Assuring Technical Assistance

Supports

Assuring Technical Assistance is a process of connecting groups to expertise and resources that address needs and provide support over phases of a community improvement effort. Participation in this process can enhance competencies (i.e., in planning or evaluation) and specialized knowledge (e.g., child development), and increase a group's potential to effect change. The process of Assuring Technical Assistance secures and provides support to communities over time as they plan, implement, evaluate, and sustain efforts for making a difference. When groups engage in this process, they are strengthening their own capacities to learn, practice, and subsequently implement effective prevention strategies.

1. Assess the stage of development and readiness of the effort to use technical assistance.

• The group has identified specific areas or processes that could be enhanced through technical assistance & support.
• The group, including staff & board members, values external assistance & support.
• The group has assessed the internal capacity of the staff, board members, & partners to provide technical assistance & support based on their areas of knowledge & expertise.
• The group has identified organizational processes that are more appropriate to be facilitated through external rather than internal sources of technical assistance or support.
• The effort is currently engaged in a form of technical assistance or have they been in the past.

Core Supports:

• Providing Supervision for Staff and Volunteers
• Promoting Internal Communication
• Understanding Community Leadership, Evaluators, and Funders: What Are Their Interests?
• Developing Successful Strategies: Planning to Win
• Developing Successful Strategies: Planning to Win Checklist
• Techniques For Leading Group Discussions
• Toolkit: Assessing Community Needs and Resources
• Troubleshooting Guide: We need to understand the community or situation better.

2. Identify appropriate technical assistance and support providers for the initiative.

• The group, including staff & board members, has decided on the form or method of technical assistance that is most appropriate for the initiative at its current stage of development.
• The group has decided upon either a formal technical assistance provider, or a knowledgeable staff or partner to provide or assure needed trainings, information, & technical support for the effort.
• The group considered the appropriateness or fit of potential technical assistance providers based on the context, history, experience, & interest of the organization & community.
• The group has a plan that includes a timetable, activities, & resulting product (if applicable) for each form of technical assistance to be provided.
• The group has secured & allocated sufficient resources necessary to support the technical assistance.

Core Supports:

• Providing Support for Staff and Volunteers
• Overview of the Process of Strategic Planning, VMOSA (Vision, Mission, Objectives, Strategies, Action Plans)
• Designing a Training Session
• Delivering a Training Session
• Conducting a Workshop
• Organizing a Teleconference

3. Establish regular feedback mechanisms and use the feedback to improve technical assistance efforts.

• The technical support provider(s) give regular feedback & appropriate support to the group.
• The group provides the technical assistance provider with regular feedback to make necessary adjustments & adaptations.

Core Supports:

• Developing an Evaluation Plan
• Participatory Evaluation
• Providing Feedback to Improve the Initiative 
• CTB Toolkit: Evaluating the Initiative
• Troubleshooting Guide: We don’t know how to evaluate our program or initiative.
• Obtaining Feedback from Constituents: What Changes are Important and Feasible?
• Providing Corrective Feedback