Working together to improve efficiency

Coalitions working on similar issues may also decide to merge certain aspects of their work. This can be done at the levels of governance, staff, membership, operations and so on. There are benefits in terms of use of resources and avoiding duplication and competition, but it is important to consider the identities and cultures of the two coalitions and the value of these in terms of influencing targets and maintaining active members.

Building on their shared history, in 2009-2010 the ICBL and the CMC undertook consultation processes to plan for their future organisation together. This resulted in a merger of the governance, finance and staff structures of the two bodies, while retaining both campaign identities for work on their respective issues of landmines and cluster munitions. This restructuring was an effort to make the governance of the two campaigns more effective, to make full use of the opportunities provided by their already overlapping workloads and to put in place a mechanism better able to develop efficiencies where required.

GOING FORWARD TOGETHER – CONSULTATIONS ON THE FUTURE

Regardless of what direction a coalition decides to take as it moves into a new phase of its life, it’s important that the decision is made with input from all of the members. The CMC, ICBL and IANSA provide three examples of consultation processes with coalition or network memberships.

In 2003 and 2004 the ICBL undertook a consultation process with its members to determine future direction of the campaign. Coalition staff, together with support from coalition members interviewed members and sought their views on the campaign and its future. On the basis of these consultations the ICBL decided on a strategy and implemented some changes to its structure and activities.

In 2009, after the leaderships of the CMC and the ICBL had begun looking at a possible merger of their governance bodies, the CMC undertook a consultation process with its membership on the future of the campaign and the process of coming together with the ICBL. The process was managed by staff of coalition member organisation with support from CMC staff. Interviews were conducted with campaigners and the findings presented at a joint campaign meeting of the CMC and ICBL in December 2009. At this meeting ICBL also presented the findings of its parallel consultation on the same questions. On the basis of these consultations and the reactions of members of both campaigns, the CMC and ICBL moved forward with the plan to bring the campaigns together at the governance, staff and financial levels.

Following an external evaluation, in 2010 IANSA undertook a series of interviews with members about its future and recruited a consultant to help manage a transition process. On the basis of these consultations with members, including during an open meeting for all campaigners, a future strategy and a new structure for the network were proposed, considered and approved by the members. The structure was then put in place and the new strategy is
being implemented.