AALEP’s PPA COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE: INDIVIDUAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL BENEFITS

Through the sharing, creation and management of knowledge around Public Policy Advocacy issues, the PPA Community of Practice provides All Practitioners be they Experienced, Intermediate Practitioners or Novice Practitioners, the following Long-Term and Short-Term Benefits.

LONG TERM BENEFITS

All Practitioners

• Potential to create an extensive network of colleagues working on different Public Policy Advocacy projects that can provide future assistance
• Timely knowledge of potential partners
• Opportunity to share accomplishments and lessons learned
• Central location to find information on what is being done in the Public Policy Advocacy field

Experienced Practitioners

• Record of talks, the outcomes of Public Policy Advocacy projects and other assistance they provide to the community
• Published documents or tools that have resulted through collaboration effort within the community

Intermediate Practitioners

• Ability to improve upon their initial efforts in Public Policy Advocacy and expand the capabilities of Public Policy Advocacy to address additional issues they are facing.

Novice Practitioners

• Knowledge of what Public Policy Advocacy is and the ability to complete their first Public Policy Advocacy assignment.

SHORT TERM BENEFITS

All Practitioners

• Hear from experts about specific topics concerning Public Policy Advocacy
• Opportunity to meet other practitioners, learn about their experiences and gain assistance with troubleshooting specific problems they are having

Experienced Practitioners

• Means to share own experience, collaboration on document creation, and mentor beginners in Public Policy Advocacy.
• Ways to expand current Public Policy Advocacy knowledge into other topics related to politics or public administration

Intermediate Practitioners

• Additional support for increasing their knowledge of Public Policy Advocacy and becoming more experienced in conducting Public Policy Advocacy assignments

Novice Practitioners

• Opportunity to meet experienced mentors as well as others learning more about the Public Policy Advocacy field.
• Receive initial training in Public Policy Advocacy through webinars

Expected Learning Opportunities

• Webinars on what Public Policy Advocacy is, and sample assignments
• Archive of available Public Policy Advocacy reports, case studies, literature reviews, website links, and working documents
• Posts from others within the community on accomplishments and lessons learned
• Technical assistance on specific topics, and additional partnership opportunities

Summary of the PPA Community of Practice for Individuals

1. Continue learning and developing professionally
2. Access expertise
3. Improve communication with peers
4. Increase productivity and quality of work
5. Network to keep current in the field
6. Develop a sense of professional identity
7. Enhance professional reputation

Summary of the PPA Community of Practice for Organizations

1. Reducing time/cost to retrieve information
2. Reducing learning curves
3. Improving knowledge sharing and distribution
4. Enhancing coordination, standardization, and synergies across organizational units
5. Reducing rework and reinvention
6. Enabling innovation
7. Benchmarking for industry standards
8. Building alliances and coalitions