10 april 20151 coherence, effectiveness and relevance (cer): capacity assessment for country unct...

April 18, 2023 1

Coherence, Effectiveness and Relevance (CER):Capacity Assessment for COUNTRYUNCT Kickoff MeetingTEMPLATENOTE:1. This tool/guidance has been developed based on the experiences of the DaO Pilot countries. 2. Presentation should be delivered to UNCT either by external party supporting the capacity assessment, or by GCMST support.

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Proposed agenda items

• Introduce the mission team & team structure

• Confirm a shared understanding of the goals of the engagement

• Review proposed approach and work plan

• Identify key challenges and discuss plans for avoiding / mitigating risks

• Present immediate next steps for the engagement

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...

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Role

• Project director ....

• Project manager ...

• Consultant ...

• …

• …

• ...

Team member

...

Capacity assessment team

ILLUSTRATIVE – TO BE ADAPTED TO COUNTRY

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Project role Responsibilities

• Provide overall direction for the project• Provide information and viewpoints to the project team• Review interim and final outputs• Discuss findings, develop options and make decisions on

actions

• Drive the engagement and carry out the tasks• Develop and document outputs through interim and final

reports to oversight group• Work with staff liaisons to help gather information and

provide guidance on key issues

Reference Groups• Heads and staff of agencies in COUNTRY

• Provide perspectives on future plans and capacity needs • Provide data and information on current capacities

Team structure

Support Team• GCMST• External team

Project Steering Group• …

UNCT• Resident Coordinator• Representatives from other UNCT agencies• Day-to-day project coordinator

• Provide direction for the project• Arrange the involvement of in-country staff in process and

provision of documents to the team• Provide feedback on interim and final outputs


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• Introduce the mission team





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Context: Purpose of study (from ToR): Expected deliverables:

• UN COUNTRY has developed a new Operational Plan for years X to Y

• Includes results to be realized through implementation of xx joint programmes

• Also includes plans for “UNDAF or common programming tool”, “Resident Coordinator”, “common budgetary framework”, “common services and harmonized business practices”, and, where relevant “common premises”

Assess the capacity of the UNCT to successfully implement CER, prepare for new UNDAF or common programming tool, and long-term needs of COUNTRY by...

• Determining required capacity (demand) by profiling person hours and skill sets required to implement UNDAF or common programming tool and operations changes, and long-term needs of COUNTRY

• Identifying key characteristics of the supply of existing capacity

• Mapping characteristics in capacity supply & demand

• Developing plans for addressing difference

• Characterisation of required capacity (intervention types, subject / sectors of focus)

• Outline and characterisation of existing capacity

• Identification and description of capacity difference that may impact achievement of delivery objectives

• Presentation to UNCT on key findings about capacity difference

• Facilitation of UNCT’s development of options to fill the differences

• Summary of UNCT’s options for addressing differences for integration into change management strategy

Context, objectives, expected deliverables


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1, 2, & 3. Analysis of capacity requirements & assessment of current capacities

4.Gap analysis

5 & 6.Develop plans for addressing capacity differences

STEPS• To conduct baseline study and an in-

depth review of the capacities available within the UN system to coherently implement the Outcomes of the UNDAF or common programming tool including the capacities to establish programmatic synergies and the additional inter-agency reform instruments as developed.

• To assess the operational capacities of the UN system in country

OBJECTIVES FROM TOR

• To identify critical capacity gaps and technical requirements for current and future requirements that will need to be urgently filled, if the UN is to move forward in an effective and coherent manner in the implementation of the UNDAF2006 – 2010, with a result-based management and rights based programming approach.

• To present clear recommendations to the UNCT that can be taken up as part of an overall change management strategy.

KEY ELEMENTS• Identify all CER and non-CER UN planned

activities• Identify needs for new UNDAF or

common programming tool and future role of UN in COUNTRY

• Assess/characterize the type, number, intervention types of roles required

• Identify and quantify current roles for all agencies

• Compare available capacities against list of required and quantify capacity differences

• Assess which roles are strategically important to keep in-house vs. other arrangements

• Synthesize set of key capacity differences to present to UNCT with the quantitative information

OUT OF SCOPE• Will not review

individual performance or assess individual competence

• Will not recommend areas of focus or prioritization of roles and competencies

• Will not recommend allocation of capacities or intervention types among UN agencies

• Facilitate discussion of options for bridging differences and outline high-level implementation plan

• Will not estimate costed approach

Approach


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• Identify focal points for data needs

To provide specific data from both programme and operations sides of each agency

To provide answers to data specific questions

To direct questions to appropriate individuals within agencies

• Facilitate communications with staff

Ask / raise questions of concerns for team to address

Communicate responses, documents, and progress updates provided by team to staff and staff associations

• Approval of draft staff survey and encourage response

Review of draft staff survey to be sent to determine existing allocation of staff time to various job-related tasks

Encourage widespread staff response to survey in timely manner

Ways that UNCT could help to facilitate progress

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1)

Review agreed CER objectives and associated activities

3)Conduct baseline study to identify required intervention types and subject matter expertise

6)Prepare implement-ation and communic-ation plans

2)List current demand and supply of intervention types and subject matter expertise

4)Identify capacity differences through gap analysis

5)Develop and prioritise options for closing differences

Analyze characteristics of existing capacity

Identify capacity requirements

Compare requirements

to existing capacity

Develop an implementation and

communication plan for addressing capacity

difference• Interviews with

Heads of Agencies (R & NR), Government & Donors

• Interviews with OMT, PMT, and Staff Associations

• JD analysis• NR Capacity

Analysis• Staff Survey

• Workshop with UNCT• Final report summarizing all findings and UNCT

decisions (target date to be confirmed)

Key Steps

Key Tools / Approach

A weeksTimeline (est)

Overview of methodologyB weeks C weeks D weeks E days

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Today

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Subject matter groupings

Type of intervention

Category Description / definition

Intervention types include:•Advisory - Policy •Advisory - Technical Assistance •Advocacy •Programme Communications•Development Partner Coordination•Inter-Agency Coordination•Direct Service•General Management •Monitoring and Evaluation

•Operations - Facilities•Operations - Finance•Operations - General Administration•Operations - Human Resources•Operations - ICT•Operations - Logistics•Media/Public Information•Operations - Management•Operations - Procurement

Examples could include:• Human Capital

• Health• Education

• HIV and AIDS • Gender

• Economic development• Agriculture• Industry & Trade• Energy & Minerals• Natural Resources & Tourism• Infrastructure

• Governance• Public Financial Management• Environment• Macroeconomic

Management• Development Policy• Emergency Preparedness• Other


Proposed framework for assessing capacity

•Operations - Protocol•Operations - Security•Operations - Transport•Other Interventions•Programme Management•Research•Resource Mobilization

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Proposed step-by-step process for applying key assessment criteria

Step 1: Obtain job descriptions from each agency

• Read each job description in full before beginning assessment

• Attempt to determine what the job description requires the individual to do on a day-to-day basis

Step 2: Assess job description for subject / sector area of focus

Step 3: Assess job description for a maximum of 3 types of intervention

Subject area 1

Subject area 2

Health

Education

• Assess job description for up to 3 subject areas of focus

Advisory – Technical Assistance

Programme Management

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70

General Management10

Intervention Type%

• There may be xx intervention types including the following high-level groupings: Advisory, Advocacy, Programme Management, and Operations

• Each job description would be allowed 3 different types of intervention with 100% of job allocated across 3 intervention types

ILLUSTRATIVE

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Potential output is a high-level mapping of capacity characteristics

ILLUSTRATIVEDUMMY DATA

40%

Operations

60%

Programme

Percentage of Funds in UNDAF or common programming toolN = x total “project” staff identified(not the total number of such staff)

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20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

100Agency 1

Agency 2

Agency 3

Agency 4

Agency 5

Agency 6

Agency 7

Agency 8

Agency 9

Agency 10

Agency 11

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Workshop preparation and objectives

Discussion items• Develop and prioritise options to address capacity differences• Decide on most suitable optionsOutputs from workshop• Agree high-level plan for implementation• Prepare key messages about capacity change plan to government, staff and

donors

Preparation

Objectives

Team responsibilities• Analyze and identify key characteristics of available capacity• Process results from staff survey including comments on culture and processes

and systems conducive to ‘CER’• Develop presentations for findings on key capacity differences – across

programmes and operations, covering both short and long-term needs

UNCT responsibilities• Validate own agency job description analysis• Validate capacity needs findings

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Proposed agenda: Day 1Activities

Breakfast

Agenda, introductions and workshop objectives

Presentation and discussion of current capacity

Coffee Break

Discussion of capacity differences and decision on solutions – ‘CER’ Operational Plan / UNDAF or common programming tool for 200x – 200y

Lunch

Discussion of capacity differences and decision on solutions – Programme in the longer term

Coffee Break

Discussion of capacity differences and decision on solutions – Finance, HR (both 2008/9 and longer term)

Discussion of capacity differences and decision on solutions – Procurement, IT, other Operations (both 2008/9 and longer term)

Timing

08.00-08.30

08.30-08.45

08.45-10.30

10.30-10.45

10.45-12.15

12.15-13.15

13.15-14.45

14.45-15.00

15.00-16.30

16.30-18.00


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Breakfast

Discussion of required generic skills sets and organizational culture / behaviours for “CER”, and development of solutions to address them

Discussion of barriers from processes and systems/incentives, and development of possible solutions to address them

Coffee Break

Development of draft implementation plan

Preparing draft communication to staff and external stakeholders

Lunch

Review and refine draft implementation plan and communications

Wrap up – Next steps

08.00-08.30

08.30-09.30

09.30-10.30

10.30-10.45

10.45-12.00

12.00-13.00

13.00-14.00

14.00-15.00

15.00-15.30

Proposed agenda: Day 2ActivitiesTiming


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• Insufficient data is made available to the project relative to needs and/or the data requirements specified by the team do not match the real needs further down the project

• Real current roles are likely to be significantly different from job descriptions for current posts; actual intervention types may differ substantially from those listed in job descriptions

• Key decisions may have not yet been discussed or fully agreed (e.g., actual content of joint programmes, or how far to go towards harmonization on the different parts of CER)

• Project issues raised are not resolved within an appropriate timescale (particularly with regards to the field visit) and/or data is not provided in good time

• Concerns of agencies cause work or key meetings to be postponed

Potential project / methodology risks (1/2)• Clarify data expectations on both sides at beginning

of the project and identify potential bottlenecks

• Share draft analysis of current capacity based on job descriptions with Heads of Agency (and others as needed) to identify differences between job descriptions and real roles and competencies

• Consider possibility of a staff survey to identify differences between real and stated roles

• Agree with UNCT from the outset that such issues will have to be raised with them quickly

• Clarify time expectations on both sides at beginning of the project and identify potential bottlenecks

• Plan frequent two-way communications with agencies, including on the methodology and interim findings as well as the final findings; Also seek input on methodology from Inter-Agency Task Team

Potential risks Possible risk mitigation actions

Team unable to identify differences reliably

Work takes much longer than envisaged

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• Agencies are not be able to agree on a common methodology and toolkit

• Key project stakeholders do not agree that the findings are valid

• Agencies are not be able to agree on a common approach to closing differences

• There will be insufficient resources to carry out the change management plan, and too much expectations on what agencies’ headquarters can deliver to countries

• Engage agencies in COUNTRY and on Inter-Agency Task Team to get agreement on the methodology

• Get agreement to the methodology up front; Seek feedback on pieces of analysis (e.g., categorisations of jobs for given agency); Plan interim communications where questions about validity of findings can be raised and addressed

• Engage with agencies actively and in a joint setting (workshop) to identify potential solutions, plans and how different activities will be done throughout the process

• Agencies’ headquarters to identify team members to support implementation and country teams to provide resources required to deliver on country-specific plans

Potential risks Possible risk mitigation actions

Findings about differences are not accepted

Solutions to closing differences are not developed/ accepted by the UNCT or not implemented

Potential project / methodology risks (2/2)

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Suggested date

Meeting with Meeting objective

UNCT Kick-off discussion of methodology, plans for key people to interview, and changes to inception note

UNCT Progress review on data gathering and analysis

Project Steering Group

Progress review

UNCT Presentation of findings and facilitation of workshop to identify ways to address capacity gaps

Proposed dates for meetingsILLUSTRATIVE –

TO BE ADAPTED TO COUNTRY

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In-country capacity Non-resident capacity

Organigramme JDs Staff lists List of missions

Agency 1

Agency 2

Agency 3

Agency 4

Agency 5

Agency 6

Agency 7

Agency 8

Agency 9

Agency 10

Agency 11

Agency 12

Agency 13

Agency 14


Status of data request

10 april 20151 coherence, effectiveness and relevance (cer): capacity assessment for country unct...

Documents

capacity needs

country slide

mission team team structure

project team review

team member

country staff

engagement slide

required capacity demand