Apply for New Cohort to Learn to Use Change Leadership to Transform Your Organization

We recently learned of an opportunity we wanted to share: The Alliance for Strong Families and Communities has announced the launch of a new Transformational Change Cohort, an initiative that is partially underwritten by The Annie E. Casey Foundation.

Applications will be accepted from readers of this post until Feb. 13, 2017. Read on to learn more and how to apply. 

[This post has been republished in full, with permission from The Alliance for Strong Families and Communities. Please contact Peter Metzger, project manager of knowledge, leadership, and innovation at the Alliance, with questions or for more information.]

The Transformational Change Cohort is appropriate for child- and family-serving organizations that are looking to develop systems, strategies, and interventions focused on increasing family stability and permanency for children, as well as putting families and children on a pathway to well-being. The cohort, Using Change Leadership to Transform Child and Family Serving Organizations, will use the principles of change leadership to achieve the goals for family engagement and stability, permanency, and wellness.

Applications will be accepted from readers of this post until Feb. 13, 2017. Access the application and full details about the opportunity online.

This cohort is appropriate for your organization if you:

• Would like some assistance in understanding and responding to the major trends in our field
• Would like to better understand ways to develop a capacity within yourself and your leadership team to use change leadership skills to help engage families and guide them towards stability, permanency, and wellness
• Would like support in helping both you and your team identify the skills and capacities you will need to develop and install by 2020
• Would like some help in developing a plan to transform your organization to the methods of the past to the methods of the future
• Would like some help to change your organizational identity and culture to your staff can support these changes

This Alliance cohort learning experience will:

• Help everyone to better understand the major trends in our field
• Offer ways to use change leadership to effectively respond to trends
• Assist in the development of collaborative, cross-functional leadership teams
• Help identify the skills and capacities your organization will need to develop
• Help you select three “driving force goals” to guide your transformation
• Help you develop a transformation plan to install needed skills and capacities
• Offer methods to help you to change your organizational identity and culture
• Share ways to involve your staff in the change process to gain their support
• Help you to develop methods to measure your progress toward your goals
• Help you to develop a vision for the future that you can share and achieve

The Alliance will select ten (10) organizations for participation in this cohort. Organizations that are minority-led and who serve minority populations are especially encouraged to apply.

Feedback from Previous Cohort Participants

Going through a cohort process is “50 times better than reading [about how to do the work].” Support is there when it is not going the way you thought it would—coaching, being around people who are walking the walk, and being able to pick their brains.

Being in the transformation cohort says there is a plan—residential is not going to go away we are going to transform it—meet community need—albeit it will look different.

Wouldn’t have been in same spot if we all hadn’t been part of [the cohort]. Now, we have “feet on the ground;” all working together simultaneously.

About the Cohort Experience

Participating organizations will gain access to a project facilitator and a team of highly experienced executive peer faculty from the Alliance network with whom they will learn about the critical skill sets necessary to lead transformational change.

The central focus of the cohort model is a focus on building the capacity of leaders to address the adaptive challenges they face in moving towards a service model that puts the results at the center of their work; is child-centered and family-focused; and builds the capacity of youth to thrive in home and community-based settings. These adaptive challenges may include re-negotiating the organization’s values, identity, and culture. The cohort model provides support on the technical aspects of transformation as well as building transformational leadership capacity to drive change through the organization that allows for best supporting the long-term success of children, families, and communities.

The Alliance Permanency and Well-Being Cohort is underwritten in part by the generous support of the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The organizational fee for this 15-month cohort project is $10,000. This fee will cover:

• Access to a dedicated peer coach who will be available for 15 monthly coaching sessions
• Monthly consultations with Alliance Faculty
• Registration fees for two in-person convenings (Participants will be expected to cover their travel and lodging expenses for a total of two covenings)
• Program materials

Learn many more details of this exceptional opportunity for positive sustainability by reviewing the Transformation Cohort overview.

Access the application online and apply by Feb. 13.

Contact Peter Metzger, project manager of knowledge, leadership, and innovation at the Alliance, with questions or for more information.