JDC Institute for Leadership and GovernanceMinutes of the Advisory Committee MeetingCo-chairs: Angelica Berrie and Yossi Bachar

Executive Summary: The second meeting of the Advisory Committee of the Institute for Leadership and Governance took place in NYC on October 16th, 2015.Angelica Berrie formally welcomed Yossi Bachar into his role of co-chair of the committee.The composition of the advisory committee reflects its significant mission and role for the Institute, and almost all the Institute’s stakeholders and partners were represented at the meeting. This lead to a noteworthy conversation about the evident need to which the Institute responds in Israel, acting as a convener, enabler, facilitator and connector for cross-sector collaborations that contribute to building and developing the resilience of Israeli society.The modus operandi of the Institute was presented, as were the strategies and tools it uses to carry out its mission, in addition to the main activities and issues on which the Institute will focus in the upcoming year. A strong understanding was reached by the committee over the course of the meeting regarding the importance of precise language, and it was agreed that the committee should focus on crystalizing the Institute’s unique mission, know-how, proficiencies and methods in a clear, comprehensive, accessible way, and should also prioritize the systemic social issues which it should seek to address.It was agreed that time should be dedicated to thinking about the Institute’s involvement in supporting the development and implementation of follow-up collaborative initiatives that grow from its programs. A question was posed as to whether the Institute should act as an incubator for projects, or should also play a role in seeing them through to implementation, as a hub. This would also include prioritizing these projects, based on the extent to which they are aligned with the mission of the Institute and of JDC-Israel.Next steps include:

Making a decision regarding the frequency with which the committee will convene; a recommendation was made to schedule quarterly meetings.

Making a decision regarding the assembly of a smaller work team, headed by Yossi, to be more actively involved in guiding the Institute on an ongoing basis.

Drafting an initial document that will articulate in clear language the Institute's unique mission and role, as stated above.

Attending Advisory Committee MembersName Position

Angelica BerrieCo-Chair of the Advisory Committee of the JDC Institute for Leadership and Governance, and of the JDC Board Subcommittee

Dr. Yossi Bachar Co-Chair of the Advisory Committee of the JDC Institute for Leadership and Governance

Kathy Manning Co-Chair of the JDC Institute for Leadership and Governance Subcommittee, JDC Board

Penni Weinberg JDC BoardStephen Weinberg JDC BoardHelen Abeles JDC BoardMarc Suvall Lay Leader

Iris Florentin Deputy Director-General, Division of Social and Personal Services, Ministry of Welfare

Ophir Katz Lay LeaderShuki Ehrlich JDC BoardLynn Jacobs UJA Federation of NYSandy Antignas UJA Federation of NYProf. Yossi Tamir Director, JDC IsraelDr. Sigal Shelach Deputy Director, JDC Israel

Rani Dudai Director, JDC Institute for Leadership and Governance

Michal Ben-Dov JDC Institute for Leadership and Governance

ObserversHila Dekel, UJA Federation of New YorkEmily Pater, JDCZohar Neumann, JDCCommittee Members unable to attend:Jeff Swartz, JDC BoardMartin Paisner, The Wohl Legacy and JDC BoardDr. Michal Tabibian Mizrahi, Deputy Director, Ministry of Education

Shira Greenberg Gelbwaser, Education and Health Coordinator, Ministry of FinanceBony Goldberg, Director of Community Services Administration, Jerusalem MunicipalityDr. Mohammed Alnabari, Mayor of HuraItzik Devash, Lay LeaderDr. Michal Almog Bar, Director, Center for the Study of Civil Society and Philanthropy, Hebrew University

Minutes

Introductions around the room.Yossi Bachar: Opening- The committee is advancing and will take a more pro-active stance.- It is recommended that meetings be held quarterly, rather than biannually. - Now that Yossi Bachar has come on board and there is an Israel-based chair presence, he will drive the work of the committee forward. - Yossi: Introduces himself, and speaks about the situation in Israel: the weaker the government gets, the stronger other players become – mayors and local authorities, and civil society.- Need to stop asking ourselves questions about who should solve problems – the government or someone else; instead, we just need to look to solve them with whoever can contribute, whether national or local government, or the non-profit sector/civil society. - The role of NGOs will continue to increase. They are much more flexible, agile and easy to operate. - The main issue is how to ensure collaboration and cooperation, and to facilitate NGOs’ work with the government and with the private sector.- There is a great deal of public willingness to be involved. We need project managers to fulfill these goals, and that is where the Institute comes in.Angelica: Speaks about the gap in leadership. If we can address the leadership gap to make leaders more effective it will impact everything else. This is a crucial role we need to undertake.Sigal: Discusses the strategic process underway in JDC-Israel: - Feed-ins include Eugene Kandel's assessment of Israeli society, the Alalouf report on poverty, and Jack Habib’s assessment of JDC needs.

- Six main issues are highlighted in the process: poverty; equal access to employment; education; elderly; leadership; social cohesion.- Institute assets: building capacity among leaders, understanding how to facilitate cross-sectorial collaboration, ongoing relationships with government and leaders from the different sectors. - JDC-Israel assets: programs on the ground, intimate relationship with government. - Together JDC-Israel and the Institute supplement each other. Rani: Presentation on Israeli trends that effect the work of the Institute - Talks about the mayors’ meetings in the North and South, and how the mayors reached out to the Institute to help convene a coming together during this time of emergency. The meetings resulted in a call to citizens to maintain the co-existence and shared society in the regions, as in times of peace, as well as a call to the national government to take radical steps to deal with the situation that affects everyone. This initiative used the existing platforms that the Institute (in partnership with the government) has developed on the municipal and regional levels.- Rani refers to the notion of Israel as a tribal society, as described by President Rivlin, and the need to strengthen society by promoting social cohesion. One example of how this plays out in the Institute’s work: bringing together all the actors involved in providing services to a given child – the Ministries of Education and Welfare, NGOs, local authorities, and so on – to help focus on the child as an individual, and take a holistic approach to providing the best possible care.- Rani describes the eco-system in which the Institute functions (see slide; need a story for each box)- Marc: Asks for Rani to elaborate on the “national academy for executive training in public service.” Rani: The Senior Civil Servants Course was taken over by the government’s civil service commission. The Institute will still be involved in its development, but not in its operation. Shows our success in handing this program off to the government. - Penni: Asks about collaborations between the different sectors. Are they working well together? Or are they territorial and competitive? - Sandy: There needs to a mapping out of what each of the sectors wants from the Institute - “top-down and bottom-up.” We want to make sure we are meeting the needs of everyone.

- Angelica: We must share expertise and collaborate with all the leadership programs. Need to get them talking with each other.- Iris: When sitting on JDC committees we can talk openly and honestly, voice different opinions, and share ideas. That’s the value of sitting together, and it doesn’t happen anywhere else. It is extremely valuable for me and my colleagues, and has proven itself. There are several collaborations that have resulted from these opportunities.- Lynn: Calls for a mazal tov to the government for taking over the Senior Civil Servants Leadership Program (the traditional ELKA program which ran 22 cohorts). Shows our success, and we can now move forward with the next thing.- Shuki: The goal should be to take care of civil society organizations. It’s a very fragmented sector. No one sees the full picture or takes care of these organizations.- Yossi B: We need to clarify the goal of the Institute. Need to make use of all the advantages of the Joint, and the fact that we are free of government bureaucracy and can make an impact. The goal is to make everything work more effectively. We should be involved in organizing the efforts of NGOs and civil society.- Shuki: Why emphasize our work with senior leaders? We should look at leaders.- Rani: We are speaking about influencers. People who can have a wide impact and mobilize change. - Yossi B: Agrees with Shuki. Doesn’t have to be senior leaders. Asks for input from everyone in the room: What do you expect? What would you like the Institute to do?- Marc: Two key things: multi-sectorial, complex issues.- Sandy: The Institute’s main function is making systemic change, optimizing the system.- Hila: There is an added value: representation for the different parts of society, which relates to social cohesion.- Rani: (returning to the presentation) Speaks about the Institute’s mission: we still haven’t tackled and targeted the business sector. Believes Yossi B.’s contribution to this will be significant.

- Rani speaks about the long-term outcome of improving quality of life. Perhaps we need to redefine this term?- Examples of the work of the Institute: - Shuki: Gives the example of the Synergy program and its impact on involving lay leaders in the nonprofit sector as board members of NGOs.- Rani: Adds the example of Value Sports – an NGO that grew tremendously, also as a result of the contribution of a lay leader whom the Institute placed on its board. - Iris: Describes the Digital Leaders Program, training senior government officials and (for the first time) directors of relevant NGOs, to effectively lead the digital revolution of government services in a way that will consider social issues such as economic disparities, vulnerable populations, etc. Describes the process she is leading in the Ministry for Welfare and Social Services, and mentions the collaboration with the Ministry of Health as one of the outcomes of the program thus far.- Ophir: Talks about the Home for NGOs, which the Institute initiated and is now being run by Civil Leadership, and the benefit it brings to the infrastructure NGOs that sit under one roof and can collaborate and provide better services to the NGOs they serve. This is an example of involvement of the business sector, as the office space was donated by Migdal, the largest insurance company in Israel.- Michal: Describes the Negev Circles program – making the 4 billion shekels that were allocated by the government to build and strengthen the South accessible to the municipalities, which otherwise struggle to tap into the funds. - Rani: Describes a few examples of collaborative initiatives that were developed in Institute programs and are currently being implemented. Asks: How much of a role should the Institute play in leading the initiatives in their development and implementation stages?- Marc: Two questions:

1. How do your prioritize which programs you take on?2. In the past, we had a conversation on whether the Institute will take on

more JDC priorities or not. It looks like now we are doing both. What is happening with that?

- Yossi Tamir: We are very successful at doing both things. For example, digitization. The role of the Institute is bridging between the needs and the

work it does outside with its partners, and the agenda of JDC. The Institute is much more important if it is doing both things.- Helen: Asks Iris, Ophir: As “customers or partners” of the Institute, why do you go to them?- Iris: I go to the Institute when I need to collaborate. Need to someone to connect me with other government ministries, or with a different sector, such as the municipalities. I also go to the Institute because they know when to stop. And when to continue to push. They come in, facilitate and guide us, and then step out. Now I want to learn about the regional clusters and how to work at the local government level. I know that the Institute has expertise in this, as well as a functioning platform from which to work. It’s different from the way I work and they can help me. They help me push for change in the ministry.- Ophir: We use the Institute to bring in civil society leadership, and to make the connection between the sectors.

- Shuki: What is our core competence? We need to define the basket of services we offer. Key elements, what are the basic services we provide.- Yossi B: Two observations:

1. There is an assumption in the room that the business sector doesn’t need training. This isn’t true. We are starting to realize this could be a target for the Institute as well.

2. Angelica and I both expect things to be straightforward and simple. I want the people around the table to give us answers and solutions, not expect us to give you all the answers. That is the responsibility of this committee.

- Kathy: Who are we? Experts in training government leadership; focused on process and collaboration, with no subject matter? Is that we want to be? Identifies two things from the conversation:

1. Some people want us to deal with specific issues. In terms of JDC: we need to focus on social issues, and prioritize them.

2. Others see us as conveners, facilitators, mobilizers.- Sandy: We should be a mechanism. Unique to all of Israel. And we do it the best. As regards projects and initiatives: the Institute doesn’t have the expertise to move all projects forward, and it should therefore prioritize which to work with according to our expertise.

- Helen: We are allowing people who know how to do things well to work together. That is a huge benefit.-Yossi B: Sometimes you need to use the right words. Be precise. We have to differentiate ourselves. We should focus on facilitation of leadership.-Yossi T: The core competence of the Institute and the JDC lies in bringing people together. We act as an honest broker, convening the actors, while emphasizing social issues. Social issues should get more emphasis.- Marc: A big issue is the support of the JDC for the Institute. The Institute is crucial for everything the JDC does. How is the Institute perceived at the JDC?- Yossi T: The Institute is becoming more and more significant for JDC. Looking at moving forward with an overall partnership with the government for the Institute.- Shuki: We should also work more closely with academia, and focus on knowledge development and gathering from Israel and abroad.- Sandy: The next step should be to draft what we think we are saying, define the wording and terminology, crystallize things, and get everyone’s comments.- Angelica: We are missing the voice of the mayors; they want action items. The word “facilitation” gave them an allergy. Enough foreplay, we want tachles.- Rani: This is precisely one of the central things that has changed over the past two years. - Sigal: It is also important to be an enabler and connector to resources. The Institute needs to look further. And if there are issues that relate directly to the mission of JDC-Israel we can consider how to continue to fund it. The Institute’s role is to go further than just facilitation.- Penni: We need to pin down what exactly the Institute will and won't do. We have to know upfront what we are willing to do.- Yossi T: Suggest dropping the word “complex.”- Penni: We need clarification as to what we mean when we say “complex social issues.”- Kathy: Would like an explanation of the "Action Tank" model.- Angelica: What we have to spend helps us see what we can invest in.

- Shuki: Suggest we share the results of evaluations.- Yossi B: Suggest different ways of presenting, shorter, clearer, using numbers instead of graphs.- Sandy: Also need to develop the evaluation plan.- Angelica and Yossi concluded the meeting:

- A positive meeting, and discussion that needs to continue- The committee needs to continue to guide the work of the Institute and

refine and sharpen its mission, expertise, and areas of know-how.- Thank you everyone for your time, involvement and contributions.

- The director-general of the Ministry of Education, Michal Cohen, and her deputy, Gila Nagar, joined the meeting at the end and spoke about the partnership and ongoing work with the Institute.