Policy & Practice December 2017

PRESIDENT’S MEMO continued from page 3

Advances in technology such as AI (artificial intelligence) and machine learning are opening even more doors, and must be part of our toolkit. „ „ When we set out to co-create solu- tions, we engage in “abundance leadership” that focuses our collec- tive efforts on what is possible and shifts us away from the victim or deficit-based mentality to which our field has too often gravitated. Armed with this learning, I am more convinced than ever that it is possible to create healthy learning organizations that, in turn, open up opportunities for collective discovery beyond one organization’s walls, and beyond any one sector. One final insight that struck a par- ticular chord with me is the role that APHSA and key partners like Ascend, the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities, NGA, NACo, and many other national organizations must play in partnering for impact. When we create peer communities—as exist throughout the APHSA family and through annual events like the Harvard Summit—and we further connect these peer communities through extended networks across the country, we provide a broader platform that can generate and, ultimately, accelerate shared learning and begin to show all of us what thriving, healthy ecosystems look like. As one local county leader noted, the opportunity to openly share with each other is like being on a racing team. It’s a shared journey to the same desired place, where along that journey we sometimes lead and, at other times, get to “draft” behind a peer who is in the front of the pack. Now that’s part- nering for impact!

As one participant noted, real-time feedback loops for consumers—like those that exist in social media on platforms like Yelp—can accelerate this movement by driving contin- uous, iterative improvements. „ „ When we operate in partnership at the generative level, not only do we help policymakers see the value in what we collectively do—help create safe, healthy, thriving communi- ties—we help them better relate to it by showcasing how interconnected all of us are. „ „ When we see and engage the human services workforce as helping “unlock human potential,” we both energize and honor our workforce and we create an important mindset shift about their role in partnership with families and communities. „ „ When we work and share informa- tion across traditional boundaries, we create opportunities for data intelligence that help us identify and address root causes both within families and at the population level. When optimized, these data can help produce new solutions to some of our toughest social challenges, like homelessness or the opioid epidemic. spoke to the need for “potent simplicity” in understanding our collective work as “people helping people get well.” In doing so, we move “from institution- based initiatives to a community-wide social movement.” NickMacchione fromSan Diego

Basso, who has worked with dozens of leaders across the country, notes that “the Value Curve works like a gradu- ated lens that is helping us see things that hadn’t met the eye before.” And, its highly adaptive nature means we can use it to understand our progress by function, program, and individual role, as well as at the system level. In essence, the Value Curve has become the way in which we can speak and track our progress across sectors and systems as we endeavor to “partner for impact.” At the more advanced stages of the Value Curve, our partner- ships move us frommere collaborations on single issues to long-term relation- ships that, in turn, create learning environments that help us achieve effi- ciency and effectiveness in outcomes. This desire to develop genera- tive partnerships across sectors and systems has been a special focus for many of our members this year—and one that we have taken to heart. 1 Building on our own efforts and experiences, I found myself listening intently throughout the Harvard summit for additional insights of what it takes and why it matters. Here is what I took away: „ „ The very process of collective dis- covery—endeavoring to find solutions together—can lead to collective impact. It takes intentionality and discipline to create a space for such discovery. For ideas to co-emerge, leaders must make the room and opportunity for it to happen. To do so requires humility and a willingness to be vulnerable because we must both acknowledge what we do not know and be prepared to see and hear things differently than we ever have before. „ „ When we see various vantage points through the generative lens of the Value Curve and embrace them as opportunities, not impediments, we begin to create a continuous learning culture within organizations and within the broader human-serving community. „ „ When we co-create with our customers, it leads to stronger partnerships and helps accelerate movement along the Value Curve.

Reference Note 1. See “Joining Forces: Two National Organizations Strive to Model a

Generative Partnership to Accelerate Their Shared Visions” in the April 2017 issue of Policy and Practice.

December 2017   Policy&Practice 35