Building Winning Coalitions In A Hybrid World

Building coalitions has long been a key strategy in the policy space, and while the pandemic has added new obstacles to overcome, it has also spurred innovation. And with hot-button legislation moving across the country, it’s never been more important for allied groups to work together. 

Unlocking Collaboration 

A winning coalition doesn’t come together by accident — it requires intention, planning, coordination, and excellent communication. 

“Building coalitions is about connecting with people,” says Grace Waltz of the Minneapolis Regional Chamber. “That is still the case during the pandemic, we just do more of it through a screen.”

Some coalitions are temporary, but most issues are won through persistence. Building a coalition that can endure and achieve big wins means investing time and energy in people-centric strategies: 

• Outreach and relationship-building. One-to-one meetings are crucial, whether virtual or in-person. Finding the right partners means talking to those impacted by the issue, those working in the same space, and key decision makers.
• Turning alignment into action. That means bringing together key people from each organization to develop and execute plans that draw on their unique expertise.

Organizer and Plural Customer Success Manager, Wintana Melekin suggests asking yourself these questions to help plan and manage effective coalitions:

1. What steps can we take to establish and maintain trust across the coalition? Partner groups need to establish common goals, and work collaboratively and transparently. Knowledge-sharing and ensuring security are also crucial to any coalition.
2. What expertise can we leverage across coalition partners? Each group brings a unique skillset to the table, whether that expertise is geographic, subject matter, or pre-existing relationships.
3. What tools and actions will help us to coordinate our efforts? With the many moving pieces in a coalition, it is vital to track who is doing what, and what progress is being made. Keeping everyone on the same page and preventing duplication of effort avoids lost time and resources.
4. How can we build a sense of community in a hybrid virtual/in-person environment? Bringing partners and allies together in shared spaces is crucial to effective partnership, whether it happens virtually, in person, or both. 

New Technology Improves Collaboration

The last two years have seen a rapid increase in the demand for tools that allow activists and organizers to get involved from anywhere, at any time. This presents a huge opportunity to mobilize around various issues, and can eliminate some of the barriers to access. 

Julia Freeman, Director of Community Engagement at the Voices For Racial Justice reflects, “Initially, a lot of us were not familiar with all the different ways of engaging collaboratively online. So we had to figure out what works best for us, including the security. Ensuring safety is especially important when you’re dealing with BIPOC communities.”

Having a secure, well designed digital environment for collaboration makes it possible for more people to participate. Encouraging collaboration to happen safely and securely between meetings helps coalition organizers build community engagement and broaden who can be involved since interactions can happen from anywhere and conversations can be asynchronous.

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