You believe in the value of your work, and you may want other organizations, institutions, community members, funders, or decision-makers to support similar goals. Broader adoption can increase the reach and durability of effective community work. Another organization may incorporate one of your practices into its services, a public agency may adopt a related policy, a funder may support implementation, or a community partner may take responsibility for maintaining an activity. The goal is not simply to persuade others to agree with your organization. It is to identify genuine areas of alignment, share credible information about what has been learned, develop mutually beneficial relationships, and determine whether another group is willing and able to contribute to shared community goals. What do we mean by promoting adoption of the initiative's mission and objectives? Promoting adoption means helping other people and organizations understand your initiative's purpose and inviting them to incorporate compatible goals, practices, policies, services, or responsibilities into their own work. Adoption can take many forms. Another organization might: Provide financial or in-kind resources Become a formal program or implementation partner Incorporate an effective practice into its own operations Adopt a compatible policy Provide referrals or other complementary services Help advocate for a shared community priority Integrate an activity into its regular budget or staffing structure Adapt an evidence-informed approach for another population or setting Help sustain relationships, infrastructure, or community capacity developed through the initiative Adoption does not require another organization to accept every part of your mission or become identical to your initiative. Two organizations may share one goal while differing on other priorities, strategies, values, or responsibilities. A productive partnership makes the areas of agreement and difference clear. Mission and objectives A mission statement describes the organization's fundamental purpose - what it exists to accomplish and why. Objectives translate that mission into more specific results or milestones the organization seeks to accomplish. Objectives should be meaningful, realistic, and measurable enough to help the organization assess progress. They may address implementation, participation, access, organizational or policy change, behavior, community conditions, or longer-term outcomes. When asking another organization to support your work, distinguish between the broader mission and the specific objective you want that organization to help advance. Why encourage broader adoption of the initiative's mission and objectives? To expand community benefit One organization rarely controls all of the conditions affecting a complex community issue. Schools, health systems, community organizations, businesses, funders, public agencies, residents, service providers, and policymakers may each control different resources, practices, policies, or environments. When several appropriate partners contribute to a shared goal, the initiative may be able to address more of the conditions affecting the issue. To sustain effective practices and outcomes An initiative may eventually end, change its structure, lose a particular funding source, or shift to other priorities. Broader adoption can help valuable practices, relationships, policies, services, or knowledge continue even when the original initiative changes. Sustainability should not require preserving the original organization forever. Sometimes a strong outcome is for another institution or community partner to incorporate the work into its regular responsibilities. To strengthen systems rather than create isolated programs A program may have greater long-term impact when its successful elements become part of established systems. For example, an effective referral process might become routine practice across several health and human service organizations. A school-based program might become part of the district's regular student-support services. A community accessibility practice might become part of municipal policy. To bring additional perspectives and expertise to the work Partners may identify barriers, risks, strengths, or opportunities that the original initiative overlooked. Broader adoption should therefore be understood as a learning process rather than simply spreading a finished model. Current evaluation practice emphasizes collaboration with people who bring both lived and professional experience, attention to differences in power, and using what is learned to improve programs and decisions. Whom should you encourage to adopt your mission and objectives? Do not begin only by asking which organizations are most similar to yours. Instead, ask who: Shares a relevant community goal Is directly affected by the issue Has lived experience relevant to the work Has relationships with communities involved Controls a service, policy, resource, or environment connected to the issue Has expertise or infrastructure needed for implementation Can help address an important barrier Could appropriately sustain part of the work Depending on the issue, potential collaborators may include civic and neighborhood organizations, businesses, grassroots organizations, school systems, labor organizations, parent and caregiver organizations, faith and spiritual communities, community and news media, health organizations, social service organizations, funders, and local, state, tribal, territorial, or federal government entities. Community members and people directly affected by the work should not be considered only after institutional leaders have been recruited. Their knowledge and priorities can help determine what should be adopted, how it should be implemented, and whether the proposed approach is appropriate. Look for complementary roles, not only similar organizations The most useful partner may not have the same mission as your organization. A youth-serving organization, public transportation agency, employer, health system, housing organization, school district, or local government may influence a community goal in very different ways. Ask what each potential partner can realistically contribute rather than assuming that only organizations similar to yours will be useful. Consider who has decision-making authority Some objectives require changes in institutional policy, funding, staffing, procurement, facilities, or other organizational systems. In those situations, identify the people with appropriate authority while also involving staff and community members who understand how the proposed change will affect implementation. Consider trusted community relationships Some organizations or community members may not control formal resources but may have trusted relationships, local knowledge, cultural expertise, or community credibility that are essential to the work. Do not treat these partners simply as messengers for decisions that have already been made. Involve them meaningfully when their knowledge is important to the design, implementation, or evaluation of the work. Example: A community child abuse and neglect prevention initiative Imagine a community partnership focused on preventing child abuse and neglect and strengthening conditions that help children and families thrive. Its mission might be: To promote safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments for children and families by strengthening family supports, community partnerships, organizational practices, and access to appropriate services. Objectives might include: Increase access to evidence-informed parenting and caregiver supports Strengthen referral pathways among schools, health care organizations, family-service providers, and community organizations Train staff in participating youth-serving organizations on appropriate prevention, recognition, reporting, and response procedures Improve access to economic, behavioral health, childcare, and other family supports associated with protective conditions Track implementation, service access, protective factors, and other appropriate prevention indicators over time A decrease in reports of child abuse or neglect should not be used by itself as proof that prevention succeeded. Reporting may change for many reasons, including changes in awareness, access to mandated reporters, service use, and reporting practices. Potential partners might include: Parent and caregiver organizations Child- and family-serving public agencies Schools and youth-serving organizations Health and behavioral health organizations Domestic violence and survivor-support organizations Substance use prevention and treatment organizations Head Start and other early-childhood programs Faith and spiritual community organizations Housing and economic-support organizations Community members and caregivers with lived experience Different partners might contribute to different objectives. There is no need for every partner to adopt the entire mission or carry out the same activities. How do you encourage others to support or adopt your mission and objectives? 1. Identify the specific outcome you want from the relationship Before approaching another organization, know what you are asking for. You might want the organization to: Endorse a shared goal Provide funding Commit staff time Change an organizational policy Provide referrals Host or deliver a service Share data under an appropriate agreement Join a coalition Integrate a practice into its routine operations Advocate for a policy or funding change A specific request is easier to evaluate than a general request to "support our mission." 2. Learn about the potential partner Understand the organization's: Mission Community responsibilities Current priorities Programs and services Decision-making authority Resources and limitations Existing community relationships Legal or funding restrictions Do not develop a persuasive "spin" that tells each organization whatever you believe it wants to hear. Identify genuine areas of alignment and be transparent about areas where goals differ. 3. Build authentic relationships Relationships can begin informally through community meetings, professional networks, conferences, coalition activities, introductions, or conversations between organizations. Trust should come from: Reliability Respect Transparency Following through on commitments Sharing information appropriately Acknowledging disagreements Making room for partners to influence the work Personal relationships can help collaboration, but adoption should not depend primarily on personal charm, status, or access to influential people. 4. Communicate through appropriate channels Visibility can help people learn that an initiative exists, but media attention alone does not create trust or commitment. Depending on the audience, communication may include: Direct meetings Community presentations Websites and digital communication News and community media Social media Professional networks Community newsletters Public reports or dashboards Conferences or workshops Choose communication based on who needs the information and what decision you hope they will make. 5. Share evidence and learning honestly Potential partners need credible information about the initiative. Share: The need or priority the initiative addresses What was implemented Who participated and who may have been missed Evaluation findings Community feedback Costs and staffing requirements Accessibility and equity considerations Challenges and unintended consequences What adaptations were made What remains uncertain Avoid claiming that an initiative has been "proven" simply because participants liked it or because outcomes improved after implementation. The strength of your claims should match the strength of the evaluation evidence. 6. Focus on genuine shared interests Explain how the proposed partnership relates to the potential partner's actual responsibilities or goals. For example, several organizations may care about children's well-being but for different reasons: Schools may be concerned with student safety, development, attendance, and learning Health organizations may focus on physical and behavioral health Family-support organizations may focus on caregiver resources and family stability Public agencies may have statutory responsibilities related to child and family well-being Community organizations may focus on strengthening relationships, access, and local support These differences can produce complementary roles without requiring every organization to describe the issue in exactly the same way. 7. Be transparent about disagreements and boundaries Organizations do not need to agree on every issue to collaborate. A partnership may be possible around one objective even when organizations differ on another. For example, organizations involved in adolescent sexual and reproductive health may have different institutional, cultural, religious, or policy positions. Rather than assuming in advance what a particular faith, health, education, or community organization will or will not support, discuss: Which goals are shared Which activities each organization can participate in What evidence and professional standards apply What areas remain outside the partnership Do not conceal significant disagreements simply to secure an endorsement. 8. Make specific partnership proposals Once alignment has been established, describe the proposed contribution clearly. For example, you might ask a partner to: Fund a defined portion of the work Provide space Assign qualified staff Provide transportation or childcare Share outreach responsibilities Participate in evaluation Adopt a policy or procedure Integrate a service into its budget Clarify the estimated financial and staff costs before asking an organization to commit. 9. Define responsibilities and decision-making Partnerships are more sustainable when everyone understands what has been agreed upon. Depending on the arrangement, document: Purpose Roles Funding or in-kind commitments Staffing Decision-making authority Community participation Data sharing and privacy Communications Evaluation Ownership of materials Timelines Procedures for resolving disagreements or ending the partnership A memorandum of understanding, contract, grant agreement, data-sharing agreement, or another written document may be appropriate depending on the relationship. 10. Allow appropriate adaptation Another organization may not be able to implement an activity exactly as your organization did. Before encouraging replication, identify: Which elements appear essential to achieving the intended outcome Which elements can reasonably be adapted What resources and staffing are necessary Whether the approach has been evaluated in settings similar to the new one What community input is needed before implementation Adaptation should respond to local context without discarding components that are essential to safety, effectiveness, ethics, or fidelity to the underlying purpose. 11. Share ownership rather than simply transferring instructions Long-term adoption is more likely when partners help shape decisions and understand why practices are being used. Invite partners and affected community members to participate in: Planning Implementation Interpretation of evaluation findings Adaptation Decisions about continuation or expansion Shared ownership does not mean every person has the same authority in every decision, but roles and power should be explicit rather than hidden. 12. Evaluate the partnership and adoption process Do not evaluate only the original program. Ask: Did the partner actually implement the agreed activity? Was implementation feasible? Were adequate resources available? How did community members experience the change? Were outcomes equitable? What adaptations occurred? Did the partnership create unintended burdens? Is the adopted practice still useful? Should responsibilities or resources change? Current evaluation guidance emphasizes collaborative engagement, fair and just evaluation practices and outcomes, learning throughout the process, and acting on findings rather than treating evaluation as a final report. In Summary Broader adoption of an initiative's mission and objectives can increase community impact and help valuable practices, services, policies, relationships, and knowledge continue beyond the original project. Adoption should not be treated as a sales process in which organizations identify targets and develop the right "spin" to win them over. Strong partnerships begin with genuine shared goals, respectful relationships, transparent communication, credible evidence, and clear understanding of what each organization can contribute. Engage people and organizations because their responsibilities, expertise, lived experience, resources, relationships, or decision-making authority are relevant to the work - not simply because they are influential or similar to your organization. Be specific about what you want a partner to adopt or support. Another organization may contribute to one objective without endorsing the entire mission. Document substantial commitments, clarify decision-making authority, and allow appropriate adaptation to local context. Finally, treat adoption as a collaborative learning process. Involve affected communities, assess implementation and outcomes, discuss differences honestly, and remain open to changing your own approach based on what partners and community members learn. The goal is not to make other organizations think exactly as you do. It is to build enough shared understanding, responsibility, and capacity that effective community work can spread, become embedded in appropriate systems, and continue producing meaningful benefits. Resources Print Resource Flanagan, J. (1995). "How to ask for money." In Rothman, J., Erlich, J., &Tropman, J. Strategies of Community Intervention. Itasca, Illinois: F.E. Peacock Publishers, Inc. pp. 391-400.
