A Case Study: Building Coalitions for Change

Have you ever wondered why some change initiatives succeed while others fail? The answer often lies in the ability to build powerful coalitions.

To successfully lead change, building coalitions is essential. You can amass the support, resources, and influence needed to drive transformation by uniting diverse stakeholders around a shared vision. Imagine a lone sailor trying to navigate a stormy sea. Without a crew, their chances of survival would be slim. Similarly, in the realm of change, building coalitions is like assembling a powerful fleet to weather any storm.

Coalitions offer:?

• Diversity of thought. Diversity of thought is needed to sharpen your critical thinking skills and break down complex challenges with creative, innovative solutions.?
• Communication channels. Coalitions provided additional pathways to reach broader audiences, increasing your workforce, stakeholders, and investors’ awareness, understanding, and ability.
• Enhanced acumen.? Collaborating with others in a coalition can broaden your understanding of your organization’s complex issues and opportunities, contributing to your organizational acumen.
• Results. Coalitions provide a platform for knowledge sharing, which not only helps to increase learning from multidisciplinary functions in your organization but also helps to gain rapid access to tools, systems, and capabilities to drive results faster and more efficiently.?

A Coalition Success Story?

In one of my earlier roles at NASA, I got a diverse group of stakeholders to meet at the table. We rallied interest from multiple agencies, NASA, Navy, and NOAA, as well as commercial, industry, and nonprofits, to form the Integrated Infrastructure Information Technology (I3T) Working Group. The I3T working group was started as a grassroots change effort, which means I got this group to form with no executive champion, budget, or mandate to get started. It began with a simple request to meet.?

The initial meeting was organized as a dialog.?

The start was built on a humble discussion around who each of us was, how we got there, our role, and our unique needs to do our jobs effectively. This was important because each party needed to understand each other’s intentions to identify and confront conflicts head-on and recognize that we each had a lot of similarities in our interests. It also helped to have some table snacks.?

I used dissatisfaction to gain interest.?

Change happens by tapping into people's frustrations and helping them to realize improvements are possible.? We are all too familiar with the fatigue of change and the constant struggle to do more with less. If we assume everyone has good intentions and wants to succeed, then the art of possible becomes a reality to drive change. Focusing on initiatives that can deliver results quickly and directly address dissatisfaction in a process or policy will help build momentum and earn you the trust, buy-in, and motivation needed to continue driving change.? I used the parties’ lack of communication and awareness as a quick win. I formalized a listserv for the group, released updates, and shared relevant information. It piqued their interest for more.?

We found common ground.?

By understanding everyone’s concerns, we aligned them with a clear vision and actionable steps to overcome resistance and build momentum for change. We jointly defined the need for the I3T working group. We wrote the charter together and established the vision to execute new IT operating requirements and work collectively at identifying and prioritizing Facility modernization efforts. We took the charter to the Facility’s Chief Operating Officer for sponsorship. Because we had all parties’ consensus, it was an easy request to secure additional advocacy and recognition as an advisory group on facility IT operations.?

Momentum was used to sustain the change.?

As a chartered working group, we established a meeting rhythm and used the charter to hold everyone accountable for earlier commitments. We worked together to negotiate terms and reached agreements across I3T stakeholders on how to provide IT services. We continued to celebrate successes, some of which included extending IT services to rotating Federal and non-federal counterparts and prospective commercial customers at no added costs to the Facility or customer. Through the I3T working group, we proactively managed risks and sustained communications for more robust collaboration and coordination.?

Building coalitions is a powerful strategy for driving change and achieving organizational goals. By aligning shared interests, fostering collaboration, and leveraging the expertise of diverse stakeholders, organizations can overcome challenges, build momentum, and create lasting impact. As demonstrated by the I3T working group, the power of coalitions lies in their ability to unite people around a shared vision and achieve extraordinary results.