Jan+12+Convening+Peer+Assist

In this peer assist, NNF participants addressed questions such as, //how can foundations leverage loosely connected groups to develop a national network that has potential for greater impact? How and where should they get started? How can they be more creative about tapping into these networks?//
 * **Networks of networks**: Foundations and grantees working on a single topic seldom share agreed-upon goals.
 * Some funders consider this to be part of the problem, i.e., twenty years into their investment there isn’t a single thing they have collectively chosen to turn the dial on, because each organization has different interests and priorities.
 * Others suggest weaving network of networks with many different interests, rather than a single large network with a monolithic set of interests. In this way, organizations that are regrouped in terms of common interest points are still part of the same movement, or network.
 * **Deep communication ties / strong feedback mechanisms**: Because there are few efforts to develop shared field-level strategies, there is lack of shared responsibility for seeing what works and scaling it. For this reason, it is important to build deep communication ties between individuals, with strong feedback mechanisms that allow them to see what works (or does not) and to learn how to do it better in the future.
 * **Surface existing assets**:
 * //Give mini grants for internal hiring//: One way to assess existing assets may be to allow potential grantees hire other groups, and to observe who spends money where, e.g., in a form of a mini-grant that allows organizations to take advantage of expertise within the network. This would allow the foundation to determine which skills are in demand.
 * //Codify and document learning//: While some foundations spend millions of dollars on a wide range of issues related to organizational capacity building and technical assistance, it could be beneficial to distill the learnings from these investments to determine, for example, the Top 3 skills grantees should have.
 * //Create opportunities for “executives on loan”//: E.g., one organization needs a CFO and another has a CFO who is itching for temporarily transfer.
 * **Offering incentives**: It’s possible to rouse network members to action by offering the right tools / incentives.
 * //Inspire more focused action//: Foundations could use compelling annual reports to catalyze collective initiatives by network members. For example, if an annual report indicates that childhood obesity rates have risen by 10% in a particular county, the foundation could deliver an RFP on projects that help move the dial on that particular metric, in that particular county.
 * //Diversify the network//: Foundations could strategically weave the network by connecting individuals who are working on similar topics, but from different angles, and who would benefit from sharing data with each other, e.g., connecting individuals who work in education with others who focus on child welfare. This cross-sector approach would promote the notion that individuals are part of one group or movement.
 * //Create a shared “back office”//: The foundation could help their constituents standardize and combine back office processes (e.g., HR). This would not only result in huge savings, but it could also become a for-profit business that would in turn help finance the network.
 * **Talent Management:**Talent management & leadership development (TMLD) is a topic of interest to organizations across domains. In the social sector there is no rigorous approach to recruiting, grooming, and training of leadership. Intentional TMLD is one possible way to strengthen the child policy and advocacy networks of networks.
 * TMLD consists of many factors, including: building relationships for recruitment / retention of people in social sector, recruitment, grooming, retention, and influence.
 * There is a challenge in the value proposition of the social sector itself. There is little upward mobility, individuals seldom get trained, and they certainly are not highly paid.
 * There are certain exemplary cases of TMLD, for example, Management Leadership for Tomorrow delivers programming to position minorities for success in the private sector. MLT has become an unparallel org that graduate schools and other companies / organizations are recruiting from, and it has succeeded in closing the gap for MBA graduate students of color.
 * It would be great to copy their model in the public sector, i.e., establishing a grooming network to build up a group of talent for social sector organizations.