Harnessing Faith for Improved Quality of Life: Government and Faith-Based Nonprofit Organizations in Partnership

A rapid review of barriers and enablers of organisational collaboration: Identifying challenges in disability reform in Australia

“…Ambiguity of roles and responsibilities of different providers, agencies and organisations (Green et al, 2014), different stakeholder views on what is service delivery and what is a successful outcome (Williams & Sullivan, 2009), and lack of clarity about organisational drivers in the inter‐organisational collaboration (Dickinson & Glasby, 2010; Cnaan and An, 2016) are key barriers to successful collaboration. Enablers include mapping local services and existing partnerships to understand various relationships and consider their ‘fitness for purpose’ (Glasby et al, 2011); and creating a shared vision, or shared values between stakeholders (Kaehne, 2013).…”

“…Relevant to workforce enablers, a strategic linkage role or ‘boundary spanner’, was referred to in several articles, and in some cases was seen as vital to achieving meaningful inter‐organisational collaboration (Cnaan & An, 2016; Green et al, 2014; Williams & Sullivan, 2009). By connecting different players and acting as a trainer, motivator and sustainer (Green et al, 2014), ‘boundary spanner’ positions are typically senior, high status co‐ordinator posts (Pearson & Watson, 2018), ideally in dedicated positions (Williams & Sullivan, 2010).…”

“…By connecting different players and acting as a trainer, motivator and sustainer (Green et al, 2014), ‘boundary spanner’ positions are typically senior, high status co‐ordinator posts (Pearson & Watson, 2018), ideally in dedicated positions (Williams & Sullivan, 2010). While they can play an important role, the capacity to facilitate transformative change can depend on multiple levels, including micro‐level relationships that are likely to grow organically (Pearson & Watson, 2018); support of integrated policy process and a well‐functioning and inclusive steering group (Williams & Sullivan, 2009); and the ability to formalise and institutionalise those developing relationships and memberships that risk deterioration with personnel change (Cnaan & An, 2016).…”

“…Focusing on building personal relationships and establishing mutual trust, rather than imposing structures to build collaboration was seen as a key enabler of inter‐organisational collaboration (Cnaan & An, 2016; Green et al, 2014; Williams & Sullivan, 2009). This can include establishing a ‘web of interpersonal ties among key managers, to build a more accepting environment for cultural differences, and to nurture the trust and commitment that are essential alliance ingredients’ (Billings & De Weger, 2015: 160).…”

“…In an empirical study on partnership work in England's health and social care, Dickinson and Glasby (2010: 819) identified the need to be clear about outcomes: 'the failure to identify desired outcomes, [leads to] the subsequent risk that the partnership becomes an end in itself rather than a means to an end'. Collaborative work needs to consider practical details and be realistic in ambitions and outcomes sought (Dickinson & Glasby, 2010), with outcomes and goals reviewed regularly (Cnaan & An, 2016), as well as measurement and evaluation of the effectiveness of mechanisms being used to integrate services (Cumming, 2011). Alongside this evaluation of the inter-organisational collaborative approach is the need to consider the appropriateness and feasibility of different types of collaborative working, as the more integrated forms may not achieve the desired outcomes (Ziviani et al, 2013).…”