“Fierce Conversations” is a Sunshine Coast Community Services Society (SCCSS) program to:
a) develop/enhance skills of board members around having difficult conversations and reaching a positive outcome around real/current concerns, and
b) to build capacity on the Coast for facilitating community service based workshops. The goal is to embed these skills on the Coast so we can speak the same language to optimize our performance as community organizations.
There was a Community social planning meeting April 18, 2012 where 80 participants identified goals around needs assessment, collaboration, coordination of resources and referral services. There was a specific focus on strengthening the relationship between the SCCSS Board and the Community Resource Centre Society (CRCS) Board to inform more effective partnerships, identify community stakeholders for a wider community consultation on information and referral and volunteer services, and clarity on next steps in building an easily accessible, comprehensive, continually current source of community information and volunteer opportunities on the Sunshine Coast through:
- Facilitated workshop with representatives from the SCCSS Board, the CRCS Board, and the newly appointed co-Executive Directors of SCCSS;
- Meeting of SCCSS staff members and CRCS staff and Board representatives with the Executive Director of BC211; and
- A successful joint SCCSS-CRCS grant application to Sunshine Coast Community Foundation for $2,300 for a meeting in October 2013 of community stakeholders related to BC211.
Evidence of progress to date includes:
- more regular and productive communication between the SCCSS Board and the Community Resource Centre Society (CRCS) Board;
- better understanding of, and improved willingness to address overlapping needs such as volunteer recruitment and retention, and information and referral services;
- clarity around financial reporting and other organizational issues;
- joint board and staff collaborative group, focused on the success of 211 implementation planned for February, 2014; and
- the cost-shared engagement of a SCCSS Board member and an employee in ‘Fierce Conversations’ training and certification.