REFLECTING ON CIVIC LEADERSHIP: ONE YEAR IN
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In November 2017, we
introduced
Civic Consulting Alliance’s newest platform area,
Civic Leadership
. Chicago benefits from a long and distinctive history of extraordinary civic leadership, and the private sector’s tradition of involvement in the advancement of our region is a national model. However, today the context in which civic leadership is exercised is changing.
We launched this new platform in recognition of those changes and the impact they have on the work we do. We also outlined our aspiration for a new culture of civic leadership, one that leads to more equitable outcomes across the region. We proposed that this new culture might be built around four building blocks:
- Assuming personal ownership and transformation;
- Engaging diverse perspectives across and outside the current power structure;
- Enabling and building communities of purpose to focus on action;
- Scaling to a tipping point.
To begin a conversation on what a culture of civic leadership means to different people, in March we wrote a discussion paper that provided a potential definition of civic leadership:
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A civic leader is anyone who is actively engaged in making the Chicago region a better place for everyone by reducing inequities that affect the well-being of our community and by creating a better environment for all individuals, families and businesses to thrive.
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Over the ensuing year, we have pursued several projects to explore this definition and the building blocks.
Convening:
In March, we convened a diverse group of stakeholders on Chicago’s West Side to gather feedback on the paper and discuss opportunities to collaborate. In that convening, we heard several consistent themes:
- Ceding power to and incorporating voices from communities that experience inequity, especially the voices of people of color, into current leadership and power structures in Chicago, as well as in the development of future structures.
- Adopting a “serve first” mentality that recognizes the importance of empathy in leading. Central to this model is the idea that leaders should be willing and able to take a step back and listen to those they are leading, and when necessary, relinquish power for the collective.
- Many participants focused on tactical guidance, offering methods to find, train, and cultivate leaders who are driven to build equity in the Chicago region. Proposed methods included publicly-funded mandatory service requirements (especially for adults) and a Community Area Endowment with a racial equity lens.
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Participants highlighted the need to cede power to and incorporate voices from communities that experience inequity.
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Civic Leadership Landscape Scan:
Over the course of summer 2018, we researched initiatives in Buffalo and Seattle, two cities with reputations for promoting racial equity. We identified leadership structures and milestones, using our four proposed building blocks of a new leadership culture for Chicago as a framework for understanding these efforts and the racial equity outcomes from this work.
The Greater Buffalo Racial Equity Roundtable, a group of regional leaders, convened in 2014 to promote the changes required to achieve shared regional prosperity. Since its launch, the Roundtable has released a Racial Equity Dividend report that set the context and quantified the potential regional benefit, and racial equity has been explicitly incorporated in the institutional work of Roundtable partners.
Seattle’s Race and Social Justice Initiative (RSJI) is a city-managed effort to address racial equity across city operations. Over the past 15 years, several city departments have integrated racial equity into trainings and policy objectives, including across arts, culture, economic and community development.
From this work, we learned that:
- The initiatives in Buffalo and Seattle differ in structure and leadership style, yet both employ at least some of the building blocks identified by Civic Consulting Alliance to change culture and outcomes.
- Initiatives tended to incorporate two or three building blocks, but never all four. For example, efforts emphasized either personal transformation or a clear focus on action, but seldom both.
- While short-term improvements are evident in both Buffalo and Seattle, pursuing long-term racial equity requires time and consistency in application of the work.
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Chicago Network Map:
Network mapping has the potential to elucidate how a given culture transmits ideas through social networks of individuals and organizations. To test our ability to develop network maps as a way to understand and improve Chicago’s culture of civic leadership, we worked with a
pro bono
partner from
CIBC
to map connections between the Civic Consulting Alliance team and others across the region. In all, nearly 700 individuals participated in creating one view of connectivity.
In this, we learned that:
- Across the hundreds of people in Civic Consulting Alliance's network, most are connected by one of 20 highly-connected "key influencer" individuals.
- Individuals are frequently influenced by others outside of their own sector, and no one sector appears to dominate Civic Consulting Alliance’s network (for example, the business sector was surprisingly not a primary influencer of the Civic Consulting Alliance network).
- Multiple “starting points” will be necessary to create a full, clear picture of Chicago’s network structure.
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Over the next year we hope to apply the concepts of our building blocks to our client work. And in the spirit of personal ownership, we are also reviewing CCA’s internal practices and culture through the lenses of diversity, equity and inclusion.
As we continue this work, we welcome your thoughts. Please email
Brian
,
Rasmus
or
Meredith
at any time
to share questions, comments or suggestions.
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FELLOW SPOTLIGHT: CHANDNI SAHNI
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From March through August, Chandni Sahni worked with the Civic Consulting Alliance team as a
KPMG
Fellow. Chandni is a Manager at KPMG.
What project work were you involved in during your time at the Civic Consulting Alliance?
Chandni Sahni:
During my time at Civic Consulting Alliance, I was involved with the
West Side United
(WSU) initiative. I primarily focused on community projects, which involved the release of two funding requests for proposals (RFPs). These RFPs were targeted at community groups working to increase the number of community health workers and expand the availability of mental and behavior health services in West Side neighborhoods. I also had the opportunities to support internal Civic Consulting Alliance initiatives, such as developing internal donor and contact management software and the Women of Civic Consulting Alliance discussion group.
What was your most memorable experience during your time at Civic Consulting Alliance?
CS:
My most memorable experience was interviewing local leaders and making new and lasting relationships over the course of my work with WSU.
How has your time at Civic Consulting Alliance helped you develop professionally?
CS:
My fellowship with Civic Consulting Alliance has been one of the most rewarding experiences in my consulting career. I had the unique opportunity to work with influential leaders to help improve Chicago’s West Side neighborhoods by addressing inequities in healthcare, education, economic vitality and the physical environment. I am grateful to both Civic Consulting Alliance and KPMG for giving me an opportunity to do important and impactful work that truly makes a difference in our community.
Civic Consulting Alliance Fellowships are full-time positions that last between three months and a year. In every case, Fellows are integrated into project teams for a unique professional development opportunity. Please visit the
Fellowships
page on our website to learn more.
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Last month, Civic Consulting Alliance released a
case study
on the
Chicago Police Department's
(CPD) rollout of its universal in-service training on use-of-force. Civic Consulting Alliance and five pro bono partners helped CPD plan and coordinate this training to all 13,000 officers.
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IN OTHER NEWS...
- The Partnership for Safe and Peaceful Communities is a case study in funder collaboration to increase collective impact. Recently, several communications officers from PSPC member foundations shared their lessons learned in working together on joint communications. Read their lessons learned here. Civic Consulting Alliance has supported the partnership's work since 2016.
- Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle released the Office's Policy Roadmap, which serves as a five-year strategic plan for all of the offices under the President. Civic Consulting Alliance supported the plan's development.
- Earlier this month, West Side United was also featured on WGN Radio. Listen here to WSU's Senior Program Director Ayesha Jaco discuss the collaborative's work.
- Crain's Chicago Business highlighted the Medical Assistant Pathways program, a West Side United initiative providing 29 full-time employees at four Chicago hospitals the opportunity to transition from low wage work to high growth potential potential, patient-facing roles. The program aims to create a pipeline of talent and build family wealth in the ten communities served by West Side United, and it addresses a growing demand for medical assistant roles. Read more here.
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Civic Consulting Alliance would like to express our gratitude for the contributions of our clients, partners and funders in 2018. We wish you and yours all the best this holiday season.
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Civic Consulting Alliance is an affiliate of the Civic Committee of
the
Commercial Club of Chicago
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