Guide for Developing a Programme S

Handicap International - Guide for drawing up the pluri-annual strategy for a programme - Page 1

Guide for developing a Programme’s

Pluri-annual Strategy

This guide describes the process of developing the Pluri-annual Strategy for a HANDICAP INTERNATIONAL Programme. It is followed by the “Preparatory Document” which includes all the tools to be used, and serves as support document for the various stages in the process.

Note: also available in french

Contents

Introduction
- The general framework of programme management
- The process of developing a pluri-annual strategy / Page 3
Preparatory phase / Page 6
Development of the Strategy
- Objectives
- Steps in this stage
- The tools to be used / Page 7
Consolidation of the strategy
- Objectives
- What is this stage for?
- steps in this stage
- documeny to the programmes board of directors for review / Page 11
Validation of the strategy
- Objectives
- What is this stage for?
- Steps in this stage
- The strategic framework agreement
- After this process… / Page 16
Glossary / Page 19
Preparatory file for drawing up a pluri-annual strategy / Page 20

Introduction

• The general framework of programme management

Handicap International’s development, the increasing complexity of its approaches and management, are creating an ever increasing need to anticipate perspectives for programme development and arbitrate on the overall balance of activities.The programme management audit held in 1998 resulted in the setting up of management processes and tools for defining programme management procedures on the one hand, and the process for drawing up pluri-annual strategies and the programmes’ annual steering system on the other.

All of these frameworks have been drawn up with a mind towards the decentralisation of responsibilities in the field, the simplification of operating channels and the assuming of responsibility by all actors involved in programme management, whilst at the same time creating a sufficiently flexible system for it to be adapted to the specific nature of each programme.

The Programme Management Procedures Handbook

The Programme Management Procedures handbook, the first version of which was written in November 2000, determines relations between the different actors participating in programme management and sets out all of the procedures relating to this management. It defines the interaction between Head Office and the field, and details the operational methods and role of the specialised services and other Head Office contacts.

The Programme Management Procedures handbook provides the general framework for programme management, to which each programme’s own management methods must comply.

See the “Programme Management Procedures” handbook.

The Programme’s Pluri-annual Strategy

The strategy reflects our vision of a programme’s development and the mandate we have given ourselves in the country (or region) concerned. On the basis of an internal and external analysis of the programme’s context, it enables us to plan explicitly what we want to do (and decide what we don’t want to do), to determine the prior conditions for these actions, to analyse the risks and assumptions, and to prepare alternative scenarios. Each programme should refer to an updated pluri annual strategy.

The instability of the contexts in which Handicap International operates, combined with the difficulty of positioning ourselves within a complex system of stakeholders, makes it difficult to draw up one single long-term strategy. Strategic development will therefore consist of anticipating right from the beginning the situations with which we might be confronted, and selecting the most appropriate position to adopt in order to maintain course. This means establishing a general framework that will enable programme actors to schedule, implement and evaluate their actions.Strategic development provides us with a shared vision of what we are undertaking.

The strategy planned in this way is drawn up for a period of time adapted to each programme’s rate of development and specific nature. It is pluri-annual, covering a period of between 2 and 5 years.The process of drawing up a strategy is concluded by the signature of a Strategic Framework Agreement, between the Field Programme Director (FPD), the Desk Officer (Desk Officer) and the ODP and TRD directors.

It is this process of drawing up pluri-annual programme strategies that is to be discussed in this guide.

The annual forecast and Annual Programme Steering system

The framework defined by the Strategic Framework Agreement is then set out in an Annual Plan of action (PME).This plan is accompanied by the programme’s steering methods (relating to operational and communication activities, human and financial resources), which define the respective roles of the Desk Officers, Field Programme Directors and Operational Directorate for Programmes (ODP), as well as the other actors at Head Office and in the field, in the implementation of the strategy, and the monitoring and evaluation of the actions undertaken for the calendar year ahead.

See “Guide to drawing up the annual forecast and steering framework”

The process for drawing up pluri-annual strategy is based on the principle of a contract between the Field Programme Director, the Desk Officer, the ODP and the TRD, in which the strategic orientations for the medium and long term are detailed (this is known as Pluri-annual Strategic Framework Agreement).

These processes aim at greater autonomy for the Field Programme Director, a higher degree of perspective for the Desk Officer and enhanced macro steering capacity for the Programme Board of Directors (PBD).

• The process of drawing up a pluri-annual strategy

The global programme strategy is built up of four components:

Activities

1)Operational strategy
2)Communications strategy

Resources

3)Human resources strategy
4)Financial resources strategy

The process of developing pluri-annual strategy consists of four stages:

 The preparation stage that defines the process.

 The developmentstage managed by the Field Programme Director with the participation of the field teams and partners.

 The consolidation stage managed by the Field Programme Director and the Desk Officer with the participation of the Head Office specialised services and sections concerned with the programme

 The validation stage by the Programme Board of Directors during a “Programme Review. . The validated strategy is formalised by a Strategic Framework Agreement, signed by the Field Programme Director, the Desk Officer and the Directors of the ODP and the TRD.

process management actors
FPD / DO / FPD / FPD / DO / FPD / DO/ PBD
Field teams and partners / Specialised services, Sections, ODP and TRD
Actors involved in the implementation or with an advisory role within the process

The time needed for stage 1 will depend on the size of the programme and the team, but should usually be started at least 2 months before the programme review.

Stages 2 and 3 involve the Field Programme Director, Desk Officer and the specialised services, followed by the Programme Board of Directors, and supposes that the Field Programme Director will be at Head Office for an extended period before, during and after the programme review.

The Field Programme Director will therefore have to spend ten days at Head Office in order to complete the elaboration of the strategy and finalise the Strategic Framework Agreement.

Note: In the case of the start-up phase of a new programme, the stages described in points 1 and 2 are adapted to include the feasibility mission and project set-up phases, the Desk Officer generally being identified during these stages.

Terminology

A Programme is a strategic unit, generally at a country, or group of countries level. It is directed by a Field Programme Director.
A Domainis a geographical or thematic operational unit. It can be directed by a Coordinator or a Project Manager if the domain concerns just one project.
A Section is a branch of activity within a domain which may interact with a project; each concerns a different area of impact.

Stage 0:

Preparatory Phase

Process management actors
FPD / DO / DO / FPD / DO / FPD / DO/ PBD
Field teams
and partners / Specialised services, Sections, ODP and TRD
actors involved in the implementation or with an advisory role within the process

The preparatory phase, which takes place ideally around six months prior to the review enables the Desk Officer, Field Programme Director and Operational Director of Programmes to concert on how the process will unfold and on the general strategy framework:

Between the Field Programme Director and the Desk Officer: to plan the whole process and define the Field Programme Director’s position in stage one. The Desk Officer and the Field Programme Director will decide together whether they will work both with the team in drawing up the strategy, or whether the Desk Officer will only come in after stage 1 to consolidate with the Field Programme Director the perspectives drawn up with the field team. These different configurations will depend on various factors: the level of maturity of the programme, the Desk Officer’s involvement in programme management, the Field Programme Director’s knowledge of methodology and tools, etc. This is all to be “made to measure” and the methods adopted for this preparatory phase will be determined by the Field Programme Director and the Desk Officer.

Between the Desk Officer and the Operational Director of Programmes: this work will enable the Desk Officer and the Operational Director of Programmes to reach a definitive decision on general framework, methods, expectations and the schedule for the review itself.

This initial outlining of the framework should not be neglected as it plays a crucial role in avoiding possible misunderstandings or false starts in terms of orientation which may delay the strategy validation process.

A the end of this stage, a short note should be written and distributed to the actors involved in the process explaining the general framework, the methods, expectations, schedule and results awaited during the review process.

Stage 1:

Development of

the

Strategy

Process management actors
FPD/ DO / DO / FPD / DO / FPD/ DO / PBD
Field teams
and partners / Specialised services, Sections, ODP and TRD
actors involved in the implementation or with an advisory role within the process

Objectives:

To analyse the context and producean internal and external situation update for the programme from a critical perspective.

To draw up the programme’s development perspectives in terms of operational, communication, human and financial resources, in relation to the Association’s pluri-annual strategy.

What is this stage for?

The purpose of this stage is to collect and analyse the appropriate amount of data from the actors in the field, to enable the Field Programme Director and Desk Officer to consolidate the most appropriate and realistic strategic and managerial perspective possible. The work should be as participative as possible and should not only involve the teams but also, for the context analysis and programme results analysis, Handicap International’s partners.

Steps in this stage:

When?

/

Under the responsibility of

… /

With whom?

/

How?

Start-up at least 2 months before the Field Programme Director comes to Head Office for the consolidation of strategy

Note: the process may be started at the end of a major financing cycle, when a major strategic change is foreseen; when there is a change in Field Programme Director, etc. / At project level:
Project Manager or Coordinator /

Project team and partners

/ Workshops which may be run by a third party
Use of the situation update, current results assessment and perspectives tools
At programme level[1]:

Desk Officer

/ Coordinators / Project Managers
Administrator / Workshops which may be chaired by a third party. Synthesis of the various workshops at project level[2]
Use of the situation update, results analysis and perspectives tools

NB: For small programmes, one workshop for all of the aforementioned staff may be enough

.
The tools to be used

The different tools that make up the preparatory file are designed to guide the Field Programme Director/Desk Officer in designing the pluri-annual strategy for the programme, and also to enable the different contacts at Head Office to have a clear and coherent understanding of this strategy. However, whilst being comprehensive, these are not exclusiveand it is therefore important to be as analytical and synthetic as possible when filling in the tables (with the option of adding appendices if necessary).

At the end of the guide there is a suggested grid, it is recommended to follow the plan to ensure the coherence of the analysis proposed and a certain homogeneity. This will also make it easier to read the document as it will follow a logical train of thought which makes it possible to understand how the context (history, geopolitics, role of stakeholders etc.) and the current programme situation lead to the proposition of a strategy for the coming years.

FILE CONTENT

Part 1:General context

1)Historical, geographical, political and socio-economic situation in the country

2)Stakeholder system and sector analysis

Part 2:Situation Update and Results Analysis

1)HI programme history

2)Map situating HI intervention sites

3)Analysis of the evolution of the programme:

4)Situation update for programme (Operational, HR, Financial, Communication components)

5)Programme results analysis

Part 3:Strategic Perspectives

1)Link between context, results analysis and strategy

2)Coherence with HI pluri-annual strategy

3)Programme pluri-annual strategy (review table)

4)Positioning vis à vis stakeholders

5)Geographical strategy

6)Operational Pillar

7)Financial Resources and forecast budgets / BPF component

8)Communication component

9)Human Resources component

Conclusion

PUTTING TOGETHER THE STUDY DOCUMENT FOR SPECIALISED SERVICES

Stage 2:

Consolidation

of the

Strategy

Process management actors
FPD/ DO / DO / FPD / DO / FPD/ DO / PBD
Field teams
and partners / Specialised services, Sections, ODP and TRD
actors involved in the implementation or with an advisory role within the process

Objective:

To consolidate the strategic framework prepared by the field team, with the specialised services from Head Office and the sections involved in the programme

What is this stage for?

The purpose of this stage is to have the various aspects of the strategic framework put forward by the Field Programme Director/Desk Officer optimised and validated by the various Head Office specialised services, each one in its own area.

This stage offers triple advantages:

1. Confronting the strategic perspectives put forward by the programme team with each service’s framework of reference, whilst taking the specific nature of each programme into account as much as possible. At this stage, the Desk Officer guarantees the global coherency of the programme, whilst keeping as close as possible to the frameworks decided by the specialised services.
2. Increasing the various Head Office staff’s knowledge of the programme by taking the time to inform them about the programme, the different projects, the situation and the future perspectives.
3. Enabling the Desk Officer, Field Programme Director and specialised services to regulate early on a maximum number of aspects in order to later allow the Field Programme Director autonomy in implementing the strategy and facilitate (lighten) the task of monitoring by the Desk Officer and the specialised services.

Steps in this stage

Under the DO’s responsibility: the DO is responsible for passing documents on to the different departments and sections involved in the process so they can read through them and give their reactions if necessary, particularly on the perspectives and the programme /units / sections of activity structuring. The DO is also responsible for organising all meetings according to the order defined in the table below.

This process takes place over two periods: a pre-review and discussion work with thematic exchanges between different departments

1) Pre-review

The time allocated to the pre-review ensures that the file will be presented to all contacts participating in the process. This presentation should be given in a clear and dynamic way, using power point slides if possible to summarise the analysis presented in the document.

All the Unit Managers and the ODP Delegated Directors who are not currently represented in the programme will be invited during the pre-review phase. This action is necessary following the updating of HI's areas of intervention and will provide the opportunity to think more widely about all areas of intervention in relation to the programme’s potential. However, if certain areas of intervention (eg. Mines) are not relevant to the programme, the presence of these representative will of course not be required.

According to their availability Handicap International’s Directors (ODP, TRD, DSO and CCD), will also be involved in the pre-review in order to ensure that on a management level all HI programme practices are taken into consideration, and also to nourish the programme’s reflections with the management’s long-term, overall vision.

To ensure that the sections follow as closely as possible in the drawing up of the programmes’ pluri-annual strategy and to give them a feeling of “co-ownership” of HI programmes, their involvement in the process is strongly recommended (according to the priorities determined by the sections in terms of geographical or funding body strategies).

Given the large number of participants involved working with a "round table" method where each person has a limited amount of time in which to contribute may be necessary, the other participants can reserve their comments for the thematic meetings.The minutes of this meeting are taken by the DO’s assistant and will act as a guide for the meetings that take place during the review process at Head Office.