Why we work on Organisational Development
In an increasingly volatile and polarised world, organisations dedicated to social cohesion and resolving conflict are more relevant than ever. Yet, both globally and in many local contexts, support for democratic values, the rule of law, and solidarity is weakening. This shift is making the work of civil society more challenging and, in many cases, more dangerous. More than 60 countries have introduced restrictive legislation, and funding for conflict prevention has sharply declined as governments divert resources toward militarised security.
Our organisational development (OD) support is designed for organisations with peacebuilding at the core of their mandate. Our goal is to help them strengthen their impact, adapt to changing realities and build long-term sustainability. We also support them in ensuring their operational practices mirror to the extent possible the values they defend. In today’s context, peacebuilders urgently need OD support to respond to new threats, manage shifting priorities, right-size operations, and forge new partnerships that will enable them to continue fulfilling their mission.
How we work with Organisational Development
We take a long-term approach to organisational change. We help our partners to set priorities and align resources behind them, through a process that involves different parts of their institution.
An introduction to our approach:
- We support our partners in grounding organisational change in the specific political, social, and cultural contexts in which they operate.
- Together, we develop a tailored roadmap with clear objectives and indicators of progress. We build in regular reflection points to capture lessons learned and adjust to new developments along the way.
- Our process is designed to reflect the values of our partners and help them better “walk the talk” of their mission. It is participatory, transformative, and driven by the organisation’s own priorities.
- We help our partners recruit the most appropriate expertise to meet their needs.
- We stay alongside our partners throughout the process, offering feedback, strategic advice, and encouragement as they experience the inevitable ups and downs of organisational change.
We help partners to :
- Analyse and adapt to the context(s) they work in
- Clarify their own role, positioning and strategic priorities
- Strengthen their governance and build constituencies in their context
- Translate strategic priorities into programmes, action plans or advocacy approaches
- Adapt their internal processes and/or organisational model to have them reflect their core values and engage in equitable partnerships
- Develop strategic alliances and stronger coalitions including at the community level
- Embed monitoring and learning into organisational practice
- Build the capacities of staff accordingly
Through our collective initiatives, we create spaces for change champions to reflect on their role and lessons learned and receive support from peers leading similar change processes. We support peer-learning spaces for:
- Funders working on organisational development and peacebuilding
- Consultants working on organisational development and peacebuilding within some of our regions
- Practitioners working on governance and peacebuilding
- Practioners working on gender and peacebuilding
- Funders and practitoners working on locally-led peacebuilding