Between the 16th and the 18th of March 2018, the cycle of workshops on “DISASTER MANAGEMENT. PROJECT AND PROGRAM MANAGEMENT FOR EMERGENCIES” for Master HOPE – in Humanitarian Operations in Emergencies, Managing Projects, People Administration & Logistic in the Field, December 2017 Edition, was held in Rome, at Polo Didattico. It was led by Silva Ferretti, Independent Consultant, Humanitarian and Development Professional.
The workshop was highly interactive and of a participatory nature, it focused on exploring the most suitable approaches to effectively manage humanitarian programs.
The core objectives of the workshops were to:
- Understand what project and program management involve for humanitarian programs;
- Compare different approaches for project/program management (e.g. linear VS adaptive; top-down VS participatory);
- Practically use concepts and tools in simulations and exercises.
Practical challenges were added to the theoretical contents, which fellows faced in groups, effectively learning by doing. First, they were asked to write a concept note using the Theory of Change. Then, during a skype connection with Tanja Berretta (Senior EU Partnership Manager at Plan International and Adviser of the Master), they simulated a contact with a donor, where Tanja indicated the requirements and characteristics of the project she wanted to be submitted to the donor. Finally, during a second skype connection, all groups were invited to elaborate the project in a consortium.
Although the approach represented a challenge, and generated some concern among fellows, in the end the proposal was highly valued for its formative and experiential value. Students said they “really liked all the tips, inputs, suggestions Silva gave. She showed many interesting tools. She helped us think out of the box, assume our responsibilities and understand that creativity can help us achieve better results”.
