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Stages
of System Development
MAKING AND MANAGING COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS:
A FIVE-STAGE MODEL
The Intermediary
Network has developed a five-stage model for describing the process of
connecting schools and other youth-serving organizations with workplaces
and other community resources. The model is designed to help a community
and its intermediary organization(s) visualize and identify progress in
making and managing community connections. It is a road map to continuous
improvement and system-building.
This model,
which can be applied to many different systems-change processes, incorporates
five stages:
| Discovery:
Analyzing the existing condition; |
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| Design:
Planning for implementation; |
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| Incubation:
Piloting strategies, services, and programs; |
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| Growth:
Expanding activities; and |
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| Integration:
Institutionalizing the activities in a system that makes and manages
community connections. |
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The stages
reflect a process of building a partnership that can deliver better services
and yield a more effective system for serving young people. Rather than
a strict set of steps to be followed, communities can adapt the model
in ways that best help them identify priorities and think about a progression
of activities. And the model highlights the important role of intermediary
organizations in bringing potential partners together and them helping
them work collectively on the ongoing task of improving the community's
youth-serving system.
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Discovery
In
the Discovery Stage, the partners in a particular effort come together
to build upon effective local programmatic practices, coordinate
and consolidate existing efforts, and move beyond a set of isolated
activities toward creating a system.
The
community faces a set of familiar problems or characteristics that
define the Discovery Stage:
-
Limited opportunities;
- Disconnected
and uncoordinated activities;
- Efforts
conducted in pockets; and
- Activities
driven by funding.
The
Discovery Stage is completed when the core partners have reached
general agreement on a mission and are ready to take action. The
partners have the same expectations of the issue(s) they will address
in the Design Stage, and they agree on the general purpose of their
work together. |
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Planning
In
the Design Stage, the core partners plan specific strategies and
activities in response to identified and agreed-upon needs and gaps.
Coordination and common goal development begins to take shape.
Characteristics
of the Design Stage include:
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The awareness that duplication is counter-productive;
- Consensus
among key partners;
- Collaboration
among partners;
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Connecting system design under way.
The
Design Stage is completed for a particular strategy or activity when
the core partners agree on the specific actions each will undertake.
The partners are clear on their roles and what is expected of them.
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Incubation
In the
Incubation Stage, the pilot implementation of activities takes places.
Strategies, services, and programs planned in the Design Stage are
put into practice on a small scale, and operational systems are
tested and refined.
Characteristics
of the Incubation Stage include:
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Demonstration of coordinated services;
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Implementation of operational services;
- Coordinated
staff development and training; and
- Initiation
of systems development.
The
Incubation Stage is completed for a particular strategy or activity when
the partners agree to expand the practices. |
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Growth
In
the Growth Stage, the partners improve and expand their activities
by revisiting and evaluating the initiative's operational strategies.
Most often, expansion "downshifts" a community back into elements
of the Design Stage but at a higher level that builds on the experience
of the pilot, engages more partners, and improves or expands services
and activities.
Characteristics
of the Growth Stage include:
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Expansion of coordinated services;
- Increased
number and range of partners;
- Coordinated
marketing, documentation and assessment; and
- Linked
sequence of activities
The
Growth Stage is completed for a particular strategy or activity when
the partners agree to integrate the effective practice into the
existing system. |
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Integration
At the
Integration Stage, strategies, services, and programs are institutionalized
within the operations of the community system. As that happens,
the intermediary and core partners turn to the next set of priorities,
strategies, and programs, with the intent to continue improving
upon the system for making and managing community connections.
Characteristics
of the Integration Stage include:
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Connections coordinated through intermediary structure;
- Needs-based
resource allocation;
- Public
support from the community for policies; and
- Defined
role for all stakeholders.
The
Integration Stage is completed for a particular strategy or activity when
the partners agree to continue to improve the system and move on
to the next priority. |
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