Who benefits?

33. Organisations
Can include the generation of referrals and achieving key outcomes required

34. Staff
The staff of any organisation can benefit from networking too, they can experience increased confidence in their abilities as they compare with others in the field.

35. Clients
Can have better resources and access to other suppliers to best meet their needs.

36. Identify your Unique Point of Difference and promote it!

37. Collaborative V’s Contractual Agreements
A Collaboration is an agreement between organisations to do business together or offer services to mutual clients in ways that go beyond normal company-to-company dealings, but fall short of a merger or a full partnership

38. Contractual agreements
Contractual arrangements are written mutual agreements, enforceable by law, between two or more parties that something shall be done by one or both. For a contract to be legally binding it must contain four essential elements:
an offer
an acceptance
an intention to create a legal relationship
a consideration (usually money).

39. Goals
There are two main types of organisational goals: official and operative. Official goals detail a company's aims as described in their public statements, such as the corporate charter and annual reports. They help to build the organisation's public image and reputation. Operative goals are the actual, concrete steps a business intends to take to achieve its purpose.

40. Goals
Client Goals
Clients use a service, because they have a need or gap in their ability to either function how they want or to get better at something.
Most clients identify their goals when undergoing assessment by an organisation they have identified can meet their needs appropriately, either through advertising, word of mouth or referral.

41. The Importance of Collaboration
Collaboration refers to working relationships within different teams within single agencies or external agencies who bring differing and practical ways of working together focusing on client’s needs and goals which are a common focus for the group.

42. Facilitate or Act
Plan
Implement or Do
Reflect or Check

43. Reflection is a powerful process in improving one’s performance, known as reflective practice.
Questions you can ask in this process are
Did I accomplish what I wanted to today?
Was I adequately prepared today to ensure maximum impact for my client?
What have I done well and what made it so effective?
What can I do better and what do I need to do to accomplish that?
What was the most important information/skill that I wanted to assist the client with today and did I achieve this?
What did I learn from my colleagues today/this week?

44. In summary,
Q…..Question yourself.
U…..Understand how to get to your objective (“aha” moments).
I…..Inquire of others (feedback).
C.….Complete honesty, always.
K…..Keep a journal (jot down your reflections and responses for future use).

45. Team Building
Team building is about providing the skills, training and resources that the people in the new team will require to work together harmoniously and effectively for the benefits of the client.

46. Professional Promotion and Presentation;
This is necessary in order to observe your working environment like a goldfish, i.e seeing it for the first time every time, to ensure it is appropriate to the image you wish to convey.

47. Fish Philosophy!
Choosing one's attitude,
Playing at work,
Making someone's day,
and being present.

48. Personal Presentation.
Personal presentation is all about marketing YOU, the brand that is you.  What others see you do and hear you say will influence their opinion of you – so personal presentation is about painting yourself in as positive a light as possible – always.

49. Position Statements
Position statements are designed to be one sided, they are not a discussion in the “for and against” in any issue and as such are an organisational stance on the issue.

50. Client Confidentiality
a service agreement might require an organisation to provide confidentiality to clients whilst a community worker might have their own obligations under a code of conduct to keep client information confidential. In this case there is no conflict between the obligations.
It is the responsibility of all organisation’s to ensure the confidentiality of clients information and details under the Privacy Act Amendment 2000 (and the agency guidelines based on this Act).

51. Professional groups should have; Recent News Member Listings
Discussion Boards
Wall Postings

52. Social Media Pages for your Organisation
Opportunities exist for you to promote your organisation and to let everyone know about the services you offer.
This is also useful for clients who can access this site readily to find out what is going on in the area that may be specific to them.

53. What to do after a conference is over to make sure you’re maximising the benefit?
Follow up with any new contacts made
Write down the most exciting and important ideas that were discussed or came in to your head when listening to speakers.
Write s to people you have spoken to and made preliminary plans to collaborate, outline what you discussed and look to see if they come to fruition.
Share information with your colleagues, some organisations have a template for the key messages that stood out.
Connect on social media with people you met there through LinkedIn or Facebook or other professional network, remember out of sight out of mind, if you are not visible they may forget what you have discussed.