Considerations for cultivating a meaningful network participant base
Repost of an article by Nick Viele and co-authors from the Converge Network
Networks are fundamentally about bringing an intentional combination of diverse actors together to create a more interconnected whole. This means that who participates in any given network is critically important, and often one of the first big questions an emerging network must answer.
The second C in Converge’s Five Cs of network cultivation is Convene the People. This activity is rooted in ensuring the network is made up of many different voices who represent the diversity of the system they are working within — a core feature of a healthy impact network. The network’s catalysts (and later, its coordinators and leaders) must make explicit efforts to include a variety of points of view on the network’s shared purpose, with an emphasis on respectfully engaging those who have historically been excluded from the conversations directly impacting them.
Knowing that diverse perspectives are essential to more fully understanding a complex system, the question then becomes: who are the right people to represent those voices? Networks typically comprise a variety of organisations, individuals, or a combination of the two. Many network catalysts and leaders wonder whether individuals or entities are more effective as network participants.
Some networks believe that engaging organisational participants will provide greater continuity of knowledge and resources. While this may be true, examining the differences between individual and organisational participants uncovered patterns that can not only help determine who to invite into a network, but also how to engage and understand the people already in the network – regardless of the entity they are representing.
This article was lead-authored by Nick Viele in partnership with collaborators from the Converge Network and supported by Small Foundation.
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