Network Governance: Cultivating our civic infrastructure

1
Network Governance Cultivating our civic
infrastructure

• Alliance for Regional Stewardship
• Salt Lake City
• November, 2004

William M. Snyder Social Capital Group
wsnyder_at_socialcapital.com
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The election is over Now what?
Economic
Social
Environmental
Civic Infrastructure

• What is civic infrastructure?
• Why is it the foundation for sustained social,
  economic, and environmental outcomes?
• How do you cultivate it?

NOTE For additional commentary, see Notes Page
view of this slide and others in this
presentation.
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The essence of civic infrastructure has not
changed much over the years Citizen groups
providing stewardship
Americans of all ages, all stations in life, and
all types of disposition are forever forming
associations. . . This is the most democratic
country in the world.
--Alexis de Tocqueville, 1840, Democracy in
America
A nation cannot be maintained unless, between
the state and individuals, a whole range of
secondary groups are interposed. These must be
close enough to the individual to attract him
strongly to their activities and, in so doing, to
absorb him into the mainstream of social life.
--Emile Durkheim, 1902, Division of Labor
Only through its intermediate relationships and
authorities has any State ever achieved the
balance between organization and personal freedom
that is the condition of a creative and enduring
culture. These relationships begin with the
family and with the small informal groups which
spring up around common interests and cultural
needs.
--Roger Nisbett, 1953, Quest for Community
High on Americas agenda should be the question
of how to reverse recent adverse trends in
social connectedness, thus restoring civic
engagement and civic trust.
--Robert Putnam, 1996, Bowling Alone

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful,
committed people can change the world. Indeed, it
is the only thing that ever has."
--Margaret Mead, 1960s?
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Social networks for civic results
Cross-sector networks
Missing players
Sustained stewardship
Action-learning
Simplistic solutions
Weak links
Wheels slipping, spinning, and reinventing
Triple-Bottom-Line Results
Note Metcalfs Law of Connectivity states that
the value of a network with n participants equals
n²--when all participant nodes are interconnected.
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Case Example Denver Regional
Transportation Initiative

• 2000 Weak network Legislation fails
• Didnt have right people together
• Environmentalists, planners, and experts proposed
  the most logical transit system
• But the elected officials were neither engaged
  nor supportive
• Business people balked at the expense
• 2004 Strong network Legislation succeeds
  (despite governor's opposition)
• Day after legislative failure, a small group
  asked What do we need to do?
• Created an alliance that included all the mayors
  and all the business people
• Initiative was funded by both the Chamber and by
  31 regional mayors staffed by environmental
  groups
• Coordinated educational efforts, not just
  technical communications about plans
• This time, all the right people were around the
  tablethe right critical mass was engaged
• Current status Implementation underway
• Implementation of legislation supported by the
  staying power of the multi-sector alliance

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How civic infrastructure drives results A social
vessel scaffolding action-learning processes that
address the mess
Action-Learning Processes
F

• Framing problems (visioning, studies, retreats,
  indicators)
• Discovering solutions (workshops, simulations,
  conversations, consulting)
• Implementing (pilots, projects, media)
• Learning and expanding (indicator reports,
  websites, scaling)

Economic development
Housing
Education
Safety
D
Results
Civic mess
Health
L
Recreation
Culture
Environment
Transport Infrastructure
I
Values
Integrity

• The social vessel¹ provides a container that
  scaffolds and sustains civic action-learning
  processes.
• Formal structures are also important Sponsor
  boards, workgroups, support teams, implementation
  organizations

Trust
Reciprocity
Belonging
Social Vessel
Inclusiveness
Love
Leadership
Relationships
¹What Deborah Nankivell in Fresno calls the
sacred sector
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Mapping our civic infrastructure
Economic development
Housing
Education
Culture
Health
Civic mess
Safety
Environment
Recreation
Transport Infrastructure

• Where do we have effective stewardship groups
  today?
• Innovative
• Inclusive
• Results-oriented
• Where do we need them?
• How cultivate them?

Boston Unbound Report
maintaining a strong economy.
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A schematic map of Boston housing
initiativesenergized citizens living in
unconnected, parallel worlds.
Opportunity for
better coordination
Building
World
-
Class
Emerson
Greater
Housing 2000
Leading the
Blocks
Housing
College
Boston
Cardinal Law
Initiatives
Home Again
Way
Campaign
Cooperative
buildout
Interfaith







Objectives
Impact state
Transfer surplus
Attack barriers
Increase
Underwrite
Size problem
Increase housing

legislative
land for
to supply and
residence space
construction on
Release surplus
supply by 7,500
strategy
development
construction
for students
large, city
-
land
units protect


Streamline
Build units
supported lots
existing afford
-
regulation
able housing







Participants
Citizens HPA
City of Boston
Housing
Emerson
GBIO
Cardinal Law
Mayor

s office



Mass Housing
Partners
College
Father Groden
BHA, BRA, DND


Association
Northeastern
Federal state

Mass
Law
government


Association of
Fleet/Fannie
LISC

CDCs
Mae
CEDAC



Mass Nonprofit
Center for Urban
Boston
Housing
and Regional
Community
Association
Policy
Loan Fund
Source McKinsey Co., 2001
Source McKinsey Co.
Source Boston Unbound, Boston Globe
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Connect players to spur innovation, leverage
resources, and accelerate results
Government
-
Neighbor
-
Businesses
hoods
World
-
Class
Housing
Leading the
Cooperative
Way
Emerson
Universities
College
Building
Press
buildout
Blocks
Results
Campaign
Greater
Boston
Interfaith
Housing 2000
Home Again
Cardinal Law

• Success indicators
• Affordability
• Supply
• Livability

Nonprofit
Religious
Orgs
Labor
Big civic leadership is an
-- Marion Kane, ED, Barr Foundation
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Civic infrastructure includes both formal and
informal governance structures

• As in organizational settings, both formal and
  informal structures are important. But for
  governance structures in the civic context,
  elements of the informal dimensionvalues,
  relationships, leadership, etc.are particularly
  important.
• Sustained civic engagement is especially
  dependent on the informal dimension for a number
  of reasons
• Participation is primarily voluntary
• Initiatives cross conventional boundaries
  (sectors, organizations, jurisdictions, etc.)
• Learning and innovation are key--and these cannot
  be mandated
• Structures must evolve dynamically as issues and
  players change
• Civic passion and mutual commitment are essential
  motivators

Implementation organizations
Issue-based workgroups/coalitions
Formal Structure¹
Values
Informal Structure
Integrity
Trust
Reciprocity
Belonging
Inclusiveness
Social Vessel

• Support team
• Executive committee
• Sponsor board

Love
Leadership
Relationships
Participating stakeholders
¹Upside-down to indicate volunteer leadership.
See Chicago MCTA structure as example.
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The importance of the informal dimension of
network governancevalues and relationships

• Governance is a network of relationships.
  Robert Grow, Envision Utah
• Relationships are tantamount my job is herding
  cats. Caroline Cunningham, Washington Board
  of Trade
• Our leader networks provide a place for safe
  conversations to take on tough issues leaders
  get connected quickly on topics they care about.
  Shelley Lauten, Orlando
  Chamber of Commerce
• The civic sector is the sacred sector, where
  we ask Whats best for our community?
  Deborah
  Nankivell, Fresno Business Council
• The weaver role is essential to successand a
  full-time job All of above¹

See also Grassroots Leaders for a New Economy,
Henton et al.
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Example of the formal dimension of network
governance Mayors Council of
Technology Advisors -- Chicagoland
Sponsor board of advisors represents an array of
constituencies and provides overall guidance
Contributing institutions, across sectors
MCTA
Executive committee
Support team provides coaching, coordination, and
logistics
Exec Committee defines priorities, recruits
leaders, and reviews progress
Lever sub-committees
Lever working groups
Industry Sector groups
Stewardship groups (aka communities, coalitions,
partnerships) analyze issues and develop
initiatives to build capabilities

• Key characteristics
• Voluntary
• Boundary-spanning
• Multi-membership
• Evolutionary

Project teams and partner organizations implement
initiatives
Our Biotech Community events have brought
structure to the interface between RD scientists
and the venture community and weve gone from
very little venture funding to the point where we
now have 50 million dollars coming to various
biotech companies this year.
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Network governance at work What stewardship
groups do

• Build capacity related to a targeted civic
  discipline (e.g., housing)
• Connect disparate players across sectors,
  jurisdictions, and constituencies
• Foster learning and innovationstudies,
  workshops, visits, projects, and other
  peer-to-peer learning activities
• Leverage resourcesfunding, facilities, and
  expertiseby combining efforts of organizations
  that have a common focus
• Advocate for public support, legislation, and
  institutional alignmentwith increased power and
  legitimacy of collective voice
• Partner with stakeholder institutions to promote
  civic objectives examples include collaborations
  with community colleges, government policy
  shifts, business practice changes, etc.
• Establish a platform for participation that
  provides accessible, high-impact opportunities
  for people to contribute to the common goodin
  ways that promote professional development and
  align with personal passions
• Cultivate a civic culture of high aspirations and
  shared stewardshipas opposed to apathetic
  consignment of civic responsibility to faceless
  institutions

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How to cultivate stewardship groups
Examples

• Fresno Business Council hired an activist CEO
  who weaves boundary-crossing relationships,
  recruits volunteer champions to lead projects,
  and evangelizes for community values

• Discover others who share the passion
• Convene people to identify issues, share
  aspirations, and build relationships
• Define a portfolio of projectsshort and
  long-term low-hanging fruit and stretch goals
• Build understanding and expertise, weave
  relationships, take action, publish results
• Cultivate the civic infrastructure of
  relationships and organizational networks --
  leverage this asset for sustained civic
  stewardship

• Civic leader in Salt Lake City initiated
  informal conversations with peers sponsor group
  commissioned a broad-based regional visioning
  effort projects focused on portfolio of major
  initiativesdowntown development, transportation
  corridor, town-to-town coalitions

• A small group in Denver coalesced to address a
  major transportation initiative convened 31
  mayors, businesses, interest groups, etc.
  conducted citizen education efforts and achieved
  visible results

• A project manager for Regional Chamber in
  Central Florida coordinates an array of
  workgroups focused on range of civic issues she
  has created a leadership-development
  infrastructure that gets volunteer champions
  involved and up-to-speed quickly

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In sum What is the theory of the case?

• The key to achieving social, economic, and
  environmental results is a vital civic
  infrastructure
• A network of stewardship groups, each of which is
  organized around a civic discipline, provides the
  foundation for an effective governance system
• We can be much more systematic and intentional
  about cultivating our civic infrastructure
• There is a growing repertoire of tools, methods,
  and experience to draw on
• We can connect with practitioners who are leading
  initiatives in other citiesnational and
  internationalfor learning, legitimacy, and
  influence

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Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG) 400 Major
Regions (1MM pop.) Worldwide, 40 in the US What
would it take to create a global network of
collaborative regions? Fostering vital
governance networks in each? What if Soros et al.
invested in weavers and bridgers, not only
politicians? What could we achieve?
Source NASA Earthlights
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Case clinics

• Ted Knowlton, Envision Utah
• Diane Miller, Envision Central Texas

• What is the story of your evolving civic
  infrastructure?
• Social relationships--connectednesswho and how?
• Leadership quantity, competence, character?
• Roles Sponsorship, coordination, project
  management?
• Public values? Civic traditions? Belonging?
  Civic identity?
• Inclusive?
• Reciprocity, trust, love?

• Clinic approach
• Brief backgroundabout 2 minutes
• Stories about the case10 minutes
• Discussant question
• All Clinic the case.

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Appendix
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Deconstructing the civic mess
How bound the issues? Address key indicators?
Convene diverse stakeholders? Provide ongoing
stewardship for the whole?

• School achievement
• Leadership
• Teacher skills

• Affordability
• Supply
• Livability

• Disease prevention disparities
• Access to providers and treatments
• Insurance cost availability

• Industry sector vitality
• Small and medium-size business success
• Infrastructure capacity

Industry Sectors
Policies Legislation
Civic mess

• Digital, Water Transport Infrastructure

• Gun violence
• Youth programs
• Domestic violence

• Arts diversity and vitality
• Access
• Funding and facilities for artists

• Access by age, place, income
• Facilities/fields
• Integrated in urban design

• Sustainable business practices
• Open space
• Smart growth

NOTE This chart builds on the original Network
Governance definitionsee previous chart from
May, 2004 ARS Meeting
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Sans civic infrastructure Its a
not-so-wonderful life.
F
Vicious cycle of civic apathy

• Disconnected players at odds and losing trust and
  hope
• Broken, feckless action-learning cycles
• externally imposed, archaic problem-framing and
  priority-setting
• conflicted, simplistic, solutions
• weak or contradictory implementation
• amnesia, superstitious learning
• Complex, monster mess getting out of control
• Declining results

Civic mess
L
D
Distrust
Apathy
I
Disconnection
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An ecology of interrelated leadership functions
Sponsor for legitimacy, influence and political
cover
Thought leader to provide expertise and
credibility
Project leader to organize projects and drive for
results
Stewardship leader for overall coordination
related to a civic practicesector or lever
Evangelist to recruit interest and support
Event organizer to pull people together and
catalyze community
Networker for linking across personal networks
and organization or practice boundaries
Broker to combine complementary constituencies
and capabilitiese.g., business and science idea
generation and implementation
Connector to link key playerswithin and across
groups
Legend Dashed lines indicate common associations
between leadership functions
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What motivates leaders to participate?

• Mayors Council/McKinsey report identifies
  compelling opportunities
• Personal invitations from respected peers and
  civic leaders are persuasive
• Civic spirit is a key factor My life has been
  devoted to technology and I want to see Chicago
  succeed.

Perceived Opportunity

• Regular executive reviews help keep
  us on track
• Participants positive experiences increase
  energy and reinforce commitment
• I am meeting people that will help me
  develop business opportunities for our
  company.

• Mayors visible commitment and track record
  encourages leaders to create ambitious plans
• Legitimacy as chair of an MCTA initiative opens
  doors
• Staff support for logistics leverages value for
  time

• Altruism and enlightened self-interest

Ability to make a difference
Rewards/ recognition
Source Snyder paper on the Mayors Council of
Technology Advisors (MCTA) -- Chicago