Lessons learnt on Organizational Development

1
Lessons learnt on Organizational Development

• Each organization already has at its disposal an
  existing management system consisting of simple
  planning, documentation, reporting, staff
  meetings.
• This system, even in a insufficient manner,
  already presents some organizational know-how.
• Sustainability in organizational development will
  only be achieved if we take up the existing
  know-how of an organization and try to improve it
  from inside thus bottom-up, instead of imposing
  an external system.

2
Lessons learnt...

• Do not copy your international project management
  and monitoring system to a national partner
  organization (top-down approach). Your project
  management system will be much too complicated
  for them and have no sustainability.
• With this in mind, we suggest a strategy of
  institution development to improve step by step
  the existing structures and management systems
  through a tailor made medium-size system that
  ensures at the long run sustainability even after
  the external project intervention (bottom-up
  approach).

3
Checklist for Organizational Development

• Human resources development
• Is there any job description for each of the
  employees?
• What are the skill up grading training needs for
  employees?
• Are there regular weekly personnel meetings?
• Equipment administration
• Is there any list of the equipments (number and
  condition)?
• Planning
• Is there any action planning? (yearly, 6 month,
  or 3 month planning?)
• Are there weekly personnel meetings for weekly
  planning?
• Is there any planning of visits and services to
  operators (BDS planning)?
• Implementation of services to operators
• Are there regular visits to operators?
• Did you implement support activities to
  operators?

4
Checklist...

• Recording and reporting
• Did you document these visits to operators?
• Did you document the situation analysis, main
  problems and proposals of operators?
• Did you record your every day activities?
• Did you record your services to operators?
• Collaboration with partners in the field of BDS
  delivery
• Is there any list of partners of your region?
• Commercial BDS providers, NGO, Vocational and
  technical training centres , Facilitating
  agencies
• Is there any study about the loan conditions of
  the finance institutions of your region?
• Are there already personal contacts with the
  partners?
• Did they get your presentation brochure and your
  planning?

5
Checklist...

• Formats
• Is there a folder with the following formats
  Action plan, Activity report, Records on services
  to operators, Business plan format for operators,
  Loan application forms of the finance
  institutions of your region
• Presentation of your own structure to national,
  international partners and visitors
• Is there any presentation brochure or leaflet of
  your organization?
• Does this brochure include a presentation of the
  achievements (services to business operators
  provided)?
• Is this presentation brochure always available?
• Are your offices equipped with presentation
  boards and are your planning and services to
  operators fixed on it?
• May we find some photos of operator workshops on
  it?

6
Organize your Work with the help of an Office
Folder

• In order to improve the organizational capacity
  of your own structure, your organization should
  be well planned, implement real services to your
  clients and have a complete documentation and
  recording system of your activities and services
  to operators.
• In order to organize yourself, apply the
  following "FOLDER METHOD" tool
• Buy an office folder

7
Organize the office folder by separators

• Insert the following separators
• Mission and objectives of your agency
• Leaflet or presentation brochure
• Fields of intervention and services to operators
• Job description of each of your agents
• What kind of services am I able to provide and
  what are my needs in skills upgrading? (to fill
  by the agent himself)
• List of businesses served since the last year up
  to now
• 6-month action plans for your activities and
  services to operators
• Records on services to operators (ongoing
  activity)
• 6 month activities reports
• List of partner organizations in your region
  (facilitating agencies, BDS providers, training
  centers, micro-finance and finance institutions,
  entrepreneur associations) and their services.
• Statistics and sector studies of your region.

8
fill the Folder...

• Now, proceed to fill this folder with the
  necessary activities and information and
  re-organize your institution.
• If you already have written your mission and your
  action plan and report, put it in. If not, write
  it.
• If all this activities as planning,
  implementation of services, recording and
  presentation have been done and will be done
  permanently, your organization will do a better
  work and will be improved. Note Action planning,
  recording and reporting has to be done not only
  once but periodically.
• In order to use this folder not only for your
  internal organization but also as presentation
  map for visitors and national and international
  partners, this map should be in English language.

9
Achievements

• Capacity Building of Partner Organizations
• 17 Partner Organisations use the "Folder method"
  for better organisational management.
• Continuous follow-up to improve the management
  procedures, effective planning and reporting and
  documentation has been made by the project staff.
• A checklist for organizational development has
  been introduced.
• The Chambers of Commerce have been supported for
  the publishing of their webpages
  www.ethiopianchamber.com and www.adamachamber.com.
  The webpages generate income by advertizing
  companies and give business information services
  on taxation, business registration and
  arbitration.
• The project's BDS information booklets have been
  re-printed by the chambers and are on sale for
  own profit. Some booklets have been translated in
  Amharic.
• About 20 heads of Partner Organisations
  (ReMSEDAs, Sub-cities) have been introduced to
  the BDS approach in a one day workshop and help
  us to multiply our efforts.

10
Achievements...

• Networking and Learning Platforms
• Seven meetings of the national BDS network have
  been held discussing issues like taxation, access
  to finance, publishing a newsletter, how to
  organize follow-up of BDS, access to premises,
  study tour results to Ghana, technological and
  market support.
• 35 members of public and private institutions as
  well as donor agencies and international projects
  are regular.
• A BDS Internet portal has been created under
  www.bds-ethiopia.net learning platform for the
  BDS network members and international agencies.
  The BDS portal provides information on taxation,
  marketing, export-import, accounting and cost
  calculation, business planning, association
  building as well as on BDS strategies, networking
  and lessons learnt.
• A monthly e-mail based BDS newsletter is sent
  since May 2005 to more than 300 addressees and
  found a lot of words of encouragement.

11
Lessons learnt on Networking

• Existence of Common Purpose and Clarity of Vision
  and Purpose Networking should be based on a
  clear definition of common interest or purpose.
  This is fundamental to a sustainable networking.
  It is important to clarify the interests and
  expectations of each member and identify common
  grounds on which the networking could be based. 
   
• Establishing a Network by self-initive of its
  membersNetwork should evolve and should not be
  imposed. Most networks usually starts with a
  handful of organizations that are able to develop
  common purpose and vision. As the network
  develops others who share the vision join. 
• Offering Concrete Benefits to Members A network
  will not be sustainable if it is not offering
  concrete benefits to its members. If members do
  not feel they are benefiting from being a member
  of a network their commitment will disappear.
  Therefore the work of the network should focus on
  what it can do for its members in facilitating
  their work, building their capacities, lobbying
  on their behalf or publicizing their work etc.  

12
lessons learnt on networking...

• Good quality leadership and governance Good
  quality leadership is critical for successful
  networks. There should be critical mass of
  members who are able to create dynamism in the
  network. Each member should feel responsible and
  important for the networks success. Each member
  should contribute to the network in different
  forms and also benefit from the contribution of
  others.
• Accountability and TransparencyNetwork
  facilitator should be member driven, accountable
  to the members and transparent.  Institutional
  membership brings with it power. 
• Sharing of Common ResourcesThe network should be
  able to use regularly the resources of its
  members to achieve its goals instead of
  developing parallel capacities that compete with
  its members. A good network relies on the
  resources of its members.

13
Learning Platforms are

• Networks and working groups
• Workshops and Conferences
• Publications and Documents
• Webpages and email based Newsletters
• Films and Photodocumentations