Since April 8th, 1999 there have been
visits to this page.
The Study Group is planning its next meeting for 16th June, at the Cherwell Centre, Bardwell Road, Oxford, on the topic described below, and invites practitioners and researchers to contribute presentations and papers:
What drives the changes being made, and do they solve the problems they were designed to address?
Many NGOs (both in the 'North' and the 'South') are currently undergoing extensive internal changes. Some are decentralising their operations, some are regionalising, and others are shifting the base of their operations.
Issues which need addressing include the following: How does institutional change affect the development work of the NGO making changes? Do the changes contribute to increasing their impact and effectiveness? How can NGOs balance management and financial imperatives with development aims? What is the motivating force behind institutional change? What changes have been positive for the NGO and its work? What negative effects or dangers may arise as a result of change processes? What structures are most appropriate for making NGOs sensitive to the needs of clients and beneficiaries? Do they increase the understanding required by staff in order to make effective decisions? What has been learned to date about the strengths and weaknesses of different structures and approaches to change? Where should the balance of spending lie between HQ and field based work?
There are many other issues related to this issue which is involving and affecting so many NGOs currently, both in the 'North' and the 'South'. Useful lessons may emerge from comparisons of the experiences of large and small organisations, and international and domestic organisations.
We are asking for papers and contributions to this discussion, and hoping to get a mixture of practical and reflective inputs, as well as views from academics undertaking research in this area.
Please let us know soon if you would like to present. We can then design a day, which will include participatory work to allow study group members to explore these issues together, in more depth.
We need to hear from you by 30th April in order to design and prepare the day.
Elsa Dawson, at edawson@oxfam.org.uk and Tina Wallace at wallacet@css.bham.ac.uk (Joint Convenors)
Since April 8th, 1999 there have been
visits to this page.
Return to:
