2016-03-29
Jim Buckell
Elections pose many challenges for a party such as the Greens.
Campaigns can be a bit like the wet season in the Top End. The atmosphere intensifies and the pressure starts to mount long before the hearts and minds of voters are stirred. After the polling day cyclone, when ballots are cast and governments are formed, puddles of doubt or discontent can linger and stagnate if they are not mopped up.
One of the first hot spots is the selection of candidates. Preselections are often contested, which can lead to ongoing tensions if we don't create a supportive environment for everyone involved, including those who are unsuccessful.
As we get under way, we become increasingly reliant on vast numbers of volunteers who make contact with voters and do most of the work from planning to polling day and poster collection. Strong support for everyone involved is essential. If volunteers don't feel acknowledged they may not return and we lose their invaluable expertise and wisdom.
There are the unknown knowns too. Random storms can develop rapidly and without warning. We sometimes find ourselves having to navigate through uncharted terrain strewn with obstacles created by our political opponents. So we need to be highly skilled at making quick decisions that steer us out of danger and help us stay on track.
Campaigns need strong structures and effective teamwork to weather these constant fluctuations.
The Darebin Greens in Melbourne's inner north have put a lot of thought into looking after each other over the years. Here's some of the stuff we've put in place that other campaigns may find useful.
Agreements
Agreements on how we will work together as a team are a very powerful way of ensuring we maintain our focus on collaboration and supporting each other. We like to do this from the very start. Some of the questions we ask ourselves as members of the campaign committee are:
- What can I bring to this team effort?
- What values are important to us in how we work?
- How will we deal with conflict?
- What support do team members need to be able to do their jobs effectively?
- How can we ensure volunteers feel included and valued?
- How can we be inclusive and ensure discrepancies in rank and power are addressed?
When we put our agreements together we draw them up on a poster and bring them to every campaign meeting so they are there to guide us.
Strategic planning
There's no one way to write a strategy, but having one is vitally important. It keeps us on track and allows us to see the whole picture of a campaign from our vision through to the details of how we can achieve our aims and objectives – the strategies we put in place to get where we want to be at the end.
Flexibility
We now review our agreements and strategies every few months to ensure we are travelling well. This also helps to head off tensions about roles and responsibilities and about decisions that sometimes have to be made on the run.
Evaluation
Over the years we've developed a multi-pronged approach to debriefing and evaluation.
- Campaign wrap picnic which gets everyone together to celebrate, share our thoughts and say thanks
- Debrief using support people from campaign central or from our own team. This can be informal over a coffee or more structured depending on needs
- Facilitated evaluation workshop for the campaign committee and other key players such as neighbourhood organisers, staff and candidates. We like to use an external facilitator who can bring a fresh perspective and some energy when people are feeling exhausted
- Survey of all staff and volunteers to ensure all contributions are acknowledged and concerns, ideas and recommendations can be fed into our final report
- Evaluation report – put together by the campaign committee office bearers using information from all the above and including brief reports and recommendations for improvements
The measure of a great campaign is more than the vote we achieve — it's also tangible in the camaraderie we feel when we are working effectively with each other. When we build our supporter base and volunteers happily return the next time we can be confident we are on track to improve our standing — in the community and at the polls. Happy and successful campaigning!
Jim Buckell is the co-founder of the Victorian Greens Facilitators Network and a veteran of many Greens campaigns with the Darebin branch. He is interested in hearing your tips on good collaborative practices during campaigning: jimbuckell@gmail.com.