This tool might help you with Step 1: Set up a small group to lead the way
Within your lead group, you will need to have access to skills that will allow you to:
- identify the key people in the community (the stakeholders) who will have an interest in, or be affected, by the work you are doing
- communicate and negotiate with people from a range of settings and backgrounds
- organise complex material
- plan in a structured and logical way
- monitor progress and provide clear reports
- work well with others and engage and motivate them
- solve problems and be creative in finding solutions
- know your own knowledge and skills and recognise your limitations
- know other sources of expertise and where they are available.
You also may need to have access to specific technical and administrative skills. If people in your group don’t have a particular set of skills you need, you may sometimes need to bring it from elsewhere. Ways to do this include:
- arranging for individuals within your group to be mentored by someone else with the skills
- bringing in someone to work with your group, either as a paid contractor or as a volunteer
- setting up advisory committees or working groups made up of people with the skills that are needed.
Your work together as the lead group will be successful if the following features are consistently happening:
- a common vision
- skilled coordination
- regular communication
- clear authority for the people involved to do the work
- a plan that is understood by everyone involved
- ways to monitor progress that help you quickly see when there are both opportunities and problems
- willingness to change and adapt as the work proceeds.
Watch out for these common causes of failure:
- plans that are too simple, too complex, or unrealistic
- conflicts not resolved constructively
- key stakeholders not properly involved
- ineffective coordination
- problems and risks poorly managed
- not enough people with the right skills
- inadequate resources, equipment and facilities
- poor monitoring, with activities slipping behind schedule
- unclear communication about changes.