Whether you are new to lung cancer coalition-building or not, this planning tool will help you to succeed in building a state-based coalition to support the goals of the National Lung Cancer Roundtable.
The planning tool consists of three phases displayed in the accordion below. Each phase includes multiple action steps that the coalition team can take to progress toward the coalition goals and outcomes.
Open each phase to see the related steps and navigate to each step for additional information.
State-Based Coalition Planning Tool Webinar
This 1-hour webinar was held on November 7, 2022, to plan the launch of the State-Based Initiatives Planning Tool.
The State-Based Initiative Planning Tool
The first phase of the planning process is all about getting started. In this phase, you should assess the landscape of existing public health efforts to avoid duplication, build a network of partners with common interests in lung cancer, and establish an organizational structure to help partners work together to achieve the coalition goals.
Step 1 – Assess the Landscape
The first step in getting started is to assess the landscape of current lung cancer initiatives in your state. An assessment helps you to identify potential partners, avoid redundant efforts, identify opportunities that could make a difference, and provide the foundation that you need for your initiative.
Step 2 – Build a Network
The second step in getting started is to build a network of multi-sector partners. Building a team can help you to increase partner engagement, introduce you to diverse ideas that you had not considered before, provide you with the necessary influence to get through roadblocks, and help you create more sustainable partnerships and more generalizable results from your efforts.
Step 3 – Establish a Structure
The third step in getting started is to establish an organizational structure for your coalition. Establishing a good structure helps to set the tone for how all partners will interact and work with each other to move the initiative forward. A good structure with the right people in the right roles can help to increase transparency in operation, maintain neutrality where it is important, and align the interests of all members with the interests of the coalition.
The second phase of the planning process is to hold a kickoff meeting and engage the team in identifying sources of funding, project priorities, and setting goals that can be added to your new action plan.
Step 1: Hold A Kickoff Meeting
Phase 2 begins with holding a kickoff meeting or summit to discuss the issues, agree on priorities, develop a plan, and secure commitments as you move forward.
Step 2: Identify Funding
The second step in Phase 2 is to identify your funding sources and resources so that you can clarify which priorities and activities are feasible and will fit within the constraints of your resources.
Step 3: Establish Priorities
The third step in Phase 2 is to establish your lung cancer priorities so that you can focus your resources and partners on specific activities of your work plan.
Step 4: Set Goals
The fourth step in Phase 2 is to develop a vision and set goals for your coalition. They will help to align your partner ambitions, provide inspiration for the team, and form the basis for your action plan.
Step 5: Create an Action Plan
The fifth and final step in Phase 2 is to create an action plan that will define your implementation path and help to keep your team on it while you progress toward your goals. An action plan also helps to ensure agreement on partner roles and responsibilities as your implementation moves forward.
The third and final phase of the planning process is the implementation and growth phase. This phase is an exciting one because it contains the transition from planning into implementation. You get to see your team in action and make visible progress to change and improve the landscape of lung cancer activities.
Step 1: Maintain Engagement
The first step in Phase 3 is to maintain the engagement that you have built up over the previous phases. In this phase, you work to keep your current partners engaged while you search to bring on new partners to grow your coalition. You also get to see the impact of your previous work!
Step 2: Evaluate Progress
The second step in Phase 3 is to track and evaluate your progress. This step has many advantages because it helps you to maintain accountability among your partners, monitor progress for your current and future funding needs, and identify problems early enough to fix them. The best part of this step is that you get to show off some of your early successes!
Step 3: Expand and Evolve
The third and final step of Phase 3 is to expand the scope of your work or evolve so that you keep your strategies and priorities consistent with advances in scientific understanding. You may have an opportunity to restructure your organization when new opportunities with new partners or conveners appear. By this time, your organization will be running smoothly, so you can devote some of your energy or resources to optimization activities rather than building activities.
Combined Worksheets and Resources for the Planning Tool
The following worksheets and resources can help you to plan your initiative.
Acknowledgments
The National Lung Cancer Roundtable (NLCRT) is thankful for the financial support from its partners and the American Cancer Society that propel this work forward. We especially wish to thank the NLCRT State-Based Initiatives Task Group for their expertise and the many hours of review and deliberation that went into developing the State Coalition Guide. We also wish to thank Small Spark Consulting for coordinating the project. For a full list of acknowledgments, click here.