We’ve all been there . . . You missed a great opportunity to comment on breaking news and get your organization quoted in a major paper, because you couldn’t get the talking points approved in time and that news cycle is now over. Endless wordsmithing of the appeal letter means that it’s going out several weeks late, and now it’s hitting at the same time you are supposed to be marketing a fundraising event instead. You had the perfect holiday story lined up, but program staff wavered about whether the subject of the story was really the best client to highlight. Now the holiday has come and gone, and the story lacks the same emotional punch. Creating a standard review and approval process – and having the authority or sheer force of will to hold people to it – can go a long way in avoiding these situations. After all, your communications will be stronger if they are produced in a collaborative way. But that collaboration demands a process with firm ground rules.