5.5 Backbone Support Organizations One of the barriers or challenges associated with the engaged programming process is the sense that no one is in charge of making sure things are done as intended and on the schedule the team developed. Backbone support organizations, such as Cooperative Extension, contribute professional staff working on issues that can serve in a role to facilitate the progress of the team and connect the team to the resources of the organization. In the case of Cooperative Extension, the organization is extensive, providing access to a wide range of expertise which exists in our land grant universities. Extension Foundation’s Impact Collaborative aims to leverage this rich mix of resources and expertise toward the targeted impacts of each Impact Collaborative project team. Another challenge can occur when multiple organizations support an activity, but work ad hoc and are not clear on the team expectations. There are also times when organizations working in the same space may see each other as competitors rather than collaborators. In order to be most effective, the team should identify backbone support organizations and work with them to determine the type of support they will provide. The clearer roles and expectations can be defined, the better. The Impact Collaborative Project Roadmap provides one such structuring opportunity in the way teams are organized.
Action Item 6:
Identify backbone support organizations and work with them to define roles and expectations the team has of them as well as the expectations they have of the team.
PART SIX: IMPACT COLLABORATIVE PROJECT TEAM STRUCTURES
As your program, project, or initiative grows – the complexities of implementation, communication and organization of the work are also likely outgrowing the bandwidth and capacity of the initial seed team for your effort. In order to formalize and organize your team and sub-teams, we suggest the following team structure for your Impact Collaborative project.
6.1 From Seed Team to Steering Team
The initial seed team, that began iterating the idea that started your Impact Collaborative Project will at one point need to start delegating responsibilities to committees and sub-teams. At that point, the seed team’s role shifts to that of a steering team that is responsible for the coordination of the project and typically becomes the full-time project management & consulting team for the Impact Collaborative Project. It usually meets weekly. Sanctioned by the leadership team [see below], Ensures the delivery of the outputs and the attainment of outcomes, Charged with ensuring that the project and subprojects (in each work stream) are coordinated and working efficiently together.
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