PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS

Public Private Partnerships bring BENEFITS

Public Private Partnerships are NOTHING NEW

Public Private Partnerships also bring RISKS

Some possible barriers to successful partnership:

Misconceptions Inequality Decision making differences Cultural differences Cynicism Lack of trust

What is trust?

“Trust varies in its intensity, scope and duration. At its most limited trust is guarded, qualified and conditional, limited in duration, open to review and related to a specific task. At its broadest, trust is like goodwill, an open-ended, reciprocal, emotional quality to a relationship, in which people do not simply solve problems and keep promises, but jointly set out to create something together”.

C. Leadbetter (1999) - “Living on Thin Air”

TWO SPIRALS OF DISTRUST

1. Public Sector Perspective

“This has gone wrong. It’s gone wrong because of a reason” “This has gone wrong because X (micro-partner) didn’t do his job” “This has gone wrong because X deliberately didn’t do his job” “X is trying to cheat us” “X works for Y Ltd (partners). Y Ltd. endorse what X did.” “Y Ltd. are trying to cheat us” “Z (management) trusts Y Ltd. He is a bad manager.” “Z has colluded with Y through X to cheat us” “I can’t trust our partners individually or collectively and I no longer trust

management either”

TWO SPIRALS OF DISTRUST

2. Private Sector Perspective

“This has gone wrong. It’s gone wrong because of a reason.” “This has gone wrong because A (micro-partner) didn’t do her job.” “This has gone wrong because A deliberately didn’t do her job.” “A is deliberately obstructive.” “A works for Dept. B (partners). They support her attitude.” “Dept B are deliberately obstructive.” “C (management) are incompetent in allowing this to happen.” “C cannot be trusted to do their job.” “I can’t trust our partners individually or collectively and I no longer trust

management either.”

Marshall’s seven steps that break the cycle of distrust

• Move from denial of problem to acceptance of its existence. Have the will to change: be confident that change can occur. Aim for a positive outcome to existing conflict. Make a conscious choice to break the cycle of distrust. Move from “I” to “We”: realise a shared intent. Maintain the discipline: continually strengthen and re-inforce trust. Self respect and respect for others: honesty, integrity, maturity.

– “Even with a serious crisis on hand, individuals may still be unwilling to

admit their own responsibility. To achieve full awareness of the severity of the situation, there often must be a third party who can be objective about the data, people or events. This person’s job is to state the facts, help the individuals see the truth about the situation, and realise that something must change.”

MARSHALL E.M. “Building trust at the speed of change”

Three conflicting tensions

time

quality money

Success of the partnership is not in itself a goal. Rather, it is the means by which goals are

achieved.

CORE CHARACTERISTICS OF A SUCCESSFUL MARRIAGE

Positivity. Both partners have a positive attitude towards each other, and towards themselves as a unit.

Empathy. Partners understand each other, and are able to express this understanding sympathetically.

Commitment. Both partners commit to the relationship. This means a degree of sacrifice of own preferences for the good of the relationship.

Acceptance. There is a need for each partner to feel that the other partner

accepts and appreciates them for who they are, and has no desire to try and force them to change.

Respect. It is vital that respect, once gained, is cultivated and valued

GOTTMAN J. 1994. “Why marriages succeed or fail”

Facilitators could be expected to:

• Offer objective, supportive, non - judgmental viewpoints Look for win/win solutions Assume a long-term, global perspective and deal with resistance

to it Encourage change and risk taking Overcome specific problems through encouraging creativity Encourage a co-operative attitude Deal with negative personal responses, grudges, suspicions,

distrust Engender understanding of PPP, and its benefits. Identify and overcome cultural differences

And also…

• Help foster micro-partnerships, and then facilitate their spread Turn individual learning into organisational learning Define meaning of collaboration. Commitment to process and to outcome Ability to listen, to understand, to be fair and open. Open to: participation/diversity/conflict/reflection/mistakes. Examine risks and impact of possible failure. Risk takers. Encourage individual and organisational growth Promote culture of learning organisation Consensus builders. Make sure everybody has something to do!

There are a number of barriers which a partnership facilitator is likely to have to

overcome. These include:

Individual workload Resistance Inappropriate behaviour within the partnership. Inappropriate denial of and /or suppression of

conflict Conflicting roles of organisations “Hang over effect” Lack of resources

FIVE STATEMENTS OF PARTNERSHIP

WE BOTH WANT TO ACHIEVE THE SAME THING (ambition statement)

WE BOTH WANT OUR RELATIONSHIP TO WORK (partnership statement)

WE BOTH AGREE ON OUR ROLES IN THE RELATIONSHIP (roles statement)

WE BOTH AGREE ON HOW TO TAKE THIS FORWARD (progress statement)

THESE ARE THE RULES (structure statement)

Gott SD (2000). “The Pocket Partnership Process Explained”

Benefits of independent facilitation:

• Members of the partnership will be able to articulate a vision of their own organisation, and how this can be fulfilled by development of a shared vision with partners.

• The partnership – through the “Pocket Partnership Process” - will be built on trust, understanding, openness and respect.

• There will be open frequent communication and quality dialogue.

• The partnership will be participative and equal.

• Expertise, skills and experience will be valued as collaborative resources.

• There will be commitment to change as a core task.

• There will be respect for cultural differences and commitment to development of a positive collaborative culture.

• There will be a willingness to learn: as individuals, organisations and partners.

• Clear, but flexible, roles and structures will be developed.

• There will be open, participative, flexible, facilitative, empowering leadership focussed on goal achievement.

• Conflict will be acknowledged and viewed positively.

• There will be commitment to securing appropriate resource for the partnership to flourish.

Three final points:

• Ideally, the facilitator should be present from the beginning

• The pocket partnership process must not depend upon the people involved in it.

• Authority transfer is vital

FOUR STEPS TO EFFECTIVE PARTNERSHIP

• The Partnership can only succeed if trust is established between participants.

This trust can best be achieved through the pocket partnership process.

Trust brokers are essential to the pocket partnership process.

To be effective trust brokers must be truly impartial.