BACKBONE SUPPORT IN

COLLECTIVE IMPACT
BY ZAINAB KOTHARI
 VALUE OF BACKBONE ORGANIZATION

• In order for collective impact initiatives to succeed, effective backbone is very important.
• They educate the public, giving a better understanding of the challenges of the initiative and the benefits.
• They enable tools to ease communication, provide support, coordinate through multiple aspects, and
strengthen the foundation.
• They share strengths in guiding vision and supporting aligned activities. They present a clear and
compelling direction for the organization to follow, align them to harmonize activities, and deliver value
and results to their partners and people.
• They act as co-catalysts by accelerating change by external communications. They build awareness
around the community to advocate their initiatives and shape their minds on important issues.
 SIX COMMON ACTIVITIES
Common activities Backbone
Organizations Pursue
Guide Vision and Strategy
Support Aligned Activities
Establish Shared Measurement Practices
Build Public Will
Details
Sharing a common understanding and
desired vision. Each partner’s individual
work is aligned with the common
agenda.
Communication and coordination is in
sync continuously towards the main aim.
Partners collaborate effectively to
innovative approaches.
Partners understand the importance of
sharing, adapting, and refining data to
discover new strategies.
Guiding vision and strategy so that
community members increase, feel
empowered, and feel heard to share their
opinions
 SIX COMMON ACTIVITIES PART II
Common activities Backbone Organizations Details
Pursue
Advance Policy Partners coordinate to identify policy changes
that may occur in line with initiative goals.
This means they increase their level of
communication to work towards goals they
value the most. When it comes to policies,
they engage with politicians and other
members to adapt to new changes.
Mobilize Funding Funding is the sense security to support an
initiative of a backbone. They educate funders
on their work and balance their needs to
financially sustain themselves.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF BACKBONE
LEADERSHIP
• Visionary: Builds a strong vision that motivates other partners and drives their focus to a well-
structured plan.

• Results-Oriented: Is more task-oriented and encouraging to not just talk about ideas, but act on
them and provide results.

• Collaborative: Understands the value of effective communication with partners, and builds a good
relationship through collaboration.

• Focused, but Adaptive: Always focused on the vision and shared goals, but also values situational
leadership and provides flexible solutions when needed.

• Charismatic and Influential: Along with being collaborative, is caring and charismatic to build a
healthy rapport amongst partners and influence them towards success.

• Politic: Understands that working with different sectors means being diplomatic and political. Has
the ability to filter when speaking and become a good listener.

• Humble: Never forgets that ‘servant leadership’ is a part of his/her identity. Knows that humility
goes a long way and sustains an organization in the long run.
 EQUITY IN A BACKBONE LEADERSHIP

• It is critical for a backbone leadership to design policies that shape equity and genuine respect in the partnership.
• The goal should be to welcome diversity, and changing behaviors, practices, and policies that affect it.
• Other forms of expressing equity is to measure racial equity, and highlight ways to improve it for collective
impact.
• Keeping this record includes disaggregating data based on race, gender, clas, sexual orientation, and other
characteristics. This will give a clear understanding on the measurements of progress and improvements needed.
• Have a structural analysis to solve issues related to equity. This will help connect with root causes and tackle
with effective strategies.
• Shape your local narrative through the data and information you receive. “By telling the stories that illustrate the
connection between disparities and structural causes, you can begin to influence local narratives and shift public
perception of the issues” (Arias, J., and Brady, S., 2015).
 REFERENCES

• Arias, S., & Brady, S., (2015), 3 Steps for Advancing Equity Through Collective Impact, Collective Impact
Forum, https://www.collectiveimpactforum.org/blogs/11421/3-steps-advancing-equity-through-collective-impact
• Phases Activity Analysis, (2014), Champions of Change San Francisco Backbone Workshop, Collective Impact
Forum,
https://www.collectiveimpactforum.org/resources/analysis-success-challenges-and-helpful-tools-initiative-phase
• Turner, S., Merchant, K., Kania, J. & Martin, E. (2012) Understanding the Value of Backbone Organizations in
Collective Impact: Part I. Stanford Social Innovation Review, July 2012.  Retrieved from:  
https://ssir.org/articles/entry/understanding_the_value_of_backbone_organizations_in_collective_impact_1 (Link
s to an external site.)
 
• UNICEF. (2017). Concluding, Suspending, and Terminating Partnerships. Civil Society Partnerships. Retrieved
From:  https://www.unicef.org/about/partnerships/index_60039.html (Links to an external site.)