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David Ehrlichman

Impact Networks: Create Connection, Spark Collaboration, and Catalyze Systemic Change Paperback – October 12, 2021

by David Ehrlichman (Author)

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This practical guide shows how to facilitate collaboration among diverse individuals and organizations to navigate complexity and create change in our interconnected world.

The social and environmental challenges we face today are not only complex, they are also systemic and structural and have no obvious solutions. They require diverse combinations of people, organizations, and sectors to coordinate actions and work together even when the way forward is unclear. Even so, collaborative efforts often fail because they attempt to navigate complexity with traditional strategic plans, created by hierarchies that ignore the way people naturally connect.

By embracing a living-systems approach to organizing, impact networks bring people together to build relationships across boundaries; leverage the existing work, skills, and motivations of the group; and make progress amid unpredictable and ever-changing conditions. As a powerful and flexible organizing system that can span regions, organizations, and silos of all kinds, impact networks underlie some of the most impressive and large-scale efforts to create change across the globe.

David Ehrlichman draws on his experience as a network builder; interviews with dozens of network leaders; and insights from the fields of network science, community building, and systems thinking to provide a clear process for creating and developing impact networks. Given the increasing complexity of our society and the issues we face, our ability to form, grow, and work through networks has never been more essential.

Print length

216 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Berrett-Koehler Publishers
Publication date

October 12, 2021
Dimensions

5.56 x 0.67 x 8.56 inches
ISBN-10

1523091681
ISBN-13

978-1523091683
See all details

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From the Publisher

About David Ehrlichman

David Ehrlichman is catalyst and coordinator of the Converge network. With his colleagues, he has supported the development of dozens of impact networks in a variety of fields, and has worked as a network coordinator for the Santa Cruz Mountains Stewardship Network, Sterling Network NYC, and the Fresno New Leadership Network. He speaks and writes frequently on networks, finds serenity in music, and is completely mesmerized by his newborn daughter. You can find his latest writings at converge.net.

About Converge

Converge is a network of practitioners who cultivate impact networks. Driven by purpose, Converge consists of systems strategists, designers, facilitators, educators, and evaluators committed to co-creating positive impact by advancing the network approach to collaboration.

Since 2013, Converge practitioners have partnered with leaders, organizations, and networks to advance issues as diverse as economic mobility, human rights, landscape conservation, and health care reform. To stay informed of Converge's latest writings, resources, and learning opportunities, visit converge.net. There you can access a library of free tools and facilitation guides to support your collaborative work.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“This book is just what the field needs: a clear, thorough guide to starting up and energizing a network. I really appreciate the way David combines concepts from complexity science and systems theory with network approaches.”
—June Holley, researcher and writer, Network Weaving Institute

“Networks are the organizing system of the future, and this book is your guide. If you’re a foundation leader or philanthropist, it will transform the way you approach your work.”
—Philip Li, President and CEO, Robert Sterling Clark Foundation

“This is the book systems change practitioners have been waiting for: comprehensive, clear, concise, compelling, and eminently actionable. It is a case study in the art of network weaving. Ehrlichman brings together an impressively diverse range of sources and weaves their insights into an inspiring set of tools for transformation. His gift for language makes complex topics seem intuitive—I found myself reading eagerly, already imagining how I might put his principles into practice. I wish this book had existed when I first stumbled into network weaving: it’s a beautiful and generous distillation of existing best practices, informed by Ehrlichman’s own deep process and commitment. It’s a gift.”
—Brian Stout, curator and network weaver, Building Belonging

“David Ehrlichman has written a clear, passionate, and very useful book about networks. I have devoted my professional life to the development of networks among leaders of the social movements that define our time, and in this book, we have a tool that brings everything together.”
—Gibrán Rivera, master facilitator

“This book beautifully illustrates how networks can catalyze and support transformational change. I found it to be a clarion call to appreciate the power of networks and to be more intentional with the networks I am involved in.”
—Courtney Pineau, Senior Director of Climate and Agriculture Networks, Green America

“This book is an engaging invitation to action that inspires us to roll up our sleeves and collaborate. Drawing on a profound range of personal experience, learning, and deep thinking, David Ehrlichman makes a compelling case for impact networks as an effective, sustainable and scalable way to spark and steward social change.”
—Liz Wilson, Senior Executive, Small Foundation

“This century will be defined by whether we tap into our hive mind and build the networks we need to solve problems together. Impact Networks is an essential guide for how to do both.”
—Talia Milgrom-Elcott, founder and Executive Director at 100Kin10 and Starfish Institute

“This book should be required reading for all new paradigm leaders and change agents. As our society becomes increasingly complex and chaotic, leaders who do not practice what this book teaches will doom themselves to the dustbin of history. It is only through networks, and the forward-thinking leaders who form and steward them, that humanity will address the challenges that face us.”
—Tim Kelley, global change agent and author of True Purpose

“Human survival and thriving, including health, justice, and learning, depend in large part upon critical connections and flows. The call of our time is then about deftly (and humbly) working with our interconnected reality. By offering real and inspiring examples, useful concepts and frameworks, and the encouragement to engage with complexity and messiness for the sake of a more promising future, David Ehrlichman’s gift helps readers better sense and act in networked ways.”
—Curtis Ogden, Senior Associate, Interaction Institute for Social Change

“These actionable insights on fostering collaboration couldn’t be more timely—more than ever, we see the need to better understand networks as forces for social change in a hyperconnected yet siloed world. We have seen firsthand the power of these approaches from working with David and the Converge network to develop boundary-bridging work with science, diverse communities, and philanthropy. This book offers a rich source of ideas and inspiration to strengthen the network relationships at the heart of our work and to help deepen our collective impact.”
—Elizabeth G. Christopherson, President and Chief Executive Officer, Rita Allen Foundation

“Impact Networks brings clarity to the rapidly emerging landscape of how civil society can find synergy and create impact today. Ehrlichman draws upon years of experience as a network leader and his deep relationships in the field to give us a clear blueprint for how to understand, create and support the collaboration we crave.”
—Marty Kooistra, Executive Director for the Housing Development Consortium, King County, Washington

“Perhaps the most shocking interruption of white modernity is the idea that we are not alone and never have been. Instead of being Newtonian atoms floating freely in empty space, we are sensuous networks and assemblages of agency and potential. Upon this scandalous idea rests a strange hope—one that is appropriate to our tense times: that we no longer change the world in some mechanistic fashion but instead meet our odd cousins and be transformed in the gasp of encounter. This book is a map to the strangeness of networks. We should all read it.”
—Bayo Akomolafe, PhD, author of These Wilds Beyond our Fences, and Chief Curator, The Emergence Network

“To create a future that works for all, it’s imperative that we work better together. Making real progress on society’s most pressing challenges requires dynamic and agile multisector networks that draw together our shared intelligence, collaborative energy, and collective impact. Impact Networks will plug you in.”
—John Mauro, City Manager, City of Port Townsend, Washington

“A must-read for leaders seeking to increase their impact.”
—Jane Wei-Skillern, Senior Fellow, Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley

“An indispensable guide for network leaders and anyone aspiring to create truly impactful collaborations.”
—Sam Bonsey, Executive Director, The ImPact

“An excellent resource for learning about networks and collaboration! A must-read.”
—Nand Kishore Chaudhary, founder, Jaipur Rugs

“Impact Networks brings to light the fundamental theory of fields behind networks with purpose and networks for development, which was missing until now. It is a masterpiece that pins down the definition, understanding, and complex framing of impact networks in a practical and far-ranging way that can be implemented without losing emergence.”
—Matias Urrutigoity and Hernan Manson, Alliances for Action, International Trade Centre

“As the pace of change continues to accelerate, we need different, scalable network solutions for today’s and tomorrow’s challenges. It is no longer about what you will do with your organization as a starting point but about how you can align your organization’s purpose, actions, and capacity with others in the living, nested systems you are part of. This book is an inspiring and helpful resource for those who want to contribute to and be part of tomorrow’s connected ecosystems.”
—Michiel Bakker, Vice President of Global Workplace Services Programs, Google

About the Author

David Ehrlichman is cofounder and coordinator of Converge, a network of systems strategists, designers, facilitators, educators, and evaluators committed to cocreating positive impact. Converge practitioners have helped develop over fifty impact networks across the United States and the world, taking action on issues as diverse as economic mobility, human rights, access to science, and healthcare reform. Ehrlichman previously worked as a consultant at the Monitor Institute and was a network coordinator for the Fresno New Leadership Network, the Santa Cruz Mountains Stewardship Network, and Sterling Network NYC.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Berrett-Koehler Publishers (October 12, 2021)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 216 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1523091681
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1523091683
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.4 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.56 x 0.67 x 8.56 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #61,584 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #57 in Social Services & Welfare (Books)
- #199 in Strategic Business Planning
- #232 in Systems & Planning

Customer Reviews:
42 ratings

About the author

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David Ehrlichman

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David Ehrlichman is cofounder and coordinator of Converge (converge.net), a network of systems strategists, designers, facilitators, educators, and evaluators who partner with people, organizations, and networks to navigate complexity and co-create meaningful change. With his colleagues, he has supported the development of dozens of impact networks taking action on issues as diverse as economic mobility, environmental stewardship, human rights, and health care reform.

Prior to catalyzing Converge, David was a consultant with Monitor Institute, where he was first introduced to the power of networks. He lives near Seattle, Washington, in the ancestral territory of the Coast Salish peoples, specifically the Snohomish, Suquamish, and Stillaguamish.

When he’s not writing or working with networks, you can usually find him spending time with family and friends, out in nature, or playing music. He lives with his wife, two goofy dogs, and his newborn daughter.

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Tom Higley

Easily the best, most comprehensive book written about impact networks.

Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2021

Verified Purchase

I urge you to buy and read “Impact Networks,” by David Ehrlichman.

This is the book I've already recommended to hundreds of people over the past few weeks because it offers such depth and breadth to those of us who are catalyzing and supporting the networks that support the change we want to see and be in the world. "Impact Networks" strongly parallels the concept of “catalytic communities” we’ve been working on at the nonprofit 10.10.10 and my for-profit company, X Genesis. (If I didn't know better, I'd say David somehow managed to get inside my head for the past six years and learn what I've been learning, read what I've been reading, speak to the people I've been meeting and even think my thoughts.) He's written the book I wanted to see and wish I had written!

Focusing on the power of collaborative networks to address the wicked problems that arise within complex adaptive systems, Impact Networks lays out a set of perspectives and a framework that will be essential as humanity works to turn its wicked problems into opportunities.

So, as I said at the outset, I'm urging you to buy this book and read it. It may change for the better your life and the lives of the many others with whom you are connected or will soon become connected.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Gunnar

Pragmatic and Insightful

Reviewed in the United States on December 14, 2021

Verified Purchase

The literature in this field can be a bit esoteric and excessively qualitative. This book had a good deal of practical substance and recommendations supported by actual case studies with helpful resources. If you are interested in learning about how effective networks actually come to be and evolve, this is a good primer from an author and his associates that have clearly delved into the deep levels of the topic.

3 people found this helpful

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Rachel

A Year For Connection and Change

Reviewed in the United States on December 24, 2021

Verified Purchase

Despite working from home the past 22 months, my network has grown exponentially and the connection has been deeper and more authentic. A vision around our shared connection started to emerge. What to do with these ideas and energy? We are experiencing a Covid-instigated appetite for change. What can we connected individuals do? When connected people seek to address social sector issues they are called impact networks. This book guides you to leverage relationships for change. Change that can improve conditions in your own backyard and/or globally. “This book is about how to cultivate impact networks that enable diverse groups of people to connect, coordinate, and collaborate within and across organizations to do more together than is possible alone.” Let’s do it in the new year!

Reviewed in the United States on December 7, 2021

Verified Purchase

I'm a community and leadership coach working primarily in the Central Valley of California. I've recently started reading your book, Impact Networks, and I felt compelled to send my gratitude. I haven't even finished it and can already say the book itself, the language, the framing - it's all going to be so helpful to me in furthering my work. I'm most excited to share this with the networks and efforts I support. It will surely help people further their undersatnding and embodiment of the way we achieve the system change and results we want for our community.

One person found this helpful

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apenrose

Essential and inspiring perspective - “How to Change the World”

Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 2021

Verified Purchase

Absolutely loved reading David’s insights and stories from his work building networks to drive system change. If you feel like the world is getting better and better while also worse and worse in bigger and faster ways and you want to know what you can do about it - read this book!

One person found this helpful

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Zach

Essential Reading for Change Makers

Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 2021

Verified Purchase

Incredible book that simplifies a complex topic and is filled with actionable examples and practices. The perspectives shared are not academic, but come from experienced practioners, making for a immensely practical read.

Helpful

amazon1234

Great read, especially if you're starting/managing a group/network

Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2021

Verified Purchase

I started a network this year so the content is particularly timely and relevant. So far so good!

Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2021