Now it is time to send the vision document to everyone who is “head” or “lead” of a group that you would like on board with your new centre. It’s important no one is left out. It is really difficult to get people back on board if they feel left out at this stage. I would recommend making a list of people that you need support from before you email anyone. Then you can work through the list and check off who you have contacted, and who you might have chased for a response if you don’t get a reply. You should then start emailing these people asking for:
- their input into the vision document,
- a chance to meet and discuss.
Here is an outline of the e-mail I used:
Dear Prof x
I was wondering if we could schedule a chat at your convenience.
A few of us have got together with the thought that cancer research in Sussex could benefit from a new patient-centric identity. Currently if you Google “cancer research in Sussex” you get an impression that is less exciting than the current reality of all of our research: [link last updated 9 years ago].
As you will see from the document attached, we are in the early planning stage of developing the Sussex Cancer Research Centre (SCRC). The central theme is “putting patients at the centre of our cancer research”. [Your group] is essential for this vision as your work exemplifies the theme. [A couple of sentences about why having this group of researchers involved is key, and how these researchers will be of benefit to, and benefit from. the centre.]
I’d love to get your thoughts on these ideas and anything else you can think of, so let me know if you have time for us to chat either in person or virtually?
Best wishes, Simon
These meetings will take a few weeks to work through, especially as some of the most important people will be very busy. If you don’t get a response do politely resend the e-mail.
When you meet with these key stakeholders your job is to:
- listen to any feedback
- incorporate any changes based on their ideas into the vision document.
- secure support.
Most meetings will start with discussion of the document, perhaps some questions about feasibility or appetite, most of which you will have already considered in chapter 1. You should also be prepared for them to say: “Tell me about this.” In response, you should have a casual 5-minute pitch prepared (similar to the presentation above, but without slides). If you’re talking to someone who doesn’t really know your work, introduce your background and include your FLF award as a marker of esteem. If you can finish with repeating the lines from your email about why their support is important then they will be clear what you are asking.
Be prepared to incorporate fairly substantial changes at this stage, in order to keep key stakeholders on board. However, always balance these changes with your unique vision for the centre. If everyone is happy but one person disagrees with the identity then you need to find a way to try and compromise without diluting the vision. 90% of the feedback will come down to wording in the vision document. You will likely have claimed something inaccurate, or neglected to mention something important to the person you’re meeting. Incorporate suggested changes and thank them for contributing to the centre’s vision. You can’t predict what people will care about. For example, while meeting with someone I thought would be one of our toughest stakeholders, our logo gained a seagull! If in doubt, say yes and figure it out later!
Once all these ideas have been discussed, you want to secure ongoing support beyond the conversation. One of the best ways of securing this is by offering these key people positions on a management group. Most will say yes, or delegate to someone within their team. Each one of these meetings is a massive victory. When you meet someone else you can point to support from an entire group of researchers who are already on board and part of centre management. You may be worried about the size of the management group reaching 20+ members, but not all of them will be able to attend every meeting. Some will naturally drop off when they realise the centre is in good hands, and you can adjust the frequency of management group meetings in response to the number of attendees.
Management groups, especially of this size, don’t have time to discuss every decision being made around centre management. The structure we adopted involved the directors and co-directors meeting frequently (think: weekly meetings, with daily messages), and the wider management group meeting every 2-3 months. The management group meetings were a place to disseminate decisions made by the directors and seek input into decisions that needed wider input. So far, for us, this balances agile day to day decision making with multiple stakeholders supporting major decisions.
As these conversations progress, incorporate the updates into the management vision document you started above. As these meetings conclude and you’ve checked off everyone in your list you will have a final vision document and you’re ready to get some formal recognition and launch your centre!