The Pursuit of Systems Change: Balancing Today's Needs and Long Term Impact

Workshop Date and Time:

Tuesday, February 19, 2026. 1pm – 4:00pm ET (US & Canada)

Last day to register: Friday, February 13, 2026

ABOUT THIS WORKSHOP

Communities are navigating complex challenges, and collaborative leaders are being asked to deliver strong programs while also pushing for deeper, longer-term systems change. Yet how to achieve “systems change” can often feel abstract, especially when teams are stretched, resources are tight, and you may be facing multiple urgent priorities.

This three-hour online workshop offers a grounded, practical look at what systems change means and how to balance it with the urgency of right now. Drawing from The Water of Systems Change, we will explore a framework that helps leaders understand the different layers of systems change and how these strategies sit alongside, not apart from, programmatic work.

Participants will have dedicated time to:

• reflect on how their current programmatic efforts connect to the larger system they hope to influence,
• identify priority areas where systems change strategies can create greater leverage,
• consider how to balance programmatic demands with systems-level goals in today’s difficult context.

The session is designed to feel relevant, realistic, and immediately applicable, helping collaborative leaders make thoughtful choices about where to focus, how to align their work, and how to keep advancing systems change even in challenging times.

Learning Objectives

Participants will:

• Understand what systems change really means today—and how it complements program work.
• Identify where their current work intersects with the broader system they hope to influence.
• Prioritize realistic, high-leverage systems change strategies that fit today’s challenging environment.
• Leave with concrete next steps for better aligning program and systems change efforts.

Session Recording: Along with attending this half-day workshop, you will receive a copy of the presentation and three-month access to the workshop recording.

Session Time Zone: Please note this session is held in Eastern Time (US & Canada.) If you are joining from another time zone, please make note of the time difference.

Faculty: Jennifer Splansky Juster, Executive Director, Collective Impact Forum; Courtney W. Robertson, Director of Programs and Partnerships, Collective Impact Forum

Registration Details

Workshop Rates:

• 2025 Early-Bird Rate through Dec. 31, 2025: $149 plus taxes and Fees. Sales tax may be added depending on your state. Please see sales tax allocation at check-out.
• Regular Rate: $199 USD plus taxes and fees. Sales tax may be added depending on your state. Please see sales tax allocation at check-out.

Group Rates: Please contact Tracy Timmons-Gray at tracy.timmons-gray@collectiveimpactforum.org to access one of the below group discounts.

• Groups of 10-19 people receive a a 10% discount
• Groups of 20 or more people receive a 15% discount

Scholarships: A limited number of reduced-price registration scholarships are available for this workshop. This scholarship reduces registration to $75. Scholarship applications will close on January 30, 2026. Awardees will be notified if they are selected for a scholarship by February 4. Apply for a Scholarship.

Please note: If applying for a scholarship, please do not register for the workshop before we notify you about your scholarship application. If you are not selected for a scholarship, we will share a code with you to register at the reduced eary-bird rate.

Cancellations and Refunds: Refunds are available, minus a 10% fee to cover non-recoupable administrative and staff expenses associated with event preparation, as long as registrants contact us in writing ahead of the cancellation deadline of February 12, 2026. Please see our FAQ below for cancellation information.

Workshop Speaker

Jennifer Splansky Juster is Executive Director of the Collective Impact Forum. She is one of FSG’s leaders in collective impact field building, has worked on multiple collective impact engagements, designed training opportunities for thousands of collective impact practitioners, and frequently speaks on the topic. Jennifer has co-authored multiple publications on collective impact, including the report Guide to Evaluating Collective Impact and the articles “Centering Equity in Collective Impact,” “Committing to Collective Impact: From Vision to Implementation,” and “Essential Mindset Shifts for Collective Impact.” Over the course of her career, Jennifer has also worked with a range of foundations, nonprofits, government agencies, and corporations across sectors on issues of strategy, evaluation, and program design. Former clients include the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Marin Community Foundation, Girard College, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and Silicon Valley ALLIES. A California native, Jennifer is a graduate of Stanford University and Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.

Courtney W. Robertson serves as the Director of Programs and Partnerships, Collective Impact Forum, at FSG where he is responsible for the design, implementation, and management of programming that supports individuals, backbones and communities engaging in collective impact work. Courtney has a decade of experience in the nonprofit sector including work in adult learning, coaching, facilitation, training design and implementation, and project management. His professional experience has focused on building the capacity of direct service organizations to engage in collaborative and collective impact work by focusing on access to and use of data to inform practice and navigating organizational change by addressing adaptive and technical challenges. Prior to his role with the Collective Impact Forum, Courtney spent seven years at the education nonprofit Seeding Success, based in Memphis, TN, most recently serving as the Director of Operations supporting staff by focusing on internal culture and climate; identifying, managing, and standardizing systems to improve workflows; and partnership management. He also led the organization’s DEI efforts and supported training development and delivery in Results-Based Facilitation, Data Use for Continuous Improvement, Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, and Understanding Boundaries of Authority, Role, & Task. He also held roles as a Network Facilitator and Manager for School Improvement at Seeding Success, managing a team of Data Analysts working with 15 secondary schools in Memphis-Shelby County Schools to more effectively leverage data to drive interventions, practices, and policies to improve chronic absenteeism and behavior.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this workshop in-person or online? This is an online workshop. We will be using Zoom Meeting for this session.

What currency is this workshop using for registration? The Collective Impact Forum is based in the United States and registration is in U.S. dollars.

What timezone is the workshop held in? The workshop is held in Eastern Time (US & Canada.) If joining from another time zone, please note the time difference.

What with the workshop entail? This online workshop will be a mix of presentation, Q&A, personal reflection, and small group time.

Will the workshops be recorded? The workshop presentations and full group discussion will be recorded. Small group time during the workshop will not be recorded. Recordings will be shared within one week of the workshop. Recordings are available for paid attendees for three months after the workshop.

What accessibility practices will this workshop be using? We will have Zoom auto-captions turned on for this workshop. In the days ahead of the workshop, we will send out copies of workshop presentations/handouts. After the workshop, we will share recordings of the workshop and full group discussion.

Please contact Tracy Timmons-Gray at tracy.timmons-gray@collectiveimpactforum.org if you have other access needs not addressed above.

Can my whole team sign-up with one registration? No. Each person will require their own registration as this is an active workshop where attendees will be broken up into small groups throughout the workshop to discuss learning questions during the session.

How do I cancel my registration and request a refund? All cancellation requests must be submitted in writing. Registered participants who decide to cancel their participation will receive a refund of their registration fee minus a 10% fee. The 10% fee covers non-recoupable administrative and staff expenses associated with event preparation. All refund requests should be emailed to Tracy Timmons-Gray at tracy.timmons-gray@collectiveimpactforum.org We are unable to process refunds after the refund deadline of February 12, 2026.

Refund Cancellation Deadline

Workshop Refund Deadline: Workshop cancellation deadline is Thursday, Februray 12, 2026.

Have More Questions?

If your question is not addressed in our FAQ, please contact Tracy Timmons-Gray at tracy.timmons-gray@collectiveimpactforum.org