Building & Sustaining Effective Knowledge Mobilization (KMb) Networks

Dr. Katina Pollock, KNAER Co-Director

Shasta Carr-Harris, KNAER KMb & Project Manager

Conference Theme:

Creating the Conditions for Effective Partnerships Between Researchers and Practitioners

1. Background: KNAER (Phase I & II)

2. Phase I findings: structures & processes

3. KMb & network literature

4. Top 10 Tip Sheet

Agenda

KNAER Phase I (2010 - 2014)

44 KNAER Projects

Partners: multiple partnerships per project Network: 44 project make up a loose network (each project

was a mini network) Time: 1-2 years with extensions Funding: 25-100K funding Focus: mobilize research knowledge on a variety of topics

Diverse number of partnerships

Review of Phase I

External evaluation

Review of utility of KNAER (26 meeting notes, 141 project interim reports, 43 project final

reports, a KNAER networking report, analytics from KNAER website and Twitter account)

Literature review

Interviews with KMb experts

Planning sessions with educators & researchers

Network structure. Coordination in the organizational design of a network to carry out interactions between partners.

Network processes. Purposeful and coordinated activities performed vertically and laterally within a network to interact with organizational partners.

Phase I Findings: Structures & Processes

Briscoe, Pollock, Campbell, Carr-Harris (2015). Finding the sweet spot: Network Structures and Processes for Increased Knowledge Mobilization, Brock Education Journal, 25 (1), pp 19-34. https://brock.scholarsportal.info/journals/brocked/home/article/view/432

Include key people

STR

UC

TUR

ES

Formal roles within networks

Formal communication structure(s)

Opportunities for researchers & practitioners to collaborate, share and co-create knowledge

Motivating and incentivizing new partners

PR

OC

ESSE

S

Strategic planning

Other key factors that affect network

success?

Final Report: KNAER Phase I

What does KMb & network literature tell us about partnerships & networks?

Campbell, Pollock, Carr-Harris, Briscoe (2014) KNAER1 Final Report http://www.knaer-recrae.ca/about-knaer/reports

Clear focus and agreed upon goals and roles

Mutual interest

Respect and trust exists between partners

“Knowledge” is understood broadly

Sensitivity to power issues

The results of the network are made visible

Build in self-assessment

Long term commitment

Dissemination Mobilization

That’s a lot of advice!

READ OUR TIP SHEET

Available on our website: http://www.knaer-recrae.ca/resources

For more information, please refer to:

• A brief summary of KNAER Phase I & II http://www.knaer-recrae.ca/about-knaer/what-is-knaer

• Briscoe, Pollock, Campbell, Carr-Harris (2015). Finding the sweet spot: Network Structures and Processes for Increased Knowledge Mobilization, Brock Education Journal, 25 (1), pp 19-34. https://brock.scholarsportal.info/journals/brocked/home/article/view/432

• Campbell, Pollock, Carr-Harris, Briscoe (2014) KNAER1 Final Report http://www.knaer-recrae.ca/about-knaer/reports

You may also be interested in:

• Creating partnerships: Learning new ways to connect by Vivian Tseng, John Easton, and Lauren Supplee

• Tangled up in networks by Heather Bullock

• Using research to shape knowledge mobilization practice by Sandra Nutley

• Five tips for getting knowledge into action by Sarah Morton

Thank you

JOIN US!

On the web: http://www.knaer-recrae.ca/

On Twitter: @KNAER_RECRAE On Facebook: @KnaerRecrae