Organising Planner

A useful ready reckoner for union organisers and campaigners to bring together in one place the tools methods and philosophy contained in this series of blogs

There is no organising or campaigning script, no blueprint, no sacred text in organising and union building that if followed will guarantee success. There are, though, roadmaps drawn by organisers who came before us and made many mistakes and missteps.

Asking these questions as we address each organising and campaign plan (and checking in with them as we go along our organising work) wont help us find all the answers right away – but will help us focus on finding the right questions

Prepare your Organising Campaign

• What steps might you need to take to check your organisation has credibility with the people most affected by your campaign?

• How might we earn and re-earn this credibility during the campaign

• What does your power analysis tell you?

• How will you make sure that everyone affected knows about your campaign

• Who cares about the issues you wish to organise around and why? Who stands to gain the most?

• What measurable “wins” will you adopt on the way – Growth, Structures Impact- and how will you measure them

• What is it that we want? What is your campaign overall and initial AIM ?

• How do we know that our target understands what it is we want?

• Who/What is the TARGET of your campaign – this could be your employer, a politician or civil servant?

• What LEVERS do you have available to influence the TARGET?

• What campaign actions are open to you and will be supported by people?

Planning your Organising Campaign

• How will you plan to continually test the organising issues are widely and deeply enough felt by those who stand to gain from change for them to take action?

• How will you plan to involve the people who most stand to gain in deciding what the campaign should look like and planning and mobilising for action?

• How will you ensure systematic and recorded contact with these people to check in with them as we go along?

• How will you identify potential new leaders, bring them on board and test and build their skills?

• What is the make up of the workforce you are helping to organise? Is every group represented in your organising and campaign plan? Who is not in the room?

• What are the possible ways your Target will react to your campaign and how will you discuss this reaction with the people who stand to gain

• How might you respond to this reaction to build your campaign further?

• Who are your allies in the community, the supply chain, the workplace and how can you mobilise them to help the people most stand to gain?

• How will you ensure that the interests of allies remain supportive to the interests of those that stand to gain for the campaign?

• How will you keep your campaign actions Visible, Fun, Collective, Active, Inclusive and Challenging to your target?

Activating Your Campaign

• How will you achieve and maintain momentum in your campaign over the short medium and long term?

• How will you communicate your campaign actions and goals and check that everyone affected knows about it and is invited to get involved?

• Who will be responsible for maintaining noticeboards, email lists, SMS details and Whatsapp groups?

• What is your plan to check your systematic contact with everyone directly affected including union members, community leaders, supporters and potential union members?

• Do you know more about the workplace than the employer? How will you achieve this? What gaps exists in your organisation structures?

• In what ways would you expect the employer to react to your campaign, in what order and how will you prepare your supporters to deal with each of these reactions?

• How will you test your organisations capacity to take campaign actions

• Who will have the persuasive conversations with potential supporters to mobilise them to support?

• How will you adopt inclusionary language to mobilise supporters and build solidarity in action?

• How will you create spaces for supporters to tell their own stories and be heard?