Organisational Development

Why is this stage important?

Whether you are setting up from scratch or renewing your CoP, this process is critical to successfully establishing and sustaining your CoP.  This process facilitates important relationship building and shared understanding around what is possible and achievable and critically, binds commitment amongst colleagues to deliver.  

What does it involve?

A group of self-selecting members (Core Group), work collaboratively and on behalf of its current or future members to co-create a shared purpose, ways of working and priorities.

As part of this process, the Core Group will also have an initial meeting with their Sponsor.

What steps need to be considered?

1) Initiate and build relationships

CoPs need to intentionally create the right conditions that enable inclusion and participation.  If we do not purposefully consider how we got about doing this, then our CoPs can inadvertently take on broader organisational dynamics and behaviours - sometimes this is helpful and other times it is not!

From the outset, consider how to enable members of the Core Group to feel welcome, to feel included, to feel that they have an equal voice to other members regardless of their 'day job' and to feel able to offer a 'different' perspective to others and for it still to be valued.  Spend time on introductions to connect and learn about each other and co-create your ground rules.

2) Build consensus around a shared purpose

For a group to mobilise effectively, it needs to have a shared or collective purpose.  Exploring what has motivated colleagues to self select to participate in the core group, can be really helpful in highlighting what unites the group - where is there consensus and divergence. 

Be curious around different motivations, recognising the strength that arises from diversity.  Enable space for equal contribution to this discussion, which is really about identifying 'Why' this is important. 

There will be an inevitable slip into 'What' colleagues might want to do, be sure to note these valuable ideas to revisit at a later point.

3) Explore how members will work together

How colleagues work together will cascade and filter through the rest of the CoP.  Co-creating the ground rules provide a basis of shared values that are important to foster and distil into all aspects of the CoP - there needs to be wherever possible, total alignment to words and actions.

Inevitably this discussion will again, slip into the 'What' and be sure to keep a note!  Keeping focused on this conversation is important, as colleagues need to be able to get into sufficient detail (and possible implications) of what they are willing to 'give' to the CoP.  This is especially pertinent for new CoPs, where a lot of work has to be lead by members of the Core Group in setting up and creating a framework for participation, from which the CoP can emerge.

4) Identify what is possible and achievable

Each of the steps are overlapping, and iterations of discussions will build clarity around the purpose, ways of working and priorities to take forward.  When the discussion reaches a focus on the priorities that colleagues want to progress, it is important to consider the circle of control i.e. that objectives/actions are possible to be achieved within the Core Group's control in the first instance i.e. what is realistic, achievable and within the time, skillset and/or network/reach of the members of the Core Group.

5) Meet the Sponsor

When there is sufficient clarity in the emerging purpose, ways of working and priorities, it is helpful to connect to the Sponsor.  Critically the Sponsor respects the autonomy of the CoP so does not direct its work but helps to foster opportunities for strategic alignment and insight. They also play a critical role in championing the CoP and celebrating its success.  At this early stage the Sponsor can provide important reflections on scope, alignment, opportunities and support and they also play an important role at the Launch.

Prior to the meeting, reflect as a Core Group on the answers to .  The following points are important to cover in the first meeting:

• Clarify roles
• Share overview of purpose, priorities & launch
• Invite initial feedback/ reflections from the Sponsor
• Invite Sponsor to identify any ideas/ opportunities arising for alignment
• Clarify the anticipated flow of activity/ timeline anticipated in the CoP
• Identify timeliness of communications and touchpoints with the Sponsor – for input before and any related actions and/or participation in events