Learning Organizatioins

CD 124
Education Strategies for Community Development
I. Working with organizations: some pointers
for facilitators of learning

A. Awareness of the importance and purpose of organizations you

are working with.
 organizations that mobilize and deliver services to those in need (charity)
 organizations that operate like “contractors”
 organizations that facilitate empowerment and shifting the balance of
power relations in communities and society

B. Organizations are an “expression of the inherent need for people

to act together in order to reach their full potential” and not
simply mechanisms to deliver services.
I. Working with organizations: some pointers
for facilitators of learning

C. Organizations as complex systems that are constantly evolving.

 relationships between people that act together to form the organization-
people with different histories, perspectives, interests
 relationship between the people and the organization itself
 relationship of the organization with other organizations

D. Organizations develop their unique character and culture.

 habits, language, ways of doing shared among the members
II. Developmental orientation in working with
organizations
A. Put learning at the core.
 Organizational processes: assessment and planning, project
development/appraisal, performance review/supervision
 Project cycle- assessment, project identification and development, project
planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation

B. Start with the organization’s own current development process

 we (development practitioners) are external actors- recognize that
 recognize also that we have power over the organization- through funding,
association with the donor or funding agency, through our knowledge- that
impacts on the organization once we intervene
 our relationship with an organization can either be empowering or create
dependency
II. Developmental orientation in working with
organizations

B. Continuous learning, reviewing, improving

 ways of working, tools, approaches
 framework and values
 check on our assumptions, belief and biases that impact directly on our
work with organizations
C. Awareness of the kind of relationships being built
 power relations
 gender relations
 culture
 experience (age)
II. Developmental orientation in working with
organizations
D. Awareness that organizations
are in the process of becoming
 understanding the paths taken and
history of the organization
 understanding the current stage of
development of the organization
Over-all periods of development of an individual
(commonly used to describe the stages of
organizational development)
i. A dependency stage from conception until
our early twenties (Time to learn).
ii. An independent phase where we reject the
"givers" in life and attempt to recreate the
world to suit us. This lasts until our early
40s (Time to fight).
iii. An interdependent phase where there is
maturity to realise that to achieve life's
full potential we need to cooperate openly
with others in order to give back
something to the world (Time to grow
wise).
II. Developmental orientation in working with
organizations

E. When we intervene, we bring in products and services

 as evaluator, capacity builder, consultant, trainer, etc.
 differentiate between the product and the process by which the product is
delivered – was the process and method used empowering, enabling,
nurturing or has it created dependence, helplessness, power imbalance?
Developmental intervention
cycle with organizations

“…successful developmental
interventions start with (and are
built on) relationship and end
with a review process that leads
to learning. Gaining
understanding precedes any
delivery of product or service.
A very significant connection is
drawn between facilitating
change and delivering product
and service.
In developmental interventions of
any sort the delivery of product
or service is not seen as an end in
itself, but as a means of
contributing towards change.”
 Establishing Building
III. Establishing
“developmental”
relationship with
the organization
Sustaining/Nurturing Terminating
IV. Qualities and abilities of a development practitioner
that are important in building developmental relationships

• An in depth knowledge of yourself, and the
agency you represent, including the power
you have and your own needs that you will
be meeting through the relationship.
• Sensitivity to how you are perceived and
experienced by others and what you
represent to them.
• The ability to articulate clearly and
honestly who you are, your purpose and
intentions.
• The ability to listen consciously, deeply,
actively and with empathy in order to
appreciate the purpose and intentions of
others.
• The ability to build trust through being
worthy of trust in all that you do and
undertake to do.
• The ability to negotiate agreements
(contracts) that honestly reflect the interests
of all parties and encourage co-ownership.
• The ability to allow and encourage your
relationships to change over time.
• Accepting dependency where it exists and
taking responsibility for steering relationships
towards independence, and ultimately
interdependence. Recognising that
termination can at times contribute much to
the development process.
V. Qualities and capabilities of an effective
organization
• An understanding of the world it operates in and on. A
• A realistic assessment of what people and skills
sense of how and why the world is the way it is, and are required (human resources).
how it could be.
• An attitude towards the world which includes an • The ability to allocate and delegate tasks. Who
acceptance of some responsibility for the world being does what, and who needs to relate to whom?
the way it is, and a belief that it is possible to (basic organisation).
contribute towards change.
• Clarity on what the organisation wants to contribute • A quality of communication and relationships
to the world – what it wants to achieve (its core that are required in order to work together
purpose).
effectively as a team.
• Clarity on the broad nature of what the organisation
does in order to achieve the above change and the
essential steps in the process (core process). • Appropriate structures, systems, processes and
procedures to co-ordinate efforts and remain
• Clarity on the more specific activities and tasks
accountable.
required to form the basis of the “work” that the
organisation does.
• Physical and financial resources.
Group work

• Explore and develop with your partner organizations an initial

organizational assessment using the “Qualities and Capabilities of
an effective Organization” as guide.
• Come-up with key questions.
• Discuss with your partner organization and draw an initial profile of the
organization.
• Due on 01 March are the following:
• Written report: list of key questions and the organizational profile.
• Each group to present briefly the profiles in class.