Community Transformation

Formative

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In the process of spelling out operational protocols and attitudinal expectations, participants begin to get to know one another.

To establish a solid foundation for the group to build on in the course of its work, it is important to lay out clear operational protocols and set up guidelines for fostering a respectful and supportive atmosphere.

Culminating in some version of a charter, members outline and agree to the way the group will work, including setting ground rules for deliberations, expectations for attendance, guidelines for communicating between sessions, and standards for selecting topic areas and assigning members to caucus groups. In the process of formalizing the overall project trajectory, participants begin to get to know one another as individuals.

A synthesis of pre-meeting survey responses provides a preliminary list of what issues members are focusing on, which is helpful in the early formation of working groups. Ultimately, issues of interest will be narrowed to a more manageable scope and group members will be able to work in the subject areas of greatest importance to them.

A good group structure is one that raises the comfort level of participants and their level of confidence in one another.

Convener establishes baseline understandings with participants.

  • Refine roles and expectations of conveners, facilitation team, and participants.
  • Clarify practicalities such as expense reimbursement and travel logistics.


Group reviews survey feedback.

  • Acquaint participants with range of views within the group in a way that equalizes their volume.
  • Review proposed process design to identify areas for possible adjustments based on additional participant feedback.


Group formalizes project trajectory.

  • Reaffirm and codify overall goals and end product.
  • Adopt or affirm in principle the elements of a charter, including:
    — discussion ground rules
    — attendance expectations
    — agenda template
    — caucus topic areas
    — assignment of task force members
    — decision making methods
    — external communication
    — between-sessions communication
    — meeting notes
  • Reach agreement about the general structure of business meetings and community meetings that will be convened.
  • Collectively approve meeting and travel schedule/logistics.
  • Generate a list of resource persons to invite to address the group at future meetings.

Related Examples

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