Collective Impact Partnership and Backbone Organizations as Enablers of Children’s Well-Being

Abstract

In this entry, the question of partnership is approached from a perspective centered around the creation of a common agenda based on trust and from the children's point of view. Partnership and collaboration have traditionally been viewed as mechanisms to create bridges between organizations and institutions from the private, public, and nongovernmental sectors in order to enhance funder collaboratives, public-private partnerships, multistakeholder initiatives, social sector networks, and collective impact initiatives. It was not however until Kania and Kramer's (2011) seminal work on collective impact when this subject came to be viewed as a developmental process aiming at the creation of a common agenda and mutually agreed activities and consisting of five integral parts: a common agenda, shared measurement systems, mutually reinforcing activities, continuous communication, and backbone support organizations. This entry, based on a systematic review of the topic, maintains that partnershipapproached from the point of view of children and through the lens of collective impactconstitutes a crucial mechanism in the creation of safe and comprehensive wellbeing for children. Thus, this entryusing Kania and Kramer's (2011) definition of collective impact and focusing on the structure of partnerships and the nature of trust in organizations as the prerequisite for partnershipadvocates the importance of the UN SDG17 principle as the bringer of inclusive society built upon principles and values, a shared vision, and shared goals that place people at the center of human endeavor.

Rationale and Description of Implementation of Regional Collaborative Service Model for Enhancing Psychosocial Wellbeing of Children and Families—Oulu Collective Impact Study

“…The role of backbone organization was essential in the implementation process in the pilot area of Oulu, which is consistent with previous recommendations in studies highlighting the need of backbone in collaborative organizations ( 20 ). Overall, backbone organizations are related to project funding ( 52 ), non-governmental and intermediary organizations to collaboration with various actors ( 53 ), and local administration to relevant stakeholders ( 54 ).…”

“…According to Kania and Kramer ( 27 ), CI framework initiatives have successfully established collaboration between services surrounding various initiatives such as HIV prevention and food and obesity programs ( 20 ). In Finland, promising results have been obtained from psychosocial children and family-focused preventive work when applying the LT-SM based on the CI framework ( 21 ).…”

“…In the current implementation process, the role of the OCS ( 20 ) was emphasized in terms of reinforcing activities ( 27 ). OCS invited the appropriate participants to the LT Network meetings based on contacts (e.g., from school and daycare).…”

“…Various stand-alone interventions are used in these models, but they are integrated into a larger entity serving the common goal shared by the sectors. Utilizing these comprehensive models is expected to enhance psychosocial wellbeing and decrease the need for curative healthcare services or custodial arrangements in social services ( 20 ). An encouraging initiative is the Let's Talk About Children Service Model (LT-SM), which is a community-based infrastructure model developed for reinforcing child and family wellbeing and resilience.…”

“…The CI framework includes five conditions: a common agenda, shared measurement system, mutually reinforcing activities, continuous communication, and backbone support organization ( 21 , 27 ). CI has been reported to be utilized with varying initiatives, such as food, health, and education programs ( 20 , 28 – 30 ), whereas the LT-SM is focused on children's psychosocial wellbeing ( 21 , 31 ). However, both models are intended to decrease the fragmentation of and improve the collaboration between services ( 21 , 27 , 32 ).…”