Growing out of a review of the process and outcome of the Hospital Employee Child Care Project (HECCP), an unsuccessful child care consortium, this manual was developed to help groups considering similar joint child care projects. After reading the manual, it is hoped that project initiators will be more sensitive to influences on the consortium, will be able to incorporate an interorganizational perspective in their plans, and will also have information to assist them in assessing the feasibility of developing a joint child care project in their community. Specifically, the discussion focuses on (1) issues of cooperation, economic utility, power, and conflict; (2) ways consortia can be viewed from the perspective of these issues; (3) how the issues may be demonstrated in a joint project; and (4) guidelines for similar projects. Also included in the document is HECCP's very brief final report and more extensive executive summary. Discussed in the summary are the background and objectives of HECCP, the outcome of the project, the decision to produce a manual for the benefit of others initiating similar projects, plans for disseminating the manual, and 26 recommendations and 9 points thought likely to be of interest to project planners submitting grant proposals. (RH)