Boston | Geneva | Mumbai | San Francisco | Seattle | Washington FSG.ORG

Presentation to:

Collective Impact

June 5, 2012

Great Neighborhoods Summit:

Building and Sustaining Vibrant Places

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FSG Overview

• Nonprofit consulting firm specializing in strategy,

evaluation and research with offices in Boston,

Seattle, San Francisco, DC, Geneva, and Mumbai

• Partner with foundations, corporations, nonprofits,

and governments to develop more effective solutions

to the world’s most challenging issues

• Recognized thought leader in social impact,

philanthropy and corporate social responsibility

• Staff of 100 full-time professionals with passion

and experience to solve social problems

• Advancing Collective Impact via publications,

conferences, speaking engagements, client projects

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FSG is Playing a Leadership Role in Accelerating Disciplined

Collective Approaches to Solving Large-Scale Social Problems

FSG and Collective Impact

• Client work in Collective Impact: FSG understands how to

enable and sustain cross-sector partnerships through our work

with clients in sectors including:

• FSG articles paved the way for Collective Impact:

‒ Leading Boldly (2004)

‒ Breakthroughs in Shared Measurement (2008)

‒ Catalytic Philanthropy (2009)

‒ Collective Impact (2011)

‒ Channeling Change: Making Collective Impact Work (2012)

• Additional research and field-building:

‒ New article [Channeling Change: Making Collective Impact

Work] published by SSIR on the three phases of initiating,

creating, and sustaining Collective Impact

‒ Juvenile justice

‒ Teen substance abuse

‒ Economic development

‒ Education reform

‒ Environmental sustainability

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Juvenile Justice in New York

$286,000 89% recidivism rate =

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Actors In the New York Juvenile Justice System

Source: FSG interviews and analysis; State of NY Juvenile Justice Advisory Group, “State of NY, 2009–2011:

Three-Year Comprehensive State Plan for the JJ and Delinquency Prevention Formula Grant Program.”

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There Are Several Types of Problems

Source: Adapted from “Getting to Maybe”

Simple Complicated

Baking a Cake

Sending a Rocket

to the Moon

Social sector treats problems as simple or

complicated

Complex

Rehabilitating a

Youth

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Traditional Approaches Are Not Solving Our

Toughest – Often Complex – Challenges

Isolated

Impact

The Premise

• Funders select individual grantees

• Nonprofits work separately and

compete

• Evaluation attempts to isolate a

particular organization’s impact

• Large scale change is assumed to

depend on scaling organizations

• Corporate and government sectors

are often disconnected from

foundations and non-profits

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Imagine a Different Approach – Multiple Players

Working Together to Solve Complex Issues

• All working toward the

same goal and measuring

the same things

• Cross-sector alignment

with government and

corporate sectors as

essential partners

• Organizations actively

coordinating their action

and sharing lessons learned

Isolated Impact

The Premise

Collective Impact

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Collective Impact Requires Four Big Mindset

Shifts

• Adaptive vs. Technical Solutions

• Silver Buckshot vs. Silver Bullets

• Credibility vs. Credit

• Coordination vs. Competition

Strategy + Process + Trust

Context

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Five Elements of Collective Impact

Common Agenda

Shared Measurement

Mutually Reinforcing Activities

Continuous Communication

Backbone Organizations

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Successful Backbones Tend to Manage 6 Functions

Guide Vision and Strategy

Support Aligned Activities

Establish Shared Measurement Practices

Build Public Will

Advance Policy

Mobilize Funding

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Backbone Organizations Require a Unique Skill-

Set to Support Collective Impact Efforts

*These skills can exist within a single organization or within another organization in the effort.

• Have high credibility

• Seen as neutral convener

• Have dedicated staff

• Build key relationships

• Frame issues

• Create a sense of urgency

• Promote learning

• Balance inclusivity vs. expediency

Characteristics of Successful Backbones

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A Champion, Funding, and Urgency for Change Are

All Key to Launching a Collective Impact Initiative

Influential Champion

Financial Resources

Urgency for Change

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• Commands respect and engages cross-sector

leaders

• Focused on solving problem but allows

participants to figure out answers for themselves

• Committed funding partners

• Sustained funding for at least 2-3 years

• Pays for needed infrastructure and planning

• Critical problem in the community

• Frustration with existing approaches

• Multiple actors calling for change

• Engaged funders and policy makers

Source: Channeling Change: Making Collective Impact Work, 2012; FSG Interviews

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The Collective Impact Approach Can Apply to

Solving Many Complex Social Issues

Education Healthcare

Economic Development Youth Development

Homelessness

Community Development

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Note: * indicates FSG client