crp3.4 abll interview

Luis Augusto

Becerra Lopez-Lavalle

PhD, M.Sc, B.Sc

Senior ScientistCassava Molecular Geneticist

Luis Augusto

Becerra Lopez-Lavalle

PhD, M.Sc, B.Sc

L. Augusto Becerra Lopez-Lavalle PhD, MSc, BSc

The Opportunities and Challenges of Leading a

Successful CRP3.4

CRP 3.4: RTB Root, tubers, and bananas for food,security and income

What I know about CRP3.4

1. Learning

2. Understanding (Opportunities and Challenges)

My plans for CRP3.4 (Leadership)

1. Research-for-development (R4D)

2. Management

Personal style

Content


Learning

Lead Center Partner Centers


Learning

Outcomes


Learning

Outcomes Impact

Project Units


Learning

Outcomes Impact

Project Units

• Keeps the whole RTB on track

Impact-Partnership


Learning

Outcomes Impact


Learning

PROGRAM GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT


Learning


Program’s Support Structure


Learning



Program’s Divisional Management


Learning




Program’s Functional Structure - THE R4D ARM of the CRP-RTB and HEART of PPP




T7


Learning: THEME 7


Understanding



T7

• Keeps the whole RTB on track


Scenario 1


Understanding



T7


Scenario 2




T7

Understanding


Scenario 3




T7

Understanding

S


Scenario 4


• Roots, tubers and banana crops are

important for the CGIAR

• Create adequate leadership to excel

SYNERGIES across crops within the

CG participating center through

effective coordination and integrated

management

• Do the “BEST SCIENCE” for the

resource poor

•“Must add value” to RTB crops over

and above individual Center

programs

•Prioritization, integration by

identifying:

• Cross-crop learning opportunities

• Spill-over possibilities

•Demonstrate there is NEW WAYS OF

DOING BUSINESS through

• Research investment

• Scientific breakthroughs and

innovations

Opportunities Challenges

Opportunities & Challenges


Opportunities & Challenges

Functional Units


My plan as Leader: R4D


S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6

Breeding &

Agronomy

Biotechnology,

Genetics, Genomics &

Bioinformatics

Phenomics,

Biometrics &

Database

Pests,

Diseases

& Ecology

Biochemistry,

Nutrition &

Quality

Post Harvest, GIS,

Policy, Gender &

Markets

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

Th

em

es

(P

roje

ct

Un

its

)

Streams (Functional Units)

Developing tools for more productive,

ecologically robust cropping systemsT5

Promoting postharvest technologies, value

chains, and market opportunitiesT6

Enhancing impact through partnershipsT7

T1Conserving and accessing genetic

resources

Accelerating “development and selection”

of varieties with higher, stable yield and

value added

T2

T3 Managing priority pests and diseases

T4Making available low- cost, high- quality

planting material for farmers

Functional Units




S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6

Breeding &

Agronomy

Biotechnology,


Bioinformatics

Phenomics,

Biometrics &

Database

Pests,

Diseases

& Ecology

Biochemistry,

Nutrition &

Quality

Post Harvest, GIS,

Policy, Gender &

Markets

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

Th

em

es

(P

roje

ct

Un

its

)








resources



value added

T2




Functional Units




S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6

Breeding &

Agronomy

Biotechnology,


Bioinformatics

Phenomics,

Biometrics &

Database

Pests,

Diseases

& Ecology

Biochemistry,

Nutrition &

Quality

Post Harvest, GIS,

Policy, Gender &

Markets

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

Th

em

es

(P

roje

ct

Un

its

)








resources



value added

T2




STARS

Science

Innovators

Functional Units


Partnerships



S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6

Breeding &

Agronomy

Biotechnology,


Bioinformatics

Phenomics,

Biometrics &

Database

Pests,

Diseases

& Ecology

Biochemistry,

Nutrition &

Quality

Post Harvest, GIS,

Policy, Gender &

Markets

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

Th

em

es

(P

roje

ct

Un

its

)








resources



value added

T2




S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6

Breeding &

Agronomy

Biotechnology,


Bioinformatics

Phenomics,

Biometrics &

Database

Pests,

Diseases

& Ecology

Biochemistry,

Nutrition &

Quality

Post Harvest, GIS,

Policy, Gender &

Markets

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

Th

em

es

(P

roje

ct

Un

its

)








resources



value added

T2





My plan as Leader

Management Themes and Streams

S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6

Breeding &

Agronomy

Biotechnology,


Bioinformatics

Phenomics,

Biometrics &

Database

Pests,

Diseases

& Ecology

Biochemistry,

Nutrition &

Quality

Post Harvest, GIS,

Policy, Gender &

Markets

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL1

PL2

PL3

PL4

PL5

Th

em

es

(P

roje

ct

Un

its

)








resources



value added

T2





PD & MT

My plan as Leader



My plan as Leader


•May causes participants to

experience excessive

reporting, which can be frustrating

and confusing

•Participants must have good

interpersonal skills

•Participants must adopt collegial

rather than vertical-type

relationships

•Show a strong commitment to

networking with R4D partners

Challenges

•Allows economies of scale within

functional units (Streams)

•Enables in-depth knowledge and

skill development

• Improve coordination across

product lines

•Makes integration and

standardization across product lines

easy

Opportunities

A vision for R4D on RTB:

To procure the best science and technology

toward fulfillment of RTB research needs and

realization of our vision for CRP 3.4

A vision for CRP 3.4-RTB

To conduct high‐quality, gender‐sensitive, and

results‐oriented collaborative R4D using the full

potential of RTB to contribute to the achievement

of the vision of the CGIAR


The Global Program

Mission:

Propose innovative R4D strategies that can

contribute to the realization of our vision for the

RTB, attaining scientific breakthroughs, and

expanding the RTB research frontier


The Global Program

CRP3.4 aims to deliver public goods and

build national R4D capacity to benefit

resource-poor small to medium-size

farmers (especially women), rural

communities and local organizations as

well as commercial farmers and

entrepreneurs. The success for

accomplishing this aim requires …


Addressing the “vision”

In today’s world (under current crisis)

• Improved food security (quantity and quality)

for rural households thru RTB

• Competitive and sustainable RTB farming and

value chains

• Strengthened social and human capital at

different levels: communities, industries, and

local and national governments

• Sustainable management of water, soil and

biodiversity resources for growing RTB

• Sound policies for the sustainable use of RTB

in agri-food systems

CRP 3.4: RTB Root, tubers, and bananas for food,and incomeFor progress

Goal:

To attain sustainable productivity

increases for global food security by

exploiting untapped potential of

roots, tubers, and bananas (RTB) to:

• Improve nutrition and food security

• Increase income generation

• Foster improved livelihoods for women,

youth, children & other vulnerable

groups


The Global Program

• Agreed agenda

• Priority setting

• Strong cooperation

• Alliances with NARS, ARIs, NGOs, farmers and others

• Crop research programs through networking with

public and private partnership (PPP)

• Support from governments and communities

• Increased collaboration with the private sector

• Enhancement and expansion of financial position


Strategic Action -

Immediate


Strategic Action -

Immediate

• Aggressive strategy for increasing RTB funding

• It is estimated that 180 million people will directly benefit from this program in the next 3 years

• We have a little more than US $ 1 investment per beneficiary for the next 3 years

• My challenge will be to double this investment by 2015

• By fostering the international sharing

of knowledge, skills and technology on

RTB

• e.g. networks

• Capacity building on RTB research-for-

development to meet global demands

and support local livelihoods on those

depending on these crops


Agenda: As a “BRIDGE”

• By helping partners and other

stakeholders to negotiate

acceptable transaction terms on

intellectual, genetic and other

proprietary assets on RTB

• e.g. SMTA-PGFRA, non-PGR, and

other public goods


Agenda: As a “BROKER”


Priority Setting

• Productivity gains

• Poverty mapping

• Market-led opportunity

Thinking of END-USERS and SUSTAINABLE

DEVELOPMENT to serve the MISSION


End-user

Problem solving approach

1. Assess demand or

opportunity for impact

2. Identify constraints

3. Propose solutions

4. Use interventions

5. Find or develop technology

6. Deliver outputs to end-users

& markets

Developing a R4D proposal

1. Purpose(s)

2. Objective(s)

3. Activity plan

4. Results as per milestones

5. Outcomes leading to impacts

on Science and livelihoods

Implementing a R4D proposal


Today’s Challenges

• Agenda: impact or public goods?

• Research: upstream or downstream?

• Term commitments: long or short?

• Focus: crop or system?

• Staff: team or individual stars?

• Funding: multilateral or country mission?

• Source: private or public sector?

R4D


Gender equality

The RTB must remove any gender bias from

research processes as it will diminish science

excellence from product deployment and

knowledge transfer that ultimately decrease the

chance of impact


Personal Style

• Stakeholders (governments, investors or

donors, clients or beneficiaries)

• Funding (international, regional, national and

local, private, public, non-government)

• Internal institutional processes (what

organization’s models to pursue to satisfy

stakeholders

• Learning and growth (how to sustain the ability

to leverage resources, to change and improve)

Translating Vision into Action


Personal Style

• Stakeholders (governments, investors or

donors, clients or beneficiaries)

• Funding (international, regional, national and

local, private, public, non-government)

• Internal institutional processes (what

organization’s models to pursue to satisfy

stakeholders

• Learning and growth (how to sustain the ability to

leverage resources, to change and improve)

Translating Vision into Action


Personal Style

Translating the vision (clarifying the vision and gaining consensus)

Communicating and linking (educating, setting goals, linking rewards to performance measures)

Business planning (setting targets, aligning strategic initiatives, allocating resources, establishing milestones)

Feedback and learning (articulating the share vision, supplying strategic feedback, facilitating strategy review and learning)

Managing the strategy


Personal Style

Exploit before exploring new research fields (leveraging existing assets, building a brand)

Diversify your research agenda (not all eggs in one basket)

Learn from previous undertakings (do not fall into same trap twice, and pass best practice to next generation)

Manage change (radical fixing only at very select moment in history, better to take an evolving approach)

Keep a long-term view (for organizing the work) but use monitoring and evaluation tools in shorter periods (to assess progress and correct the course)

Managing the strategy


Personal Style

Exploit before exploring new research fields (leveraging existing assets, building a brand)

Diversify your research agenda (not all eggs in one basket)

Learn from previous undertakings (do not fall into same trap twice, and pass best practice to next generation)

Manage change (radical fixing only at very select moment in history, better to take an evolving approach)

Keep a long-term view (for organizing the work) but use monitoring and evaluation tools in shorter periods (to assess progress and correct the course)

Enduring success – Comparative advantage


Personal Style

Outstanding performance results from years of deliberate practice and coaching, not an intimate talent of skills

Experts are made not born

New knowledge is about ideals and ideas (… and “top managers are romantics who go in quest of the ideal”)

Time needed for becoming an organization of superb professionals (not all are open to a quick fix)

Feedback (constructive and sometimes painful) shape the skilled by challenging them to re-examine what they take for granted

Knowledge-Creating Organization


Personal Style

Lean, efficient, effective, responsive, flexible and decentralized management to address R4D

Participatory “open-door” management

Bottom-up consensus building for organization renewal and management that rewards performers

PREMIER CRP of excellence led by quality of Science and strong alliances

End-user priority setting for impact on the poor drives the R4D agenda and budget

Enhancing financial viability –all funding sources

My perspective for managing R4D


Personal Style

Stimulating working environment to enhance researchers’ ingenuity (vs. medium-term plans, log frames, intermediate result framework)

Sourcing grants beyond 3-year lifespan that provides security for research undertakings

Networking throughout the research-for-development continuum for technology exchange that ensures impact

Management Options


R4D…

• Health

• Livelihoods

• Dreams


THANK YOU

crp3.4 abll interview

Career