Online Program

281612
Leveraging local resources to maintain effective leadership teams


Monday, November 4, 2013 : 11:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.

Charline Whyte, Bachelors, Enviromental Health, Jefferson County Department of Health, Birmingham, AL
In a time of shrinking budgets and growing economic concerns, it is crucial to leverage existing resources to maximize community capacity. As advocacy efforts are underway across our nation to improve community health, they are faced with the increase challenge of maintaining effective leadership teams. Funding, time and effective structures become the greatest barriers to achieving jurisdiction-wide policy, systems and/or environmental change. In order to sustain local community efforts, partnerships need to learn to navigate through these challenges by strategically leveraging existing partnerships, their resources, staff and institutional capacity. This can only be achieved through strong leadership teams that are well organized, defined, have clear roles and expectations and are given the opportunity to be actively engaged in the process. Our community worked across funding streams to join forces to strategically define the leadership team functions and infrastructure. The creation of “Articles of Collaboration”, well-defined priorities and the support of anchor organizations lead to a dynamic dialogue that empowered participants to benefit from the Leadership Team. Investing time up front and then stepping back at every juncture to re-assess strategies and challenges proved to be essential to leverage community assets and maintain an effective leadership team. Our community learned that an effective leadership team serves more than “Robber Stamping”. It is actively engaged, committed, provides solutions to challenges, and drives the community action agenda. Cross collaboration among partners through a strong leadership team strategically leverages resources and opens communication to achieve real outcomes and improve community health.

Learning Areas:

Administration, management, leadership
Advocacy for health and health education
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs

Learning Objectives:
Identify key strategies to effectively maintain leadership teams. Describe ways to leverage community resources to maintain effective coalitions. Discuss lessons learned that illustrate a successful leadership team.

Keyword(s): Collaboration, Community Health Promoters

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: Since 2009, I have served as the Tobacco Prevention and Control Manager for Jefferson County Alabama, responsible for providing administrative oversight for fiscal, contractual, programmatic management for local and federal grants including the 7 million dollar Communities Putting Prevention to Work Grant. In addition I have served as the Health Action Leadership Team Coordinator for the Health Action Partnership responsible for building and maintaining an effective Leadership Team.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.