S'aligner sur la direction du groupe : comment décider de ce que vous voulez et comment vous y arriverez

Ce qui suit répond aux questions soulevées lors de nos ateliers sur la structure et la stratégie par des membres de groupes nouvellement formés ou qui n'ont pas encore adopté une orientation claire. Cette ressource a été développée à partir des recommandations incluses dans les ressources développées par les organisateurs, des idées des activistes et de la consultation directe d' Amara Possain, conseillère du HUB. L'article ci-dessous contient des suggestions pour formuler une vision et une mission, déterminer les valeurs et la conduite de votre groupe, élaborer une théorie du changement et des conseils pour faciliter ces réunions.

Réflexions préliminaires

1. N'oubliez pas que tout ce travail préparatoire n'a de sens que lorsque vous commencez à agir ensemble ! Vous pouvez toujours revenir sur vos accords et vos orientations à un moment ultérieur. Il est important de ne pas s'enfermer dans le processus d'élaboration des déclarations « parfaites » au point de ne jamais passer à l'action. Essayez une action qui convient au groupe et débriefez après coup pour savoir si elle correspond à vos principes, à vos valeurs et à votre objectif. Les mots n'ont pas de véritable signification tant que l'on n'agit pas. -Amara Possain, consultante pour le HUB

2. Incorporez des occasions de se réjouir et d'établir des relations tout au long du processus. Il est important d'instaurer la confiance afin que les gens s'engagent dans le processus et ses résultats !

Étape 1: Se mettre d'accord sur le processus

Un bon point de départ est de se mettre d'accord sur le fait que votre groupe souhaite construire quelque chose collectivement ! La responsabilité de la facilitation de ce processus doit être partagée par au moins deux personnes. Tout au long du processus, pensez au développement du leadership en plus du processus de construction de votre groupe. Dans cette perspective, faites tourner les responsabilités pour que les membres acquièrent des compétences. -Amara Possain, Consultante pour le Hub

Conditions favorisant l'alignement des membres

1. Alignement sur l'objectif et la vision	Accord sur ce que nous voulons réaliser ensemble.
2. Clarté des opérations de prise de décision	Accord sur la manière dont les décisions seront prises. Veuillez consulter les pages wiki suivantes relatives à la prise de décision : prise de décision par consensus (suggestions pour les petits groupes) et prise de décision par consensus modifiée (suggestions pour les grands et les petits groupes).
3. Concentration et limites	Sur quoi essayons-nous de nous aligner ? Quelles sont les décisions à prendre ? Qu'est-ce qui est sur la table ? Qu'est-ce qui n'est pas sur la table ? Définissez clairement ce que vous espérez réaliser dans le cadre du processus d'alignement (c'est-à-dire la rédaction d'une vision, d'une mission et d'une théorie du changement, ainsi que la mise en œuvre d'un processus de prise de décision).
4. Confiance	Les questions de confiance doivent être traitées directement sinon elles entravent le travail du groupe.
5. Attentes du groupe	Se mettre d'accord sur les attentes concernant le processus et le comportement du groupe.

Que se passe-t-il si un membre de notre groupe n'est pas d'accord avec la plupart des décisions du groupe ?

« Il n'y a pas de mal à avoir de nombreux groupes qui abordent le changement social de différentes manières. Lorsqu’une personne se présente et veut changer complètement de direction, nous devons rappeler qu'il existe de nombreuses façons différentes de s'organiser et de travailler ensemble et que si la personne n'est pas d'accord avec l'approche, elle peut créer son propre groupe  ! » -Amara Possain, consultante pour le HUB 

Étape 2: Visualiser  l'endroit où vous irez, ce que vous ferez et pourquoi (s’aligner sur l'objectif et la vision)

Une déclaration de vision explique ce que votre groupe aspire à réaliser. Il s'agit de phrases courtes qui expriment vos espoirs pour l'avenir.

Les déclarations de mission décrivent ce que le groupe va faire et pourquoi il va le faire. En d'autres termes, ce que vous allez faire, pourquoi et pour qui. Votre déclaration de mission rappelle aux membres pourquoi vous vous êtes rassemblés.

Étapes de l'élaboration des déclarations de vision et de mission

1. Reflect and brainstorm ideas	In our learning circle on Mobilizing and activating members: recruitment and retention 101, when prompted with the question "why are you here?", many people responded with their desire to be with others who share similar values, who care about what they care about, and to navigate climate grief and fear by taking action with others.  Other questions to reflect on: What is the dream for our community? What would we like to see change? What do we see as the community's major issues? What do you see as the community's major strengths and assets? What do you think should be the purpose of this organization (or effort)? Why should these issues be addressed? What would success look like?
2. Write down sentences that summarize ideas from your discussions	You can do this individually and come together, or collectively. Ask for feedback to adapt the statements.
3. Review good vision and mission statements	A good vision statement is  : Understood and shared by members of your group Broad enough to include a diverse variety of perspectives Inspiring and uplifting to everyone involved in your effort Easy to communicate (i.e. no more than 3 sentences). For example... “A world of fair, inclusive and caring societies, where white supremacy and patriarchy are things of the past and where people can live free from colonialism, exploitation and inequality, in all of its forms. A world where our societies operate in respect of the resource limits of the earth and support the survival of all forms of life. Where no population extracts and consumes an inordinate amount at the expense of others and one where all people, wherever they live, are protected from the effects of climate change and resource depletion.” -The HUB’s vision statement A good mission statement is : Concise, but longer than vision statements. Outcome-oriented. Explain the fundamental outcomes your group is working towards. Inclusive and broad. Don't limit your statement in the strategies/sectors that may become involved. For example... “Stand.earth challenges corporations and governments to treat people and the environment with respect, because our lives depend on it.” -Stand.earth
4. Form your vision and mission statements!	The following exercise by Mob Lab can be used to formulate your vision statement: a) Give everyone a sheet of paper and things to write/draw with (or asked folks to take notes or draw in front of them if virtually meeting). Have each person draw their vision for the future. This is intentionally left vague, with no time frame, to allow participants to define the scope of the vision. Maximum 10 mins for the drawing exercise. b) Everyone presents and talk about their drawing or writing (2 minutes each). While this is happening a facilitator takes notes on flip chart or virtual post-its capturing the highlights of what people say. c) Once everyone has presented all images are posted on the wall (or virtual board) together. Ask participants what similarities they see. These should be big picture themes related to the long term vision. d) From discussion, identify biggest themes and write them as statements that describe the long term vision for the campaign where everyone can see and access it. Want an alternative to the above exercise? Check out the following exercises by ACT tools: 'future travel' exercise & magazine article exercise. The following questions by ATC tools can be used to guide discussion and formulate your mission statement: Who do we serve? Who do we not serve? What do we provide? What do we not provide?  What’s the benefit of what we provide? We are unique because… What are we really good at? What are we not really good at? What will we do to fulfill our goals?
5. Revisit your vision and mission statements	We suggest revisiting your vision at least once a year to reflect on how your team is engaging with it. See the following vision assessment tool from ATC. A good rule of thumb is to restate your mission with your members at least once a month. It helps to keep members aligned and motivated.

Step 3: Determining what is important and how you'll work together (decision making, boundaries and expectations)

To define what's important and how you'll work together, you'll need to outline your collective values, principles and protocols. This is usually compiled in the form of a collective working agreement or a code of conduct. These components help to form the basis for the team culture you hope to build.

Reminder: it's important to remember not to spend too much time bogged down on writing perfect working agreements! Start with what is most important to your collective. These agreements can be revisited and modified as concerns arise.

Coming up with a working agreement/code of conduct:

Hold initial reflections	Why do you do this work? What motivates you personally? What is most important for us for a good team environment? What behaviours do we need to take individually and as a team to support and live our values?
Understanding components of a working agreement	Principles help to establish purpose and to further shape the overall mission. For example, fairness, integrity, and honesty. Principles drive values. Values are beliefs and opinions that people hold regarding specific issues or ideas. For example, we value authentic relationships and the rights of Indigenous Peoples to free, prior, and informed consent. Principles and values are often written together. It is likely that you'll be able to draw principles and values from your discussions held to define your vision and mission. Protocols are the ways that principles and values look in action; i.e. order, boundaries, practices; the how of working together. By this stage if you haven't already, it would be helpful to choose a decision making framework that you'd like to use to work together. Please see the following wiki pages related to decision making: consensus decision making (suggestions for small groups) and modified consensus decision making (suggestions for large and small groups). See below for a suggested framework that can be implemented with some ease (if you do not have experience with decision making models).
Review example group principles and protocols	Example protocols from #Asians4BlackLives: "Embrace Frontline Leadership, Center Blackness We understand that the path to liberation for all communities travels through the liberation of Black communities in America. When Black people have justice and liberation, we all move one big step closer to real freedom. To us, solidarity encompasses understanding that we will never be truly free till Black people are free. We will keep our messages and slogans on the theme of Black Lives Matter, not All Lives Matter. We are committed to centering frontline leadership, and in this struggle that means centering Black organizations locally and nationally linked to this movement. With this commitment, we also understand that Black leaders and movements are not monolithic and we recognize some Black-led groups are also in (trans)formation stages. We respect and appreciate the diversity in their voices, strategies, and tactics, We will stay accountable to these diverse priorities specifically in relation to goals, vision, message, tone and choreographing of actions. We will raise our voices with, not above, those of Black people in this movement." Other examples of protocols might include, for example A TOC is your hypothesis about how to organize your resources to affect those who hold the resources/power to solve the problem. See our definitions page on theory of change for an overview. The general format for a TOC is: if we do (TACTICS) then (STRATEGIC GOAL or CHANGE) because (REASON).  Turning alignment into action: planning a campaign Once you've drafted a rough TOC, you can begin to define the strategy you'll use to put the alignment of your team into action. Please see the following wiki page for information on these next steps: What is the right way to come up with a campaign strategy? In sum, you'll want to define some short/mid-term campaign goals and strategies based on your TOC, and with consideration for your available resources, capacity and leverage points. If your team is divided on a campaign direction, create working groups that carry out separate campaigns, reporting back to and seeking support from the whole team. Facilitation pointers for the alignment process and beyond General pointers from Adrienne Maree Brown's Emergent Strategy