Elrha effective partnerships by Savage and Gray Design Ltd

Effective Partnerships Workshop Introduction What is this Handbook going to do for you? This Handbook is designed to assist early stage partnership groups chart a course through the first five stages of the Partnering Cycle (see diagram below). These five steps consist of: Scoping needs and options Identifying potential partners Building relationships Mapping and Planning Governance and structures

Activities in the partnering cycle Sustaining Outcomes

• Discussions on ‘moving on’ choices • Recognition and celebration of

the partnership’s achievements

Scoping & Building Sustaining Outcomes

• Reaching agreement on type of information for the public domain

• Identification of further champions and spheres of influence

• Work to ensure that

outcomes are sustained

• Management of closure / moving on procedures Reviewing and Revising

• Agree evaluation procedures • Assess the impact of the partnership • Draw out and apply lessons • Review efficiency of the partnership • Review the added value to partners • Brainstorm new ideas / developments

• Make any necessary changes to project or partnering arrangements

Scoping needs & options Moving on

Scoping & Building

- Energising and enthusing

Building relationships

- Early relationship building - Managing expectations - Initial / outline planning

The Partnering Cycle

Mapping & planning

Agreeing to partner

Reviewing efficiency & value

Governance & structure

Deepening engagement

Monitoring results

Reviewing & Revising

partners / donors / decision-makers

• Scoping the possibilities

Identifying potential partners

Scaling & increasing impact

Revisiting & revising

• Initiating the idea of partnering • Making the case to potential

Delivering projects

Managing & Maintaining

- Helping partners to reach agreement

Managing & Maintaining

• Secure resource commitments • Build governance arrangments • Deepen organisational engagement • develop a communications plan • Build partnering capacity • Problem solve constructively • Agree benchmarks for later evaluation

Adapted from: The Partnering Toolbook

These five steps, if worked through thoroughly and consistently, will provide the bedrock for your collaboration and help plan the later stages after implementation, where you might be planning to scale your activities up, think about research outreach and uptake, rework the project on the basis of lessons learned, or terminate the partnership as the project objectives have either been achieved or something has gone disastrously wrong (this last situation is what we all want to avoid!)

We will, therefore, be visiting aspects of Monitoring and Evaluation, Research Uptake Strategies and Knowledge Transfer processes, but in less detail, as at the stage in your partnership that you will be if you are reading this Handbook, will be in the top right hand corner of the Partnering Cycle.

Brief introduction to the concept of Partnership There are a number of definitions of partnership, plus the terms partnership and collaboration are frequently interchangeable, so what do we mean by partnership when it comes to researchers and practitioners joining forces for humanitarian work? ELRHA’s Effective Partnership Programme believes in the three guiding principles of partnership: Equity Transparency Mutual Benefit

Equity The research funding landscape is dominated by US, UK and European donors. As such, this brings an inequality to the majority of research funding partnerships before they even get to sit round a table to explore ideas. It is therefore critical that those members of any collaboration who lack funds, resources or experience are enabled to feel that their seat at that table is as important through other benefits they can bring to the project. Imbalances of power are commonplace in these complex, multi-country, trans-disciplinary research programmes. Whilst the espoused values articulated in KFPE’s Guide for Transboundary Research Partnerships as “The days when research partnerships were understood as vehicles for a one-way transfer of knowledge ... from North to South are over. Today, the focus is on increasing both knowledge and know-how while at the same time fostering the capacities of all parties involved, including all stakeholders and junior scientists” (KFPE 2014), the in-practice reality is often very different. ELRHA seeks to address this through its Partnership Brokering Workshops and provide a safe space, where all partners can address their concerns, identify challenges and seek ways of overcoming or mitigating their impact further ahead in the journey.

Transparency Trust is a vital part of any collaboration – especially one that involves people working in many different countries and bringing together people who might not necessarily be familiar with different cultures, ways of working and institutional protocols. Communication is therefore extremely important – good communication brings about greater transparency and builds trust. Hidden agendas can frequently derail a partnership, often much further down the line when more has been committed in terms of time, resources and effort. It is therefore important to tease these out early on. We will work with you to establish what your individual organisational objectives are, what the overall objectives of the collaboration are and see where there might be tensions. Once identified, we would work with you to seek ways to overcome these. This does not mean that there needs to be compromise or a race to the lowest common denominator, but it is not healthy for the partnership to have one or more parties unhappy with what they need to achieve as individual organisations within the collaboration at the expense of the overall objectives.

Mutual benefit This leads on from the last point. A partnership needs to be able to demonstrate that it will achieve an objective that is greater than the sum of the objectives its individual parts might achieve. “A fusion of resources for the accomplishment of a unique and shared objective” (ACF 2010). And at the same time, it must also satisfy all parties’ individual objectives. In any relationship, reciprocity is important and the notion of mutual benefit links closely with the Equity principle – no one party must be seen to benefit more than the others. That is why it is important, under the Transparency principle, to find out exactly what each party is seeking to gain from the partnership.

Structure of the Workshop Much of what we will be using in terms of tools and techniques have been derived from a number of sources, however, the main ethos is driven by principles outlined by The Partnering Initiative, who has provided tools and training for partnership brokers working in the humanitarian and development sectors worldwide. The workshop will comprise a number of different, highly interactive sessions where you will be working both in your partnership groups and in plenary to explore the following: Aims and Objectives – individual and collective Who brings what to the collaboration and where there might be gaps Challenges to the collaboration – current and anticipated Learn a bit about yourselves and how your behaviours change in different situations What to look for when seeking out additional partners Planning your project: the partnership, the research question, methodologies Planning for later in the collaboration: short term, sustaining the partnership, scaling up, exit strategies Administrative and bureaucratic functions: Finance and budgeting, legal requirements, human resource considerations, communication strategies and which kind of agreement is best for your partnership We would ask that you approach the workshop with an open mind, a willingness to participate at all levels and be honest with yourself and each other. This is a confidential and safe space where we at ELRHA only want to see you succeed in every aspect of your collaborative endeavour.

Frances Hill Effective Partnerships Manager ELRHA

References Author

Date

Publication

Action contre le Faim

2008

Research Policy ADF International, Positioning Paper

Action contre le Faim

2010

Adminstrative, Legal and Financial management of operational partnerships in the field

Action contre le Faim

April 2012

ACF Ethics and Research

Bohnet, M

April 2012

Hidden Links, Development and Cooperation Vol39:4, BMZ, Germany www.dandc.eu

Booth, J

2007

A rough guide to working in partnership, Aimhigher Nottingham

Burke, J & Pearson, L

May 2013

Carbonnier, G & Kontinen, T

June 2014

North-South Research Partnership: Academia Meets Development? EADI Policy Paper Series

Enhancing Learning and Research for Humanitarian Assistance (ELRHA)

2012

Guide to Constructing Effective Partnerships (http://ep.elrha.org)

International NGO Training and Research Centre (INTRAC)

September 2012

Academic-NGO Collaboration in International Development Research: a reflection on the issues

NCVO

2012 (downloaded)

Consortia and subcontracts How to develop Consortia and mergers Action Plan Template: Hub and Spoke model Action Plan Template: Lead Agency model

August 2013

Beyond the Organisation Part 1: Understanding the Business Issues in Partnering Arrangements

2014

A Guide for Transboundary Research Partnerships: 11 Principles and 7 Questions 2nd Edition

Updated April 2014

Ebola virus disease Fact sheet NÂ°103 http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs103/en/

Sparrow, P & Miller, J Centre for Performance Led HR, Lancaster University & Chartered Institute for Professional Development (CIPD) Swiss Commission for Research Partnerships with Developing Countries (KFPE) WHO

Intermediary Mechanisms in Humanitarian Collaboration Betwixt & Between Issue 1, Partnership Brokers Association

Reviewing relevance & value

Reviewing & Revising

Revisiting & revising

Increasing uptake & impact

Sustained Outcomes

rch

Up t

Capturing results

se a

Scoping research questions Identifying potential partners

ake / Us

Conducting Research

er Engagement

Money arrives

Deepening engagement

Scoping & Building

Adapted from: The Partnering Toolbook

Managing & Maintaining

Governance, structure & ethics

Mapping & planning

Building relationships

Agreeing to partner

The Research Partnering Cycle

Moving on

The Partnering Initiative, Partnership Brokers Association and training

I would like to acknowledge the support of The Partnering Initiative for many of the tools provided in this Workshop Handbook. I have found them invaluable in framing my thoughts around how to take partnerships forward and to the next level. I hope you find them useful too. If any of you are interested in taking a further look at their work and perhaps consider one of their courses, I strongly recommend it. More information about the training can be found at http://thepartneringinitiative.org/w/professional-development/pbt/

Frances Hill Research Partnerships Manager ELRHA

Aims and objectives

Resource mapping

Challenges to the partnership

Understanding each other

Scoping partners & stakeholders

Planning: initial stages

Planning: later stages

Business aspects of partnering

Proposal / EOI development tips

10. Next steps and further reading

Aims and objectives

Aims And Objectives: Individual And Collective This section will help you identify three things: The overall collective objective of your collaboration What you as an individual organisation or personally need to achieve within the collaboration What success will look like

Step One When sitting with your partnership group, review Infosheet 1. Then, on Post It notes, each of you write down the following: what you personally understand to be the top three collective objectives between 2 – 4 objectives for your own organisation

Step Two On a flipchart, divide a sheet into two halves, with a top and a bottom. Place the collective objective Post It onto the top half, and the individual organisational objectives onto the bottom half. Discuss among the group, asking yourselves: Are there any surprises? Are there any potential conflicts? How similar are your understandings of the shared goals?

Step Three Map the agreed collective and organisational objectives onto Worksheet 1 and put to one side. You will need this when working on the Planning Module.

Step Four As a group, physically draw what you think “good” will look like. The idea is that all members of the group contribute to this picture and you come out with an agreed shared vision. There might not be time for this but it is a bit of fun and can generate some interesting discussions! Capture the key elements of your discussion and use Infosheet 1 for ideas and guidance of what needs further discussion. Aim to arrive at an agreed set of success criteria for your partnership that you write up on Worksheet 2.

Considerations: During the partnership and proposal building process, it is useful to think at each stage about the following to ensure consistency, and not to lose sight of aspects dealt with earlier on in the process. • Transaction costs vs benefits? • Possible obstacles and risks? • What are the broad project / research areas? • What resources / expertise are needed? • Is there capacity for flexibility / responsiveness? • Is the organisation ready / fit for partnering? • Are there potential unintended consequences?

Individual Interests, Positions and Shared Interests This diagram demonstrates the relationship between underlying interests and positions which need to be worked through in order to arrive at agreed shared interests. By understanding how your individual organisational objectives relate to a position that might not fit with the shared objectives, it can inform the basis of a group discussion. The area that a truly collaborative partnership needs to be is the Shared Interests triangle in the middle bottom half of the diagram. Such discussions may not be necessary for all partnership groups, with there being no ‘hard’ positions that any members are taking, but it is useful to point out early in any partnership journey that, should any such issues arise, it is important to address them straight away. Individual interests do need to be taken account of and are important – they are major drivers of a desire to collaborate, but they must be in harmony with / complementary to, the overall collective or shared interest which must be agreed by all members of the collaboration. It is also important that the shared objectives are not so much of a compromise to all parties that they lose meaning to individual organisations, as this will lead to a loss of motivation and ownership of their particular contribution to the shared objective.

drivers, priorities, hopes, needs, values, external pressures

Positions

Individual interests Shared interests

Progress / breakthrough comes when you can get beneath the ‘position’ to understand and address the underlying ‘interests’ – where you can expand out from some area of shared interest – this is known as interest-based negotiation Source: Acland

Worksheet 1: Project Objectives Shared objectives

Individual organisations objectives

What are the issues that emerged from your discussions? What surprised you? Interested you? Are there potential conflicts? How similar are your shared understandings of your shared objectives?

Infosheet 1: Understanding Partnership Success Factors Approach Partnership process is well understood by all partners

Programmes of work are jointly designed and implemented Partners are flexible (whenever and wherever they can be) and clear about their constraints/â&#x20AC;&#x2122;non-negotiablesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; (if there are any) Partners have a genuine voice at the table and their contribution is respected

Behaviours and Competencies

Individuals involved have the necessary skill set Individuals involved have the necessary mindset There is genuine engagement within each partner organisation Enough (but not too much) time is allocated to partnership-building

Efficiency / Effectiveness

Partnership is well managed Partnership has strong / appropriate communications in place Senior management buy-in from each partner organisation Systems in place to support partnering activities

Results / Productivity

Partnership is outcome and output oriented Partners are achieving their organisational goals as well as shared goals Partnership is maximising value to each organisation involved Partnership is achieving wider impact & influence

Source: Hundal & Tennyson, The Partnership Brokers Association

Worksheet 2: Shared Vision of Success 1. What will good look like?

2. What are your success criteria for the partnership? (How will you know if you have got there?)

Resource mapping

Resource Mapping This section will help you identify two things: What each of you or your individual organisations bring to the collective. Where there might be gaps.

Step One Using Infosheet 3 as a prompt, have each member of the group individually write down any resources they know they can bring to the collective on Post It notes. These need not just be physical resources such as money or office space spheres of influence, access to data, communities, networks, academic esteem and local knowledge are all important factors that can “oil the wheels” of a partnership.

Step Two While the group are doing this, divide two sheets of flipchart paper into quarters giving each quarter a heading aligned with the headings in Worksheet 3. When the groups have finished get them to place their Post It notes into the relevant squares. It will be immediately obvious where the group is either under- or over- resourced.

Step Three As a group look at the flipcharts and address the following questions: What does the audit of resources tell you? Are there any gaps? What are the potential cost considerations of these gaps?

Step Four Map these onto Worksheet 3 and put to one side. It will be needed to help build the Planning Document.

Considerations: • The partner representatives around the table need to have the authority to be able to offer these resources. Check this as the resources are offered. • Some aspects will need to be investigated later and might form part of the Due Diligence checks further down the line.

Worksheet 3: Resource Mapping Physical Resources

Credibility / Esteem

Information

Knowledge

People

Networks

Contacts

Other

Write conclusions/ gaps / issues below

HR Accountability Frameworks

Social media skills / blogging

Research Methods

Adapted from The Partnering Initiative

Statistics

Synthesis for variety of stakeholders Translation

Communications

Marketing

Facilitation / Convening

Networks Reputation

Training / Capacity Building

Word of Mouth Published Materials

Project Development

Management

Electronic Communication Systems

Technical

Research Uptake:

Social and political environment

Furniture

Expertise:

Local knowledge

Equipment

Information Capture / Generation

Research Methodology Skills

Academic / Research Impact demonstrated?

Publications track records

Reputation of NGOs – local & international

Statistics / Legal / Ethical Frameworks

Transport

Funding

WHAT CAN EACH PARTNER BRING TO THE PARTNERSHIP?

Enablers

Other:

Gatekeepers

General Public

Public Information Points

Administrative Support

Media

Project Activities

Local Researchers

Legal

Community Groups

Storage

Volunteers

Local Researchers

NGOs

High Profile Events

Interns

Finance

Academics

Reputation of National Researchers

Policy makers

Meetings / Workshops

Reputation of Principal Investigator

Credibility / Esteem

Donors

Relationships with:

Project Manager / Research Manager

Accommodation for:

Examples of ‘Soft’ Resources

Partnership / Project Office / Secretariat

Specialist staff / Researchers

People:

Examples of ‘Hard’ Resources

Infosheet 2: Resources

Challenges to the partnership

Challenges And Risks This section will help you identify two things: Barriers to success Areas of Risk – both current and future

Step One Transcribe the agreed shared objectives and individual organisational objectives onto a Flipchart, leaving plenty of space between each objective.

Step Two Get each partner to write down on Post It notes what they see as particular challenges to achieving the objectives. Then ask each partner to place their Post It notes next to the objective for which they have identified a potential challenge or risk and explain a bit about why they see it as an obstacle. Infosheet 4 lists some of the challenges frequently faced by a partnership.

Step Three Cluster the Post It notes into similarly identified challenges as a group and then discuss which are the three most likely to occur and those that could have the biggest impact.

Step Four Enter these ‘Top 3’ onto Worksheet 4 and discuss as a group how these challenges might be overcome, mitigated against or managed.

Step Five Enter these into the table on Worksheet 4.

“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together” N’Gambai African Proverb (Chad region)

Infosheet 3: Examples of what can get in the way of Success Different levels of expectation Poor communication between Lead Partner and other members Language barriers Lack of clarity on the definition of partnership and everyoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s roles Power imbalances within the partnership Required / forced partnership can endanger partnership sustainability Lack of trust Having assumptions about a partnership (links with first point above) Too much trust (cutting corners, less regulatory structures, too informal) External influences upsetting the partnership (political, social, environmental) Personal individual interest not linked to partnership objectives and not revealed early on Negative dynamic (changing people and institutions) Some members of the partnership having already worked together Inflexible mindsets Lack of commitment to overall purpose of the partnership Preconceived perceptions of institutions / organisations by other members Different capacities to engage in the partnerships Lack of alignment of systems and cultures Work on different timescales and routines / calendars Different cultural ways of doing things Please feel free to add more from your own experiences!

Worksheet 4: Overcoming barriers to success What are our most significant potential barriers to success? 1.

How can we avoid / overcome these?

Understanding each other

Understanding Each Other This section of the handbook will help you identify three things: How you as individuals work as a team Greater insight into your partners’ traits Whether your team is missing certain ‘types’ This might seem a rather daunting area to explore, but it is actually good fun and highly illuminating. People are often surprised by what is thrown up by this kind of exercise and it can produce a change in behaviour once certain traits have been brought to light.

Step 1 In this session we will ask you to work your way through Tool 1 which is a Strength Deployment Inventory (not included in this Handbook). It helps people identify their personal strengths in relating to others under two conditions: 1. When everything is going well, and 2. When they are faced with conflict

Step 2 Fill out Worksheet 5: Understanding each other, to note down the implications for the partnership in your view, how to get the best out of each partner, based on the SDI results and what might happen in potential conflict situations

Also in this Section Worksheets Worksheet 5: Understanding each other

Tools Tool 1: Strength Deployment Inventory (available separately at the workshop)

Worksheet 5: Understanding each other What are the MVS Colours of my partners? 1.

What are the implications for our partnership? What will we need to pay attention to?

How will I get the best out of my partner(s)?

Where do we go in conflict? 1.

Scoping partners & stakeholders

Scoping Potential Partners And Stakeholders This section of the handbook will help you identify two things: Potential new partners that might be required after gaps have been identified How to scope and manage important stakeholders for the project These exercises will help you arrive at a decision on type of agreement that is most appropriate for your consortium.

Also in this Section

Worksheets Worksheet 6: Potential new partners or stakeholders

Tools Tool 2: Stakeholder mapping Tool 3: Partner assessment form Tool 4: Partnering roles and skills questionnaire There may not be time to use all the tools in this section as it may well be something you will need to go away and think about to discuss after this workshop. They are however, useful in helping you frame how you go about identifying a partner and analysing their strengths and weaknesses in relation to your aims and objectives as well as the current partnership.

TOOL 2: Stakeholder Mapping This is a three stage process and designed to identify all the organisations and individuals who need to be taken account of by a potential partnership project and who might play some role in the partnerships. To be used in the early Scoping phase.

Definitions The Stakeholder Mapping exercises provide a systematic approach to identifying all interested / interesting parties and begins to help to distinguish the roles each of these might take in relation to a new partnership project. Initially the information will be limited and the mappings will need to be adjusted as more information comes in. Stakeholders can be defined as : Those whose interests are affected by the issue or those whose activities strongly affect the issue Those who possess resources of all kinds (financial, influence, expertise) needed for strategy formulation and implementation Those who control relevant implementation ‘instruments’ (usually the public sector - local government for example)

Stage 1: Initial Sweep In the first stage, as many organisations and individuals from across the sectors are identified and mapped in a grid similar to the one below, with their specific interest detailed in the relevant box. A fictitious example could look something like the table below:

EXAMPLE: Programme Title: Impact of Gender Based Violence on Health Outcomes Research Programme

Stakeholder

Affecting

Affected by

International Research Institute

Communities being surveyed

Regulatory frameworks; Institutional constraints

Methodology; Specialisms; Academic credibility

Research outreach

As above; Limited access to international publication outlets

Local landscape knowledge

Research implementation

National Research Institute

Resources

Instrument

National NGO

Local Communities

Funding

Local knowledge; Local access

Implementing partner

Village Elders

Local Communities

Local Government

Access to Village communities

Influence within community

Local Community/ Women’s Groups

Knowledge base / Research

Village Elders; Cultural norms; Local Government

No data without Research subjects access to these groups

Donor

Programme

Political and financial environment

Money; Context setting

Funding

Stage 2: Influence against Interest Stakeholders are mapped within a â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Boston Squareâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; to capture the degree to which each stakeholder has influence over the relevant issues / possible partnership objectives and their level of interest.

Degree of Influence

Strong Influence (important to partnership) but low interest

Strong influence, high interest

High interest but low influence

Low priority

3 Level of Interest Ideal partners will have both a strong influence over and high interest in the objectives of the partnership. However, it is rarely so clear cut. By classifying stakeholders in this way, one can determine cases where: 1. Significant awareness raising is required to turn a highly influential but low interest stakeholder into an interested potential partner; or 2. Significant capacity development is required to turn a stakeholder with high interest but low influence into a stronger potential partner.

Build Capacity

1 3

Raise Awareness

Degree of Influence

3 Level of Interest 30

Stage 3: Roles and Degree of Involvement Multiple different organisations and individuals might play roles in a partnership project but not necessarily as partners. For example, in Ethiopia, no project can go ahead without Woreda and Kebele authorisation, but the local government officials would not form part of the implementing partnership group. They are however a critical set of stakeholders in order to allow the project to go ahead. This stage of the mapping process begins to outline the roles and level of engagement of the various stakeholders. As the partnership is developed and relationships are built, stakeholders may well change their roles.

Role Partner

Stakeholders UK Research Institute, National Research Institute, Local NGO

Contractor Influencer / Champion

Village Elders

Disseminator

Research Institutes, Relevant Networks, Research Portals eg: ELDIS, SciDevNet

Funder

Moneypenny Foundation

Informer / Consultation

Local Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Groups

Knowledge Provider

National Research Institute, Local Government

Regulator

State, Woreda and Kebele government; Research Ethics Review Boards; Medical Ethics Boards

Beneficiary

Other communities facing similar issues (eventually)

Other

Stakeholder

Stage 1 Tool: Initial Sweep

Affecting

Affected by

Resources

Instrument

Other

Beneficiary

Regulator

Knowledge Provider

Informer / Consultation

Funder

Disseminator

Influencer / Champion

Contractor

Partner

Role

Name of organisation(s)

Stage 3 Tool: Roles and Degree of Involvement Degree of involvement

TOOL 3: Partner Assessment Form This tool is designed as a ‘prompter’ to enable those creating a partnership to ask systematic questions of any potential partner to ensure a good fit with the goals / needs of the partnership. It should be used as a starting point for exploring a potential relationship by providing the basis for frank discussions with the key players involved at both senior and operational levels. It is designed to raise appropriate questions rather than provide definitive ‘screening’.

Does the prospective partner have:

Current Status

Further Actions:

A review of: • What you know so far • Reliability of information sources • Whether you have enough information to base a decision

A note of: • Further information required • Remaining concerns • Timetable & criteria for making a decision as to suitability

1. A good track record (Academic / Operational) 2. Reasonable standing / respect within their field 3. Reasonable standing / respect within other fields and key players 4. Wide-ranging / useful contacts they are willing to share 5. Access to relevant information / resources / knowledge 6. Skills / competencies complementary to your organisation and other partners 7. Sound management and governance structures 8. Record of financial stability and reliability 9. Stable staff group 10. Sticking power when things get tough

Are the Staff in the prospective organisation… 11. Experienced / reliable in the development of projects 12. Successful at mobilising and managing resources 13. Good Communicators 14. Good team players Adapted from The Partnering Initiative Handbook

TOOL 4: Partner Roles and Skills Questionnaire This is designed for individuals involved in partnerships to assess their own skills in order to build confidence and skills strengths and strategies to address weaknesses. It can be used as a group to build a picture of the competencies within the partnership and to identify which partner is best equipped to undertake specific tasks and roles. It can also be used as a tool to identify those skills that might need to be brought in from outside the collaboration.

Partner Name and Affiliation ________________________________________________________________ Role Assessment (1 = low, 5 = high)

Key roles in partnerships

Assessment of current capacity in this area

Strategy for improvement if necessary

Partnership / project championship

Awareness raising

Co-ordination / Administration

Relationship Management

Resource Mobilisation

Project / Programme Planning

Project / Programme Management

Communications

Monitoring

Other (specify)

Skills Assessment

Assessment of current capacity in this area

Strategy for improvement if necessary

Negotiation

Mediation

Facilitation

Synthesising Information

Coaching / Capacity Building

Institutional Engagement

Institutional Strengthening

Evaluating / Reviewing

Other (specify)

Planning: initial stages

Planning This section will help you identify / establish four things based on the three previous sections on Aims and Objectives, Resource Mapping and Challenges / Risks to the Partnership: A summary of shared and individual objectives Key success factors Who will provide what for each activity A rough timeline for the first year of the programme

Step One Bring together Worksheets 1 and 3 and transcribe these onto the first page of Worksheet 6 (the Planning Tool)

Step Two On flip chart paper, draw a line half way down and head the top half Month 1, the bottom half Month 2. Do this for either a 6 or 12 month period (depending on how much room you have!). Pin these to the wall.

Step Three Each partner to write on Post It notes the activities for which they are either taking a lead or involved in (Each partner to have a designated colour Post It notes). Cluster these onto the Monthly Flipchart pages. As a group, discuss the activities and agree which month they should be entered. If it is an ongoing activity then place a Post It in each month.

Step Four List the activities and their timings on Tool 5 (Timeline Gantt Chart).

Step Five Using Worksheet 3 (Resource Mapping), go to the second page of Tool 6, map out the activities, discuss as a group which resources are required for which activity and mark each partner column that is able to provide that input or resource. If there are resources required that are not provided by any partner, they will need to be procured by the programme and included in the budget. Mark in the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Project to procureâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; column any such resources required. This particular sheet can feed into any agreement that might be worked up, as it outlines areas of responsibility for actions and input.

Considerations: The Learning and Skills Improvement Service have the following to say on the practice of implementation planning: Research shows that implementation planning is likely to be more effective when: • A small group of senior leaders from across the partnership is responsible for the implementation plan • It draws on expertise from across all members of the partnership and on previous successes in implementation planning • The plan is shared so that the implementation programme is clear to all those involved • The plan is regularly reviewed to check progress and to amend the plan if necessary • Risks are identified and actions are taken to reduce them • The plan is set out in a consistent and systematic way • All proposed action is summarised on a timeline to ensure that commitments across the period of the plan are manageable

etc

Recruit Staff

Governance structures in place

Office / Secretariat establishment

Month: Week

Year:

First Year Timeline

2 3

TOOL 5: Activity Timeline Gantt Chart

4 5

Tool 6: Partnership outline planning tool SHARED OBJECTIVES 1 2 3 4 INDIVIDUAL ORGANISATION OBJECTIVES ORGANISATION

OBJECTIVES

EVIDENCE OF SUCCESS

*Need to include specifically in the budget

Research Methodology

Conduct baseline

Set up programme office

Example:

ACTIVITIES

X X

Phone lines

Internet

Access to refugee pop

In country researchers

Furniture

Laptops / IT

National Rsch Inst

Office space

RESOURCES REQUIRED

UK Rsch Inst

National imp. agency 4

PARTNERS (Refer to Resource Map)

Project to procure *

Planning: later stages

Sustaining The Partnership This section will help you work through some key questions that will tease out the state of the partnership as it progresses. There are some key tips for maintaining a healthy partnership as well as suggested activities to review the partnership, a review tool and moving on options planning for the longer term. We will not have time to cover these in detail during the workshop, but they are included in this handbook so that you can take them away and use them later on during the partnership.

In this Section Info Sheets Infosheet 4: Tips for maintaining a healthy partnership Infosheet 5: Planning for the longer term and exit strategies Infosheet 6: How to say goodbye

Tools: Tool 7: Partnership review template Tool 8: Programme review template

Infosheet 4: Tips for maintaining a healthy partnership Meet regularly, either face to face or via Skype – this builds up rapport and trust Maintain a group email list – excluding partners from email correspondence can erode trust Keep regular communication between implementers and those making strategic decisions Have one central point of contact for the partnership, both internally and externally. This will ensure that things do not get missed or duplicated. Be aware of and respect partners’ constraints – for example IT / Internet provision / Time differences / the rhythm of people’s calendars – eg: academics have pinch points where they will not be available Where possible, provide resources to overcome these constraints – eg: ensure the programme has the best internet access available, decent computers etc. Review your plans regularly to see that they still fit and are on track (see Tool 8 later in this section) Be flexible within the structure of your plan – adapt and re-orient rather than stick firmly to an activity if it is not demonstrating results Circulate all changes in the plan to the whole team, outlining the implications of these changes to each member Have a good agreement in place – good agreements make for good partnerships – that all partners are happy with and that fits the nature of the collaboration. The larger the collaboration, the more formal the agreement will need to be (see next Section on Business Aspects of Partnering for more on Agreements) Make sure that those who agree to changes, sign the agreement and offer resources to the partnership have the authority to do so within their own organisations. Manage expectations for individual partners and the partnership as a whole during the life of the programme / partnership as well as what is planned for the end of the particular partnership (usually funding) timeframe In your enthusiasm to participate, do not over commit your time or resources Keep abreast of what is going on externally that might impact on the partnership – political, institutional, financial and security situations will need to be monitored continually Have a risk assessment matrix in place to identify those risks that would have the greatest impact on the partnership activities and are most likely to happen Don’t be afraid to talk to your funder if there are internal or external changes – whilst donor frameworks are becoming increasingly prescriptive, there is usually a human being on the other side! Learn from others

TOOL 7: Partnership Review Template Focus

What is working well

Collaborative leadership and governance Shared vision / objective Individual partner objectives Role of the lead partner Roles of other partners Roles of other participating organisations / stakeholders Operation of the agreement Collaborative processes Collaboration on staffing / staff development Collaborative use of resources and facilities Operating procedures / systems Trust and relationships within the partnership Relationships with stakeholders Relationship with donor Communication â&#x20AC;&#x201C; internal and external Other significant aspects Adapted from Learning and Skills Improvement Service

What could be improved

Action plan: Who, when, what & how?

Infosheet 5: Planning for the longer term and exit strategies A partnership needs to have a ‘moving on’ strategy, both collectively and individually. Some partners might need to leave the partnership before the programme has come to the end of a particular stage, some new partners might join along the way. In most partnerships there will be an issue of succession – the process of handing over from ‘founders’ to ‘followers’. However, in the case of research partnerships, it is usually the case that once the funding ceases, the programme closes. It might be that the partnership goes on to seek further funding for its work, or move onto another project with different partners. On the whole, there are four different ‘moving on’ scenarios:

Scenario

Individual partner organisations leave the partnership

Comments Individuals may leave the partnership at any time. Succession planning is therefore vital in order to: • Ensure the partnership survives the departure of those individuals • Enable newcomers to catch up and fit in quickly • Enlist the active engagement of those who join later even though their operational style is likely to be different from their predecessors

Partnership disbands (1)

Partners may decide that one of the partner organisations is now best placed to manage and develop a programme of work independently. In this case, the partners will agree to hand over the partnership’s activities and assets to this partner. Perhaps key individuals from other partner organisations may stay involved in an advisory capacity but responsibility will no longer rest with the partnership itself

Partnership disbands (2)

Partners decide to create a completely new cross-sector institution to take over the management and development of the partnership. There are a number of choices and partners may need some external help in selecting the most appropriate one. As above, individuals from the partnership may take on advisory roles during the transition phase

Partnership is terminated

Most formal research partnerships last for as long as there is funding for that particular research project. A few committed individuals may continue with research uptake and dissemination if their own resources permit, or they may feed into further programmes of research, either with the same partnership group or with new partners. It is important, that when a partnership is terminated, that the achievements are celebrated, and that the disbanding of the partnership group for this particular set of activities is not perceived as a failure

Adapted from The Partnering Initiative

Activity 5

Activity 4

Activity 3

Activity 2

(from implementation plan â&#x20AC;&#x201C; expand this table to fit all relevant activities to date)

Activity 1

Development Area Complete On track

Complete On track

Main outcomes:

Complete On track

Main outcomes:

Main outcomes: Delayed

Main outcomes:

Main outcomes: Delayed

Main outcomes:

Main outcomes: Delayed

Main outcomes:

Main outcomes: Delayed

Month 2

Month 1 Delayed

Delayed

Month 3

Main outcomes:

Complete On track

Main outcomes:

Complete On track

Main outcomes:

Complete On track

Main outcomes:

Complete On track

Main outcomes:

Complete On track

TOOL 8: Programme Review Template - 3 month schedule

Delayed

Infosheet 6: How to say goodbye The following activities can help ensure that your agency’s departure at the end of the project is smooth and transparent. The people who have been involved in your project, including beneficiaries, staff, and local partner agencies and authorities, should know what is happening and why. Define in detail communication needs and activities. These may include: Writing a letter to staff followed by group and individual meetings Writing an official letter about project closure for regional, district, and village leaders, including elders and informal leaders Follow letters with face-to-face briefings Put a copy of the letter to village leaders on information boards Using a Question & Answer sheet to guide staff when communicating with beneficiaries about end of project Planning for the conduct of exit meetings with communities Reporting on project achievements and learning Writing a letter to other NGOs and partners. Follow with face-to-face briefings and meetings Holding focus groups and/or house-to-house visits to reach women and vulnerable groups who may be unable to attend formal meetings Using posters and leaflets, including formats appropriate for less literate people Inviting feedback/comments on project activities Collecting stories about successful work and positive community interaction Give these back to the community; for example have a photo exhibition during handover Supporting appropriate cultural activities or celebration when projects are handed over to the community Evaluating exit communication activities and recording lessons learned From T. Gorgonio (2006) ‘Notes on Accountable Exit from Communities when Programmes Close’, Oxfam GB Philippines (internal, adapted).

Business aspects of partnering

Business Aspects of Partnering This section covers: Finance and Budgeting Human Resources Agreements Communications Aspects specific to a research partnership – Ethical procedures, Intellectual Property and Research Uptake

The business aspects of the partnership process are frequently overlooked in the excitement of a potential collaboration. Different organisations have different procedures, protocols and processes that enable, or can present challenges to individuals within their organisations to engage with external actors, submit proposals and implement programmes. It is therefore important that each member of a collaboration is aware of these aspects and the timeframes within which they take place. For example, it can take many weeks, if not months, for an agreement to be finalised as it will usually need to go to the Legal team and the Financial team for sign off and due diligence checks. So it is crucial that a partnership timeline allows for this and discussions around agreements, Ethics Review Boards, HR procedures etc are looked at early on. This section contains some basic information sheets and useful resources from other organisations apart from ELRHA, that will hopefully help you and your partnership work through and plan for these processes during and after this workshop. We have also compiled a ‘Business Aspects of Partnering’ Matrix and included the latest version here. This is essentially a ‘living tool’ and is being added to all the time. If you have any suggestions to add, please do get in touch.

Business Aspects of the Research / Practitioner Partnering Cycle Partnering Cycle Stage

Finance

Legal

Communications

Research

• Identify what needs to be paid for • Establish costs • Build in percentage year on year increase for inflation (in some countries this can be very high). Donors might only allow for a maximum of 3%. Factor this into initial costs • Think about Forex/transfer fees • Outline budget / cost estimates

• List of Manpower needed

• Contact local lawyer or organisation which could support on legal aspect • Establish cost of legal support – charges if external and internal costs if in-house

• What online platforms exist that could promote your research? Research relevant networks and websites and make contact in advance of your project starting. • Do you have capacity in your team/partnership to write blogs/take good quality images of research in the field? Create a comms workplan with roles clearly agreed • Impact of research is often more meaningful when there is human interest. Plan for case study gathering activities and relate your research to the context of the local people. • Think about how the research could be translated into an accessible format for humanitarian practitioners to read and adopt. For example case studies, video clips, practical diagrams etc.

• Identify research gaps and needs • Define the Research Question to address need • Identify potential donors • Consider donor requirements (if responding to a Call)

• Perform Due Diligence (cf template)) • Assess financial capacity and risk • Assess Procurement procedures

• Perform Due diligence: • Adherence to humanitarian principles • Structural alignment • Mission, vision and values alignment • Organisational compatibility • Assess capacity (Absorptive) • Asses HR processes and duty of care • Are all employees declared? • Is there a clear Salary Grid

• Be aware of legal requirements for organisations in countries of operation: • Do organisations need to be legally registered? • Are they legally registered in country of operation? • Identify whether permission for project to operate required at national, regional, district, local government levels • Checks against the Prohibited Lists from your country of registration.

• Ideally work with a partner that has good communications support and resources. Where this isn’t possible, ensure early in the discussions time and budget is given to plan for comms activities. • Review their existing external communications and review whether they meet your standards/align with your core objectives.

• Where do we want/need to operate? • What skills / experience do we need? • Who do we know already who are suitable and might be available? • What are the gaps in the proposed team composition?

• Identify Finance focal point within each organisation • Discuss Finance Good Practice and risk mitigation • Share the need of core costs coverage that need to be taken into account • Share the possible organisational /donor constraints

• Identify HR focal point witin each organisation • Discuss HR Good practise • Expectation management • Transparency Overall accountability for HR issues relating to collaboration • Establish duty of care protocols / processes

• Identify legal focal point within each organisation • Share the legal constraints of each organisation • Share IP / Non Disclosure protocols

• Identify a key communications contact for the duration of the project who can either make decisions themselves, or establish a simple, transparent process for sign off of comms material • Keep in regular contact to build transparency, trust, share ideas and comms opportunities. • Set up group email list / wiki

• Contact potential partners • Organise a meeting (preferably face to face if resources allow, if not group Skype) • Finalise team composition • Establish communication methods and pathways with team • Discuss IP / Non Disclosure / Confidentiality protocols (British Library)

Mapping & planning

• Finalise the budget together • Resource mapping – who can provide what (hard resources such as money, office space, personnel) that will have budgetary implications • Identify Gaps in funding • Share of Donor requirements • Establish timeframe for sign off to submit proposal • Define reporting schedule and format • Plan the closing of the project (repayment of unspent funds etc…)

• Agree and accept: • Contractual terms • Accountability/responsibilities • Exit Strategy plan • Standards indicators to support performance management • Organogramme – who will do what – identify gaps in skills sets/experience • Team member job descriptions • Recruitment strategy and approval • Clearance to recruit • Determine individual career planning post project (anti brain drain)

• Invite interest for Steering Groups/Advisory Boards • Decide on type of collaboration • Decide on appropriate level of agreement / contract • Agree on ‘legal home’ (and therefore law) of the project • Agree on whose laws will govern which aspects of the project • Establish what happens to project assets at end of contract (might be subject to donor requirements)

• Start to think through communications strategy (internal and external) • Does the donor require ‘visibility’? • Agree key messages between partners so that public statements are consistent. • Agree on branding of external documents regarding logos and placement • Will the project have an overarching brand/logo? • Stakeholder analysis – who are the different audiences you want to communicate your research to? Where are they based? Think globally where appropriate. • What journals might be interested in your research? Research publishing themes in advance and make contact with journals early to ensure research is available as soon as possible.

• Refine and finalise research question/ hypothesis • Establish timelines for funding application • Establish Ethics Review Board timeframes to approve project • Design research methodology • Design strategy framework and indicators of success as required – for example, the research uptake strategy, MEL strategy and impact strategy. • Within the research uptake strategy, agree on the co-authorship policy. • Investigate Open Access options and budget for them • Plan the published outputs • Apply for funding

Governance & structure

• Finance coordination meeting in place and scheduled • Scheme of delegation approved by all stakeholders • Define the Key Performance Indicators that will be assessed for the project lifetime • Auditor identified for project

• Legal and process compliance / alignment • Governance structures in place • Induction / Training • Duty of care arrangements / security protocols – whose to observe? Who is responsible for whom and where? • Visa requirements for personnel to operate

• Data ownership / IP protocol • Sign agreement / contract • All contracts to be in place • Recruit Steering Group / Advisory Boards • Procurement policy in place

• Internal comms strategy in place – who leads on press notice developments and dissemination etc. Roles and responsibilities and signing-off procedures clearly outlined before the project begins

• Finalise Data ownership / IP protocol • Ensure all institutional requirements for research are met

• Work together on capacity building plan if needed

• Facilitation of team

• Comms can be used as a tool to monitor how research is progressing. Regular blog/reporting of activities can help lead to necessary adaptations to approach.

• Refine and finalise all strategies

Scoping needs & options

Identifying potential partners

Building relationships

Deepening engagement

• Communication within team members • Team building

• Undertake baseline data collection and analysis • For less established team members, or team members based in low resource settings, determine individual career planning post project (anti brain drain)

Business Aspects of the Research / Practitioner Partnering Cycle Partnering Cycle Stage

Delivering projects

Finance

Legal

Research

• Project fully integrated into Lead organisation’s systems • Expenses registration system in place for accurate reporting • Funds have been transferred

• Recruitment and selection of additional team members • Capacity building • Sharing learning • HR visits/support/management accompaniment • Change management considerations • Visas obtained where necessary

• External and internal comms strategy should be followed. • If conducting field-based research, ensure staff keep diaries, blog, take video logs where appropriate do document the project. • If taking photos/video of crisis affected-persons ensure consent forms are used. Children under 16 must have consent from a guardian.

• Implement research • Implement M&E, uptake and other processes according to the strategies prepared • Periodically monitor the methodology and the effectiveness of all partners; deal with problems and challenges effectively and quickly.

• Quarterly or yearly meeting on KPI and Finance reporting

• Performance management and measurement

• If using websites to promote research, use Google Analytics to monitor click through rates (CTR) to specific pages. • Referrals – which networks, other websites, social media have referred people on to your website? • Review working relationship with other key comms parner contacts – how can you improve how you coordinate comms? • Are there key stakeholders who aren’t receiving/sharing your communications?

• Analyse and synthesis all research results, alongside baseline analysis and outputs from the M&E and other processes • Prepare planned products including published articles, key messages, policy advice summaries etc. with reference to the communications plan • Agree final products with all partners and submit/release the products

• Asses the value for money of the project

• Performance management (individuals and organisations) • Sharing learning

• Agreement amendment if needed

• Points covered in ‘measuring results’ • Is there budget to explore other avenues to improve your reach?

• Implement a retrospective cost/benefit analysis (or equivalent) of project.

• Workshop on lessons learnt and how to improve the different processes in place for support department

• Workshop on lessons learnt and how to improve the different processes in place for support department • Change management • Organisational structure – does it still fit?

• Workshop on lessons learnt and how to improve the different processes in place for support department

Points covered in ‘measuring results’.

• Contact all partners for their perspectives and lessons learned in retrospect

• Define a common fundraising strategy and a partnership master budget

• Organisational development • Change management • Capacity building / skills transfer • Career development (early career academics)

• Regardless of outcome of research, lessons learnt and findings need to be spread to relevant audiences as widely as possible. • Send to key players in sector (individuals where possible) and later send a survey to those people to see if read research, if it influenced their working, if they shared it with others etc.

• Finalise research uptake implementation • Consider research outcomes and original research gaps and needs: has the gap been filled, and is it necessary and possible to replicate or scale up the research? If yes: • Identify new research gaps, needs and context • Define the new research question to scale up, or adapt the question to a new context for replication • Identify potential donors • Consider donor requirements (if responding to a Call)

• Comms opportunities often exist long after a project has ended.

• If replication or scaling up is in process, undertake a new project, with the existing or with a new team..

Measuring results

Reviewing efficiency & values

Revisiting & revising

Scaling & increasing impact

• Closure of the accounts

• Outplacement

• Financial reporting

• Closure management • Staff contract terminations • Implement Exit Strategy • Duty of care

Moving on

Communications

• Agreement termination

• Keep up to date with publishing themes of sectorappropriate journals, magazines etc and send abstract of research for review. • Keep an eye on relevant news – if research links to an article or could enhance/enlighten/discredit an article then contact the author and share. • Important to document and share successes, failures, unexpected outcomes and learnings from the research to add to the evidence base and inform future research.

• If closing the research, ensure that all research based ‘lessons learned’ are captured and shared

Finance and Budgeting

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Failing to plan is planning to failâ&#x20AC;? attributed to Alan Lakein, Author

Infosheet 7: Good Practice in Budgeting Clarity Since many different people will need to use the budget for different purposes, they should be able to understand it (and adapt it, when necessary) without any additional explanation beyond what is written down.

So keep notes on budgeting assumptions and calculations. Get organised There are several stages involved in constructing a budget before it can be submitted for approval to the governing body, so it is a good idea to prepare a budgeting timetable and commence the process early. This could be up to six months before the start of the financial year, depending on the size of the organisation and what approach has been adopted.

Estimating Costs It is important to be able to justify calculations when estimating costs. Do not be tempted to simply take last year’s budget and add a percentage amount on top for inflation. While last year’s budget could be very helpful as a starting point, it could also be very misleading and contain historical inaccuracies. One of the best approaches is to use a budget worksheet to list of all the inputs required and then specify the number and unit cost of each item.

Contingencies Contingencies are items included in a budget for unforeseen expenses. It is best to include these for the budget lines that might need a ‘cushion’ (eg salaries, insurance and fuel) rather than adding a ‘bottom line’ percentage. Every item in your budget must be justifiable – adding a percentage on the bottom is difficult to justify – and difficult to monitor, and many funders do not allow this.

Forgotten costs There is a tendency to under-estimate the true costs of running a project for fear of not getting the project funded. Here are some of the most often overlooked costs: 1. Start-up costs (eg: publicity, legal costs) 2. Central support (‘core’) costs (eg: insurance, utilities) 3. Staff related costs (eg: recruitment, training, benefits and taxes) 4. Vehicle running costs 5. Equipment maintenance and repairs (eg for photocopiers and computers) 6. Governance costs (eg: board meetings, AGM) 7. Audit fees.

Check the figures Always ask someone to review a budget to check it with a critical eye.

Tips on Writing a Budget Table 1: Shows the typical information required for a budget.

Description

Unit type

No of units A

Lunch

Delegates

Quantity B 4

Unit cost C

Total cost (AxBxC)

£5

£440

Account code 1420

Table 2: Components of a Budget Description

A short description of each line in the budget. Try to include different inputs individually in an entry of their own rather than lump similar costs all together.

Unit type

This is the basis for the costing and calculations. The unit type will vary according to the budget item. For example, if providing lunches for 22 delegates on a 4-day course, the unit type is each delegate. See below table 3 for some further examples of unit types to use for different budget items.

No. units

This specifies the number of units required for the activity. For example, providing lunches for 22 delegates on a 4-day course has 22 as the number of units.

Frequency or Quantity or Multiplier

This is useful where multiple items are required. For example, providing lunches for 22 delegates on a 4-day course has 4 as the quantity.

Unit cost

The cost of each unit as defined by the unit type. So, in line 1, we see that it costs £5.00 for lunch for each delegate.

Total cost

This is calculated by multiplying no. units x quantity x unit cost. So, the cost of lunch and refreshments for 22 delegates on each of 4 days at £5.00 per delegate costs £440 [22 x 4 x 5].

Notes

A notes or comments column is useful to clarify what the item is for and how quantities have been arrived at.

Accounts Code

Identifies how the costs are coded in the chart of accounts. This could be expanded to include columns for the programme code and funding source code.

Donor code

It is very useful to add another column which details the donor budget line code. Or a line item reference as this makes it easy to map the budget figures into the donor budget and reporting formats.

More on Unit Types Deciding on the unit type requires some careful thought as it is not always so obvious and it does depend on how the items are usually sold or priced. Here is a checklist to help you choose a unit type:

Table 3: Choosing Unit Types

Typical Budget Items:

Personnel Costs

Transport Costs

Programme administration

Project Costs

Examples of Unit Type:

Salaries, benefits & taxes

Month

Staff recruitment

Advert entry

Staff development

Days, person

Subsistence allowances (e.g. per diem)

Days, person, trip

Volunteers expenses

Session, person, trip

Fuel & lubricants

Kilometre, month

Vehicle insurance

Month or lump sum per quotation

Vehicle maintenance

Kilometre, month

Air fares

Trip/journey

Bus/taxi fares

Trip, month

Distribution costs

Kilometre, trip, month

Office rent, electricity and water

Month

Office insurance

Month or lump sum per quotation

Telephone & fax

Month

Office stationery

Month (or specify items, e.g. paper by the box, pens by the piece)

Email subscription

Month or lump sum per quotation

Postage

Month

Repairs & renewals

Month

Bank charges

Month

Audit fees

Lump sum per quotation

Room hire

Days, month

Publicity costs

Advert entry, lump sum per quotation

Publications/reference books

Month or lump sum per quotation

Training materials

Trainee, or specify per item

Professional fees (e.g. facilitator, consultant)

Days

Printing/photocopy

Copy, delegate, lump sum per quotation

Inputs (e.g. trees, pipes, tents, tools, cattle)

Piece, according to charging basis

Equipment (e.g. vehicle, computer, desk )

Piece, according to charging basis

Accommodation

Night

A A1

STAFF COSTS Project / Research staff

Travel to DRC

SUB TOTAL STAFF COSTS TRAVEL & ACCOMODATION COSTS

Consultant on Public Health Structure in remote area

Consultancy

Executive Assistant (2%)

Administrator (2%)

Support staff

Head of Public Health Research department (2%)

Public Health Research Officer (100%)

Items

NB: Your organisation will establish and maintain an inventory of all items of equipment purchased (above £1000). Moreover at the end of the grant period, the disposal of items shown on the inventory will be subject to agreement by ELRHA Programme Manager

This section covers all the equipment needed for project implementation.

SUM B C

Mobile phone

Laptop

SUB TOTAL TRAVEL COSTS EQUIPMENT

This section covers all the costs related to transport, flights, accommodation Visa costs to DRC and meals which occur during travel Accommodation and Food DRC

SUM A B

This section covers consultancy costs

This section covers costs related to staff salaries (expatriate, national...), allowances, fees, insurance and other employment costs (please specify) for support staff linked to the project

This section covers costs related to staff salaries (expatriate, national...), allowances, fees, insurance and other employment costs (please specify) for staff directly linked to the project

Line

TOOL 9: Full Budget Template

phone

laptop

pers 2

Frequency

pers

flight

Pers

Unit

Number

time

days

years

days

month

450

110

1200

650

250

400

500

2500

£100

£900

£7,240

£2,000

£440

£4,800

£156,750

£19,500

£3,750

£6,000

£9,750

£7,500

£120,000

£127,500

Frequency Unit Total cost Unit cost (GBP) (GBP)

£100

£900

£3,620

£1,000

£220

£2,400

£88,125

£19,500

£1,875

£3,000

£4,875

£3,750

£60,000

£63,750

Year 1

£3,620

£1,000

£440

£4,800

£68,625

£0

£1,875

£3,000

£4,875

£3,750

£60,000

£63,750

Year 2

SUM C D

SUB TOTAL EQUIPMENT OTHER ADMIN COSTS

ORGANISATIONAL MANAGEMENT COSTS

SUM G

NB: No contingencies are allowed

SUB TOTAL OTHERS SUM PROJECT COSTS TOTAL COST

Nairobi Conference on Health Structure in Conflict affected area

OTHERS

This section covers costs related to other items that do not fit in any previous categories (eg: Conference, workshop costs…).

SUB TOTAL ORGANISATIONAL MANAGEMENT COSTS

SUM F

Health department running costs (water, electricity…) (1%)

SUB TOTAL MLE

SUM E

Final Evaluation

Quarterly review

MONITORING LEARNING & EVALUATION

This section covers all the costs related to the project monitoring and evaluation

SUB TOTAL OTHER ADMIN COSTS

Printing costs

Stationery

Conference call (Webex)

Communication costs

Items

SUM D

This section covers all the required administrative costs not cover by the others categories and needed to ensure everything goes as smoothly as planned.

Line

conf

office

evaluation

review

lumpsum

conf

lumpsum

Unit

Number

0.24

time

months

time

times

month

120

5,000

5000

500

£0 £96,485 £96,485

£178,670 £178,670

£600

£2,000

£1,140

£300

£480

£360

£1,000

Year 1

£1,200

£9,000

£5,000

£4,000

£2,280

£600

£960

£720

£1,000

Total cost Frequency Unit (GBP) Unit cost (GBP)

Frequency

£82,185 £82,185

£1,200

£600

£7,000

£5,000

£2,000

£1,140

£300

£480

£360

£0

Year 2

Tool 10: Finance Assessment For Partners Name of Partner Organisation:

4. Financial capacity Part 1 - to be completed for all partnerships that are proposed to involve the transfer of funds or resources. Current status

Further action

Does the partner organisation have at least one bank account in its name Does the partner organisation have a functioning accounting system and processes? Income and expenses segregated by grant; Adequate control mechanisms; Ability to produce accurate financial reports. Are the financial systems and records auditable. Does the organisation operate a petty cash system with effective controls over the access and use of the cash and transparent expenditure reporting? The potential partner should have the financial and management capacity to implement the project, which is the subject of the partnership or the capacity to develop a relevant system. Is the proposed budget sufficent to cover the partnerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s core / support costs at a level appropriate to the project? If the answer to any of the questions above is no then the partnership should be managed with a CBO partner agreement not a sub-award agreement.

Part 2 - to be completed for partnerships proposed to use a CBO partner agreement There may be criteria in this section which the partner does not meet, or on which it is particularly weak. In these instances the mechanisms used to transfer funds or resources should be appropriate to the partnerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s capacity to manage them and a suitable capacity building plan to should be agreed.

Current status Does the partner have facilities to store cash securely? Does the partner have capacity to provide supporting documentation for expenditure incurred? Does the partner have persons identified who will be accountable for the funds/resources and mechanisms by which they can be held accountable by the community or others in the partner organisation? If stock is to be transferred to the partner, do they have appropriate facilities to store the items until use/distribution?

Further action

Part 3 - to be completed for partnerships proposed to use the sub-award agreement There may be criteria in this section which the partner does not meet, or on which it is particularly weak. The amount of funding or resources to be transferred, and the monitoring and reporting schedules should be adjusted to suit the partnerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s capacity. A suitable capacity building plan should also be agreed.

Current status

Further action

Does the organisation operate effective grant management systems and processes for monitoring, reporting and complying with donor requirements? Do they have an annual operating budget, which includes all expenses and revenue/income sources for all programs (with Board review and approval) Does the partner prepare annual financial reports in accordance with recognized accounting standards Can the partner can show evidence for longer term financial planning beyond project by project funding and financial sustainability evidenced by a diverse/mixed funding portfolio

Are their accounts audited by an external auditor Do they have documented internal controls, including the handling of cash and deposits, and approval over spending and disbursements Do they have appropriate delegations for the size of their organisation Does their finance team have effective End of Month procedures and reconciliations Do they have an asset register which includes identifying funding source Do they have robust and transparent procurement procedures which comply with [Name of Lead Organisation] procurement requirements or are they willing to adopt [Name of Lead Organisation] procurement procedures? Do they have appropriate insurance policies for the cash and assets of their organisation? Does the partner have adequate HR and operations capacity or the willingness to develop such.

Human Resources

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Bad collaborations yield bad scienceâ&#x20AC;?

Jonathan Mann, Founder, WHO Global Programme on Aids

Infosheet 8: Writing Good Job Descriptions A well written job description improves an organisation’s ability to attract and select the most suitable person for the role. You are selling your job to the best candidates just as much as they are selling themselves to you. In brief, job descriptions should be easy to understand and should provide a clear picture of the specific role and how it fits within the wider programme. Complicated wording or fussy presentation may discourage the right people from applying and can reflect poorly on your programme/organisation. It is essential to invest the necessary time and effort from the outset in consulting all relevant stakeholders. This prevents unnecessary changes to the job description further down the line which may negatively impact the hiring process.

Key Points Be clear on what the role is and what type of person is needed to fill it, using the job’s history as well as the organisation’s current needs and long term objectives Cluster responsibilities into key categories to avoid unnecessary detail Use specific rather than general language but avoid using jargon Make sure the job described is realistic Keep the presentation simple If recruiting for a local post requiring local language skills, translate into required language Remember, it is not just a ‘laundry list’ of tasks but a reflection of priorities

Job Description Template Job title: Should be clear and representative of the role Organisation/Programme: Provide a brief introduction Partner/organisational base: Where the role fits within the organisation / programme structure Direct reports: Staff who report directly to the post you are recruiting to Term of employment: Permanent, Fixed-term, Maternity cover etc Salary and benefits: Specify currency Location: Role location Job summary: short description of the overall purpose of the job Partner/organisational purpose: Short description of the specific role within the Partnership Main responsibilities: No more than 10 essential objectives, tasks and responsibilities Person specification: Specify broadly the nature of skills, experience, core competencies, education and professional qualifications and languages required to do the job Adapted from Oxford HR ‘Writing good job descriptions’

Infosheet 9: Leading a Dispersed Team Dispersed teams have members scattered across a country, region or the globe. In the humanitarian and development aid sector, dispersed teams are becoming commonplace, but learning to manage and lead them is a challenge of culture, technology and time zones. The Center for Creative Leadership offers advice to team leaders, supervisors and managers faced with organizing, leading and motivating these far flung groups of people. In addition, People In Aid provide a distant management workshop to support / help managers develop their teams successfully.

Launching the team: The long-term viability of dispersed teams depends on how well leaders prepare. Pre-launch preparation can make the difference between failure and success.

It may be useful to ask these questions: What best practices do the team exhibit and how can they best be utilised and built on? Are lower-level employees allowed to make their own decisions? Are HR policies in place to deal with recognising and rewarding both individual members and the whole team? Are policies in place to help expatriates and others working from a distance deal with feelings of isolation, not being included etc? Do you provide and support stable, user-friendly communication technology at every site where team members work? Webcam enabled technology vastly improves dispersed team performance and sense of belonging Will the organisation help identify potential team members who are motivated, self-managing, comfortable with technology and the dispersed environment, with project management and communication skills?

The First Meeting: You can’t overstate the importance of a dispersed team’s first meeting. Separated by time, distance and culture, there’s only a brief period to clarify goals, build relationships and secure commitment. Because of this, the team’s first meeting should be face-to-face. Members who have met in person are more likely to have less disagreements and conflicts about personal issues between team members – a boon to ongoing performance and productivity.

Points to carefully consider:

1. Take time zones into account. If you can’t avoid asking a member to attend in the middle of their night, arrange a schedule so that this inconvenience is rotated amongst team members.

2. Social status, culture and language ability may make it difficult for some team members. Make sure from the outset that the team understands that everyone is expected to contribute.

3. Communication: Dispersed teams require greater amounts of information and more frequent communication than local teams. Leaders need to direct special attention to both formal and informal communication. Teams need to know WHEN and HOW to communicate. Design a way for the team to document and store information so that it can create a team history – important for new members joining the team

4. Membership and Trust: Experienced leaders of dispersed teams use several tactics to create a sense of belonging. Keep the team informed of organisational changes and as the team for input. Make time for team-building activities (online as well) and encourage personal contact. Hold face to face meetings whenever you can. Adapted from Leadership in Aid, Center for Creative Leadership, People in Aid (www.ccl.org/emea)

Infosheet 10: Payroll 1. Key Points for Payroll For many organisations payroll is the largest form of expenditure and thus demands special attention in calculation, execution and documentation. Partners must have some kind of system for operating payroll. At the most basic level this may be staff contracts and an excel spreadsheet determining payments. If required by the donor timesheets must be completed for each member of staff participating in the action. These should be completed after the fact and based upon actual hours. Minimum details should include: - Staff name, job title and number - Location - Details of awards worked upon - Hours dedicated to each award - Total hours worked A payroll control sheet should be prepared for each member of staff, stating: - Gross salary - Any benefits payable - Any deductions made - Which budget area the cost should be charged against - Staff shared between more than one action should have the proportion of their salary allocated to each activity shown clearly Where possible payroll should be paid via bank transfer Local payroll tax regulations and other in-country regulations should be followed unless an exemption has been granted Staff advances (if given) must be approved and should be cleared on a monthly basis

2. Payroll responsibilities: Finance Officer To prepare payroll and ensure staff costs are allocated appropriately To pay staff in method agreed by Programme Manager If cash payments are being made ensure receipt is signed by staff when paid

Manager Authorise monthly payroll, having checked and ensured all details are correct Ensure local tax and other legislation is followed Ensure donor requirements for salary are met Check balances of staff advances at month end are zero, and if take appropriate action if not

Human Resources Responsibility Provide all staff information on salary terms and conditions and staff changes (e.g. up-to-date staff list, starters, leavers, pay scales & increases, time sheets, budget codes etc.) to the person preparing the payroll. Ensure contracts detailing salary are in place for all staff members Ensure contracts are updated following any change to salary or other benefits Report any non-compliance with tax regulations or policies to the country director

3. Payroll System Control Control over access and changes to the system are essential to maintaining the integrity of the payroll. The following controls should be implemented: The payroll system must be kept on a computer that has restricted access, i.e. not a computer that is used by visiting staff, multiple departments or users. Access to the actual payroll data must be restricted to designated personnel (i.e. in excel, the sheet protection function can be used to restrict access to the file) Wherever possible, the calculation functions within the system must be protected from change, e.g. tax calculations (i.e. using the protection functions in excel to prevent change) Here are some of the reasons as to why control over access and changes are required: Prevent payroll fraud (i.e. manipulation of payroll data for personal or non-personal gain) Prevent the setting up of ghost employees Ensure that the integrity of the data is maintained, and there are controls in place to ensure the data is up to date and accurate

Required information The staff payroll/payslip must show the following information: Month of payment Name and staff number of employee Basic salaries Any other allowances Gross and net pay Statutory deductions Other itemised deductions (e.g. salary advance) as applicable.

4. Payroll Review: Good Practice Guidance The types of checks required are: review of the reconciling differences noted on the payroll reconciliation, with sample checks to supporting documentation (e.g. a letter of appointment) comparison of a number of individualsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; salaries as detailed on the current months payroll control sheet with the details shown on the previous months payroll control sheet sample check of staff advances in the month to ensure these have been deducted from the payroll Reviewing tax deductions - tax is likely to be a fairly stable proportion of gross salary and this percentage would not be expected to change significantly from month to month. If a fixed cap has been put on tax payments, spot check the calculations for a couple of employees confirming that individuals have been coded to the appropriate project confirming the arithmetic accuracy Extracted from Save the Children International Finance Good Practices

Legal/Agreements

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Good fences make good neighboursâ&#x20AC;? Robert Frost, American poet

Worksheet 6: Agreements & Finance What are the key points for our projects?

What will suit us best?

What actions do we need to take?

Infosheet 11: When Should Written Agreements Exist? Collaborations, in an ideal world, would be handled through a handshake and an understanding of each collaboratorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s responsibilities. There are many reasons why this is not the best way to manage collaborations. It is best, and absolutely necessary in complicated multi-stakeholder projects, to set forth each partyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rights and responsibilities in writing. More than likely when rights and responsibilities are discussed, consideration must not only be given to those pertaining to researchers, but also to the rights and responsibilities of their institutions. Written agreements are not just a good idea, but they are often a requirement imposed by employing institutions or external research sponsors. They can also take some time to finalise, so this needs to be factored in as it could lead to delays in start date / implementation. Unless institutional or research sponsors require otherwise, many researchers operate on the basis of unwritten understandings concerning the following aspects of a collaboration: Authorship and credit. Where will the results be presented and/or published? Who will be included as authors? What will be the order of co-authors? Who will have the final authority to approve presentations or publications? Research Accountability. What type of access will members of the collaboration have to each otherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s original data and/or notes? How frequently will the members of the collaboration meet to discuss and evaluate their results? More often than not, written agreements are required when institutional rights and responsibilities are affected. Some of the research-related issues that should be covered in the various types of agreements follow: Intellectual Property. The concern here would involve rights to patentable inventions discovered in the performance of the research. It might also cover situations in which inventions are jointly owned by the collaborating institutions. Copyright is handled differently than patents primarily because copyright law automatically gives ownership to the creator of the given work. Although copyright ownership can be negotiated, it is more likely that the agreement would include mention of license rights than a transfer of ownership. Use of Data. Data are traditionally owned by the institution and/or researcher developing or collecting them, and collaborating institutions need to ensure that their researchers have access to these data. Use of data may be limited in certain cases for proprietary reasons (e.g. the data may be included in an invention disclosure that has not yet been incorporated into a patent application). In general, however, collaborating institutions and researchers have an interest in sharing data to ensure success of the project. The sharing of data is essential to the submission of future grant applications and the publication of scholarly work that appropriately recognizes the contributions of the collaborators. Data Retention and Preservation. Once project information and data are collected, analyzed and reported, it is vital that they be maintained after the project closes. If a project is funded by an external sponsor, it is almost a certainty that data retention will be a requirement of the award. Even if sponsored funding is not involved, data should be retained to permit verification of the research results and the record of inventions and inventorship, as well as to provide background data for future research. Agreements covering data retention may also call for the destruction of materials or the return of materials to the providing party at the end of a project. Other aspects to be included in a written agreement (but not limited to) relating to authorship and credit are: Whose logos should appear? Outlining a protocol if one or more partners do not agree with some of the research findings, and do not want to be associated with a particular publication. Adapted from: https://ori.hhs.gov/education/products/rcradmin/topics/colscience/tutorial_1.shtml

Infosheet 12: Collaboration in a Research Context The term â&#x20AC;&#x153;collaborationâ&#x20AC;? in academic research is usually thought to mean an equal partnership between two academic faculty members who are pursuing mutually interesting and beneficial research. Today, however, many collaborations involve researchers of differing stature, funding status, and types of organisations. Even if the two principal collaborators are similarly powerful, a collaboration frequently involves several other people from the research groups of the Principal Investigators, including post-doctoral fellows, research staff members, graduate students, and/or undergraduate students. Are these research group members aware of the agreements reached by the PIs? Do they understand the provisions of these agreements? Do the agreements protect the interests of the research group members; for instance do they protect the interests of graduate students in completing their dissertations and publishing their results? Administrative staff may want to raise these questions as they work with researchers to set up the subawards, collaborative agreements, or other types of agreements intended to formalise the collaboration.

Some examples of the variations in collaborations that can occur: Members of two research groups in different departments of the same institution work together on a project. No external funding is involved, and the work is divided reasonably equally between the two groups. All those involved meet together regularly to review their progress and plan for publication of their results. A researcher from a private company works with the research group of an academic faculty member for several months. During this time the non-academic researcher pursues his own project while learning about current techniques and research questions from the graduate students in the group. In order to complete a large data collection for which a senior researcher has received federal funding, the researcher has organised a collaboration with three junior faculty members at other institutions who were previously his graduate students. In order to learn a new technique, a graduate student travels to another institution several times over the course of a year. Each time she stays for 2-3 weeks, and participates in the research of the other research group. Needing an analysis of the effect of a new compound on living plants, a researcher who is only familiar with laboratory analyses contacts an agricultural researcher she met at a conference. They agree to each carry out their own analysis of the new compound, and then combine their results for publication. To gain a more global perspective on a public health question, a collaboration among ten research groups in six countries is established. All research groups independently apply for their own funding. The collaborators agree that all data collected regarding the question they are studying will be made available to the entire collaborative as soon as the graduate student most directly involved in gathering the data set has completed his/her dissertation. Adapted from: https://ori.hhs.gov/education/products/rcradmin/topics/colscience/tutorial_1.shtml

De-centralised

Management by Mandate

Collaborations with highly committed individuals / organisations with the capacity to deliver

Lack of coherence Requires levels of capacity that might not be present in all partners

Tasks need to be clearly defined and allocated appropriately Highly dependent on individual’s action and reliability Risks individuals / single partner organisations ‘doing their own thing’ without adequate reference to the partner group

Moving away from conventional ‘power bases’

Greater freedom of operation

Allows for those who have most time (or care most about the task) to be given the role

Highly flexible approach that can be reviewed and changed as often as necessary

management shared between the partner organisations, or a revolving ‘lead’)

Adapted from: The Partnering Initiative

(specific tasks contracted on a caseby-case basis to individuals or single partner organisations who / which are answerable to the partners as a group)

Management by Mandate

Shares tasks between partners and promotes a sense of collective responsibility

High levels of trust exist in the collaboration

Cumbersome decision-making processes

Shared sense of ‘ownership’

(different aspects of

Programmes with easily identifiable, discrete areas of work

Higher level of trust / knowledge of each partner

Longer term programmes

Partners / individuals feeling isolated

De-Centralised Management

Smaller partnerships

Multi-country collaborations (best to have Agreements enshrined in one country)

Those with lower level of trust / knowledge of each other

Shorter term projects / programmes

Large consortia

Most suitable for

More opportunities for individual leadership

May take decisions inappropriately quickly

Too conventional for flexible needs of the partnership

Too much influence / control perceived to be in the hands of one partner

Too distant from experience / potential contributions of other partners

Disadvantages

Greater potential for conflicts of interest

Quicker response time

One-stop shop for external agencies / funders

Familiar / conventional management approach

Unambiguous decision-making procedures and day-to-day management systems

Maximum efficiency

Advantages

Maximum diversity at operational levels

(management of the partnership or project taken on by a Lead Partner on behalf of the partnership)

Centralised Management

Management Option

Depending on which type of collaboration your partnership chooses will then go on to dictate the kind of Partnership Agreement most suitable for you.

Centralised

Collaborations can usually be grouped into three main structures:

Infosheet 13: Partnership structures

Supporting Notes

What tasks will you need to undertake to get you to your envisioned model? Think about what you have learned from other sections of this handbook and related activities during the workshop; what actions you will need to take; what will be the barriers; how change can best happen in a controlled and positive sense

Have you been clear about what you are trying to achieve and how will you know that you have got there? (refer to Section 1: Aims and Objectives)

Consider what new relationships, alliances and opportunities might be opened up for the partnership and beyond

Use a dotted line for informal governance and a solid one for formal governance

Write out the elements of the whole system and draw a thick line around those elements that are under agreed shared governance

What ideas do you have for new forms of governance?

Explore where you think the boundaries should be drawn for the new structure.

When allocating roles to partners consider skillsets and capacity of the organisation to support these roles

Then locate a leader. This person will lead key elements of the system

Take a clean sheet of paper and think about ROLES rather than PEOPLE initially.

Discuss the form and location of leadership, considering carefully the roles and responsibilities this will require. What roles do you need to realise your vision?

Adapted from: Learning and Skills Improvement Service

New relationships and alliances beyond the Partnership (refer back to Section 5: Stakeholder scoping)

Who can we work with now?

The boundaries and forms of governance – formal or informal

Who keeps an eye on it?

The form and location of the leadership – with new roles and responsibilities (refer to Section 2: Resource Mapping)

Who’s in charge?

Question

This tool provides a useful framework for thinking about developing the leadership and governance of a partnership, which will in turn inform the kind of agreement most appropriate for your collaboration.

Tool 11: Leadership and Governance

Partner 1

Partner 2

Partner 3

Partner 4

Infosheet 14: Types of Agreements It is important to remember that agreements are mechanisms by which collaborations are formalised. The discussion that follows will include references to types of agreements that are not ordinarily thought of as being collaborative. They are included here because there are occasions in which such agreements are used to formalise one aspect of a collaboration, but not the entire relationship. There are several types of inter-institutional agreements, some of which cover a broad array of issues, while others are much more narrowly directed to one or just a few issues. Here are some examples:

Subawards. These are agreements between an institution that has a sponsored agreement (prime awardee ) and another institution (subrecipient ) to which it transfers a portion of the work. The subaward agreement includes elements of the prime agreement between the sponsor and the prime awardee by incorporating many of the terms and conditions that have been agreed to by the external sponsor and the prime awardee. A subaward covers the entirety of the relationship between the prime awardee and the subrecipient. Therefore, a subaward will contain provisions covering payments, financial reporting, intellectual property, publication rights, data retention, and many others.

Teaming Agreements. At the time a funding proposal is submitted to an external sponsor, the collaborating institutions may execute a teaming agreement. The purpose of this type of agreement is to indicate general agreement on the nature of the working relationship. For instance, it may state that the parties agree to the creation of a scientific advisory board as well as its composition. Teaming agreements can also set forth basic terms related to the ownership of intellectual property and other programmatic issues such as data sharing. It should be remembered that if the requested sponsored funding is awarded, the prime award may contain provisions that are inconsistent with the terms of the teaming agreement. If that occurs the subaward must clearly state that the subaward terms supersede those in the teaming agreement.

Collaboration Agreements: While similar to teaming agreements, collaboration agreements are executed between institutions irrespective of whether sponsored funding is anticipated. They cover the same programmatic issues as teaming agreements. In addition, if collaborators from one institution will be using the facilities of the other institution, collaboration agreements may include the typical provisions of a Facility Use Agreement mentioned below. Collaboration agreements may also have fairly detailed intellectual property terms.

Intellectual Property Agreements: As indicated by the agreement name, intellectual property agreements are narrowly defined. Typically, intellectual property agreements are written to cover inventions or other discoveries that may result from a collaboration. While they can cover copyrights (also a form of intellectual property), they frequently do not. Still, the coverage of intellectual property agreements would be essentially the same for inventions as for copyrights. The basic issue covered is ownership of the intellectual property (i.e. who owns what, and under what conditions). Other items addressed would be license rights between the parties, and perhaps provisions on sharing costs and income related to the protection and licensing of intellectual property. Source: https://ori.hhs.gov/education/products/rcradmin/topics/colscience/tutorial_1.shtml

Communications

â&#x20AC;&#x153;We create our world by the way we talk about itâ&#x20AC;? Bertrand de Jouvenel, French Philosopher and Political Economist

www.oxfam.org.uk/policyandpractice

Writing For I mpact: Lessons From Journalism Why Master This Skill? Most of us obtain most of our information about what is going on in the world from some form of journalism – listening to the news on the radio, reading a newspaper, watching the TV or increasingly, from “citizens journalism” like Twitter. We are so used to hearing or seeing news stories that we may not realise that they are cleverly constructed and usually in a particular way. It is the way journalists are taught to communicate, and it is clearly influential. If we wish to have maximum impact when communicating our research findings then we can learn a lot by understanding how journalists package the information they gather. There is a general inverse relationship between the amount of facts and the complexity of the information to be provided and the communicability of the information. The more information, the less likely it is that readers or listeners will absorb it all. However, by using journalistic techniques you may be surprised at how much information you can convey to people.

More information

Policy papers Research reports Research reports Newspapers

More communication

What Are The Techniques Used By Journalists? The basis of any piece of journalism is to tell who did what to whom, when, where, how and why, and with what consequences. That is the actual sequence in which most news stories are told. That sequence is how stories have been told by humans from time immemorial, and journalism exploits the power of story-telling to communicate information. It explains what happened in a way, and in language, that most people can understand.

There are four key techniques: Tell stories Keep it as brief as you can Use plain language Structure your report for impact Tell Stories What is a story, and why are stories important? Stories are as old as humanity – indeed, it may be that the ability to tell stories are the one and only unique distinguishing mark that separates humanity from other animals. Stories are generally told in a particular way – a sequence: who did what to whom, when, where, how and why and with what consequences, and usually they revolve around actions outside the usual frame of reference of the reader or listener. Stories are always about living beings, whether humans, divinities or animals – creatures with whom we the reader or hearer can identify. Stories are exciting: they engage the reader at an emotional as well as an intellectual level, which is why they are so memorable and can have such a powerful impact. They invite the reader or hearer to participate in the story by using her imagination so that they become involved with the fate of the protagonists. Stories surprise the reader, they make her or him want to read or listen to the end and they invite him or her to repeat the story to their friends. Stories will probably be remembered long after we have forgotten abstract facts and figures. So for Oxfam, whatever we write or broadcast should always be about people; what are people with whom we work doing, how are they affected, what are their names, their faces, their opinions, concerns – in other words, their stories. Even very abstract briefings that need to be full of facts and statistics should always explain at some stage what have all those facts and statistics got to do with real people.

Keep It As Brief As You Can Why is brevity a useful discipline? Think about the way in which stories are communicated on the radio, TV or in newspapers. You will notice that news stories are generally quite short, in order to keep the viewer’s attention and in order to cram more news stories into the time or space available. News headlines on the radio may be only 30, 20 or even 10 seconds long. Reading a newspaper story is unlikely to take longer than two or three minutes. Many interviews on news channels are two or three minutes long, no more. Brevity is an important communications strategy because it is about boiling a story down to its absolute essentials. It makes us think about what is the essential piece of information that I want to communicate to my reader or listener, and how can I communicate that best so that it makes an impression on him or her. Having to boil down our research to perhaps one essential fact is not unreasonable if we think of our own lives and how we digest news. We wake up and the radio is on but we are half awake, the baby is crying, we are in a hurry to leave for work, we are trying to have breakfast …so though the radio is on we are probably only going to be absorbing one fact per story – the headline – and it will take something quite compelling and out of the ordinary to really grab our attention so that we actually listen attentively.

So think, how would you explain your research findings to your partner or friend over breakfast in those circumstances? It has to be short, simple and unusual. It follows that you should not cite 10 facts when one will do, and you only need to use one telling example, not five. And to make the fact stick, you should say what it means to a person or family – briefly tell the human story.

Use Plain Language It follows that we have to talk to people in language that they understand in order to communicate so keep your language simple. Use ordinary words and familiar terms. Avoid jargon and acronyms. Imagine how you would explain your argument to a relative who doesn’t know much about Oxfam or what you do for Oxfam and who is likely to be slightly sceptical.

Structure Your Report For Impact Most news stories have a particular structure. We are so used to the way news is presented that we may not notice the underlying structure but you can easily observe this if you analyse a newspaper. The structure is dictated by the need to grab a reader’s attention, and by the need for brevity. A news story can look rather like a pyramid. This is how it is usually conventionally represented (this is from Wikipedia):

Most Newsworthy Info Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?

Important Details Other general info Background info

in terms of the SIZE of the text that is written, this inverted pyramid is actually exactly the opposite of what we see in a newspaper or magazine. In practice a news story looks more like a pyramid the right way up – the first paragraph (the top of the pyramid) is essentially the entire story in miniature as it contains all the facts (what happened i.e. who did what to whom, when, where). Note though that

The second part expands on this with more background information – usually why something happened. The remaining paragraphs expand on the story, perhaps with the implications i.e. what is this likely to mean. But if you only read the first couple of paragraphs, you would know the essential story.

So the way to think of writing a story is better represented like this – the most important facts come first and they go into what is actually the smallest space:

Most newsworthy information must have! What happened? i.e. Who? What? When? Where? How? Important details - especially why this happened

General + background information + speculation about implications

Writing in this way – and thinking in this way – is actually quite a discipline to learn and is not necessarily natural. In fact it is the opposite of the way that one would tell a joke, or even tell a story to friends. To tell a joke you would first set out the scene then say what happened and finally deliver the punch line. The listener doesn’t know what happened until the end. In news, you almost do the opposite; the punch line comes at the very beginning, the rest is an expanded explanation of why that thing happened. The reason for this is that if another, bigger story came in to the news desk, and your story had to be cut to accommodate it, the editor would usually cut your story from the bottom up, on the grounds that the least essential information was near the bottom. In the end the whole story could be cut except the first paragraph or two, and yet the essential facts would still be intact “in brief”. Some people, especially in research and academia, find it hard to adopt a journalistic style of constructing a story. They are taught to make a linear argument, setting out the whole scene first, finally culminating in a conclusion. This is perfectly valid, but the way in which a journalist would communicate the report would be to go straight to the conclusions and state them in the first paragraph of the news story. Thinking what is the key fact or conclusion that I really want to communicate in my report, and setting it out at the beginning, is useful discipline. So any research report should have at the beginning an executive summary - and maybe an abstract, which is an even shorter version of the executive summary- which sets out simply and clearly and up-front what is the essential finding of the report and the basic argument that it is making. Some of your audience (particularly perhaps politicians) will probably only read your executive summary; much as you would like them to read your entire report, they only have time (or inclination) for the essentials. In fact, it is good to write the executive summary of your report first, not write the report and then attempt to summarise it. By doing it this way round you will know clearly what the core argument is and the report itself should just be an expansion of each part of your executive summary.

Allow Enough Time The purpose of research is to have impact to create change, and that cannot happen without effective communication of the results. But the time needed for effective communication – to prepare it and to do it – is not always factored into research timetables. Time must clearly be allowed for sign-off but many other people then have jobs to do to disseminate any report. They include editors, designers, printers and publishers, including those people who have to get the report into the right format to go on websites. Finally, the media team are responsible for gaining the attention of journalists and this can be a time-consuming process given the many other stories that are competing for space or airtime.

Additional Resources For more information about writing like a journalist in a pyramidal fashion – including an example of a famous news story – see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverted_pyramid

© Oxfam GB November 2012 This guideline has been prepared by Oxfam’s Global Research Team and Oxfam GB’s Policy and Practice Communications Team for use by staff, partners, and other development practitioners and researchers. It was written by John Magrath and edited with the help of Martin Walsh. The text may be used free of charge for the purposes of education and research, provided that the source is acknowledged in full. The copyright holder requests that all such use be registered with them for impact assessment purposes. For copying in any other circumstances, or for re-use in other publications, or for translation or adaptation, permission must be secured and a fee may be charged. E-mail publish@oxfam.org.uk Oxfam welcomes comments and feedback on its Research Guidelines. If you would would like to discuss any aspect of this document, please contact research@oxfam.org.uk. For further information on Oxfam’s research and publications, please visit www.oxfam.org.uk/policyandpractice The information in this publication is correct at the time of going to press. Published by Oxfam GB under ISBN 978-1-78077-223-3 in November 2012. Oxfam GB, Oxfam House, John Smith Drive, Cowley, Oxford, OX4 2JY, UK. Oxfam is a registered charity in England and Wales (no 202918) and Scotland (SC039042). Oxfam GB is a member of Oxfam International.

Infosheet 15: Communications: Organising Your Social Media Increasingly social media plays an important role in establishing your presence and communicating with those interested in your research / programme. It is a good idea to conduct a social media audit which assesses how well your current social media use works for you. There are many different steps involved when doing a social media audit, and Tool 13: Social Media Audit Template will help you conduct your first (or second, third, etc.) one more efficiently. Not sure where to start? To help you navigate the template, follow this 6-step guide on how to execute a social media audit.

Execute a social media audit in these 6 steps

Step 1: Create a social media audit spreadsheet Creating a spreadsheet will allow you to have a home for your social media audit. As you go through these 6 steps, you’ll see that the spreadsheet will start automatically adding new columns. To start, create a column for social network, URL to your profile on that social network, and owner. The ‘Owner’ field may seem superfluous, but it’s actually really important to keep track of this information—it allows you to know who owns the password and who is in charge of posting and engaging with followers on that social profile.

Social Network

URL

Owner

Shutdown Y/N

Step 2: Go on a search for your social presence on Google Go on to Google and search your organisation’s name to see which social media profiles show up. This will allow you to see if there are any others using your name, and find out if the right social media profiles are appearing on Google. You can either create a separate spreadsheet to track the results of this search.

Social Network

URL to Profile

Owner

Step 3: Evaluate your social media profiles This is an important part of your social media audit. You need to always evaluate your social media profiles. During the evaluation process, create a mission statement for each profile. Make sure each profile aligns with your programme goals and objectives—this will help you in deciding whether being present on that social network contributes to your overall strategy, and whether or not it’s worth for your programme to keep that profile.

Social Network

URL to Profile

Owner

Mission Statement

Step 4: Make sure your social media profiles are coherent Now that you know which social media profiles you’re going to keep, it’s time to check that each of these profiles are coherent. This means making sure you have a proper profile photo, cover photo, icons, bios and descriptions, and that the URL is correct.

Social Network

URL to Profile

Owner

Mission Statement

Branding Check Y/N

Step 5: Centralize the ownership of your passwords The process of doing a social media audit can help you make sure that all your social media profiles are secure. One way to test this is centralizing the ownership of the passwords for each profile. For example: you can have your IT department own the key to all the passwords for the social media profiles. Then use a password managing tool like LastPass to share access on a need-to-use basis.

Social Network

URL to Profile

Owner

Mission Statement

Branding Check Y/N

Password Centralized Y/N

Step 6: Create a process Once youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re done your social media audit, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time to take what you learned and create an internal process when it comes to creating new social profiles going forward. Create a criteria and take note of who will approve the requests. For example, take note of: Requester Who is the target audience? What type of content will be posted in this profile Who is going to respond to content? Adapted from Hootsuite.com

Blog

Twitter

Social Network

twitter.com/ exampletwitterhandle

URL To Profile

Comms Officer

Owner To inform stakeholders of developments and findings.

Mission Statement

Tool 13: Social Media Audit Template

Branding Check Y/N

Password Centralized Y/N EXAMPLE

General Notes

Infosheet 16: Media Guideline examples Summary We request that all grantees consult with ELRHA’s communications department on any press notices that may be issued about the R2HC grant or findings from the activities funded by it. We also ask that the ELRHA name (managing organisation), programme name (R2HC), and donors’ names and logos (DFID and Wellcome Trust) are prominently displayed on any associated documentation about your project and at public events. One of the requirements of a (R2HC) grant is that project teams write and submit blogs / short updates for the ELRHA website and for use in other ELRHA press updates and activities. These are required once every 4 months. (In the first instance please send these Blogs directly to us for posting – in the near future we will send you log in details to be able to post these directly onto the ELHRA website when you have updates to send).

Press notices Logos 1. Please use R2HC logo alongside project organisation’s logo (top-right hand side of page where possible). You can download logos from the ELHRA website. 2. Please place the ELRHA (managing organisation of R2HC) and donors’ (Wellcome Trust and DFID) logos along the bottom of the first page of the press release. ELRHA will supply appropriately sized logo files. 3. For example:

Insert project logo here

Key messages 1. Please acknowledge the R2HC programme as a supporter/funder of the project within the main body of the press notice using one of the following statement(s):

X project is funded by the Research for Health in Humanitarian Crises (R2HC) Programme, managed by ELRHA. or, if R2HC is not the only grantor X project received a grant from the Research for Health in Humanitarian Crises (R2HC) Programme, managed by ELRHA. 2. We request that you use the following two paragraphs in the main body of press notices, however if not feasible, they must be included in the notes to editors/additional information section:

The Research for Health in Humanitarian Crises (R2HC) programme aims to improve health outcomes by strengthening the evidence base for public health interventions in humanitarian crises. Visit www.elrha.org/work/r2hc for more information. The R2HC programme is funded equally by the Wellcome Trust and DFID, with Enhancing Learning and Research for Humanitarian Assistance (ELRHA) overseeing the programme’s execution and management.

Blog Guidelines / Short Updates One of the requirements of a Research for Health in Humanitarian Crises (R2HC) grant is that project teams write and submit blogs / short updates for the ELRHA website. These are required once every 4 months. The objective is to provide readers with an update on the progress of the research project, focusing specifically on the innovative research idea, methodology, trials/field studies, and evidence produced – to contain images and pictures as suitable.

Project overview At the beginning of each blog you send, please include key information about your project and a brief overview of what your project is trying to achieve. This is needed to create a context for the reader, ensuring they can be read independently from each other. Please use the following heading at the top of your Blogs: -

Project Title: Lead Organisation: Partners: One sentence description: (What is your project trying to achieve) Quality & length - We have not set strict blog standards as this can limit authors’ creativity. We expect blogs to be between 300 - 600 words in length, written specifically for R2HC.

Regularity – Grantees are expected to submit a blog once every four months. If organisations within your research partnership would like to submit blogs more regularly, we welcome this.

Images – We encourage the submission of regular images as it often facilitates understanding of the research. Please refer to our brief photography ‘top tips’ document for guidance. Please note: all images need a caption and images of children should only be submitted if written consent has been provided from a guardian.

Content – the following are suggestions for content: If your project is technical, explain very simply what your method/technology does so that people with no expert knowledge can understand Where you are in the process of implementing the project in certain locations What challenges, if any, have there been and how have you resolved these Details of how you are working with affected communities Have there been any unexpected outcomes? How you are achieving the aims of the research project

Republishing policy We allow cross-posting of R2HC blogs on the following conditions: a) The R2HC team are notified of any cross-posting of R2HC blogs b) Cross posts are credited and linked to the original R2HC blog

Editorial policy The R2HC team will only make edits to the grammar/spelling of the blog to enhance readability – the content and style won’t be altered.

How to submit a blog To submit, please email the blog as a Word document (with images attached separately) to Jess Fisher, ELRHA’s Communications Manager: j.fisher@savethechildren.org.uk

Project reports/papers (as per Press Notices) Logos 1. Where possible, please use the R2HC logo alongside project organisation’s logo (top-right hand side of page). 2. Please place the ELRHA (managing organisation of R2HC) and donors’ (Wellcome Trust and DFID) logos along the bottom of the first page of the report/paper. ELRHA will supply appropriately sized logo files.

Key messages 1. Please use the following three paragraphs within the main body of the document/report, ideally in the summary/opening page.

The Research for Health in Humanitarian Crises (R2HC) programme aims to improve health outcomes by strengthening the evidence base for public health interventions in humanitarian crises. Visit www.elrha.org/work/r2hc for more information. AND The R2HC programme is funded equally by the Wellcome Trust and DFID, with Enhancing Learning and Research for Humanitarian Assistance (ELRHA) overseeing the programme’s execution and management.

Social media Twitter Tweets relating to the R2HC programme will be promoted through the @elrha account. Please use #R2HC when referring to the project and alert us to your tweets using @elrha so we can retweet your posts.

LinkedIn Updates regarding R2HC will be posted on ELRHA’s organisational profile here http://www.linkedin.com/pub/elrha-supporting-collaborative-partnerships/4a/8b5/7b6. Please connect with ELRHA and share your project updates with our followers. For more information regarding media guidelines please contact Jess Fisher, ELRHA’s Communications Manager, j.fisher@savethechildren.org.uk.

Photography Guide Good photography can make all the difference to people’s engagement with your work.

Before you start Set your camera to maximum quality (large file) setting. You can’t make a small file larger! Make sure your date setting is switched off.

The subject Ask yourself: Is my subject interesting? Is my subject relevant to my work with R2HC?

DO remember to include people in your photographs. DON’T photograph meetings! Make the subject the main focus of your image.

DON’T use the camera’s zoom. DON’T move closer than one metre to your subject. Doing so can result in out-of-focus photographs. To avoid blurred photos, put yourself and the camera in a stable position, especially in low light. DON’T take photographs from moving vehicles. DO rest your elbows on a wall or chair if it is at a useful height; this helps to keep your camera steady. Release the button gently to avoid camera shake, which will blur photographs.

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Lighting It is usually too dark to take photos indoors, and the flash can cause problems.

DON’T photograph people against a window with the light behind them. If you must photograph indoors, DO keep any window light behind you or to one side.

DON’T photograph into the light, or your subject will be dark. DON’T ask your subject to face the light if it’s bright – they will squint. DO ask your subject to move so that the light is on one side of their face. Avoid photographing by windows and mirrors – you might photograph your own reflection!

Captions For a photograph to be used, it must be shared with the following information: Filename Who is in the photo Where it was taken – be specific What is happening in the photo When it was taken Why this picture is relevant for my R2HC research project

Which file format? Print Graphics (images): Ideally send all images as a TIFF or EPS file. If not possible, then send as a high resolution JPG, PNG or GIF. These formats should enable the image to be used for print work e.g. in an annual report/poster/banner. Web Graphics: PNG, JPEG and GIF are the most web-friendly formats. JPEG is preferable for small images e.g. images that need uploading online. However, when image quality is needed but the size must remain small, a PNG file is optimal. GIF isn’t advisable unless when using motion effects. PC and Mac Compatibility: Be aware when sending images that designers (often the ed user) often use a Mac and Mac-PC file transfer can incur problems. To avoid this as much as possible, send image files in JPEG format.

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Research aspects

â&#x20AC;&#x153;The way you define a problem will determine what you do about itâ&#x20AC;? Jonathan Mann, Founder, WHO Global Programme on Aids

Infosheet 17: Defining & Refining Your Research Question A well-defined research question is the key to developing a good research proposal. The question will determine many subsequent issues in protocol development, such as- who should we study, what should the control be, what outcomes should we measure. If the research question is muddled, the whole project will likewise be muddled. Sometimes the research question is clear at an early stage - we may have a new technology and wish to know whether it is superior to previous practice. However, research is often triggered by more vague ideas. Looking at clinical practice we find ourselves wondering ‘why is this happeningä or ãwhat is the effect of doing that’. At this point we need to focus on the specific question. You will probably want to consider at some stage whether your question is original and whether it is answerable, but at this stage it is probably best to focus upon whether it is important. A trivial question is not worth wasting time upon. The greater the burden of disease, the more important the research question is likely to be. This may relate to the prevalence of the disease, e.g. sprained ankle, or the severity of the disease, e.g. major trauma. Alternatively, the importance of a research question can be seen to be related to the potential for improvement in practice. If present practice is highly unsatisfactory, for example diagnosis tests for pulmonary embolism, this is likely to be a fruitful area for research. What type of question are you asking? This will guide your subsequent methodology. Various types of research questions are outlined below.

Evaluating a therapeutic intervention (clinical trial) You wish to know whether an intervention will improve outcome in a particular group of patients.

Evaluating a service-level intervention This is similar to the evaluation of a therapeutic intervention, but in this case the intervention may be a change in the way services are delivered or organised.

Determining the cause of an outcome You wish to know whether a particular factor, such as a social or environmental factor, causes a specific outcome. You cannot control exposure of individuals to this factor, as you would in a clinical trial, so you need to use observational techniques.

Predicting an outcome You wish to know whether a future event can be predicted by present features in a defined group of patients.

Evaluating a diagnostic test You wish to determined whether a test can accurately diagnosis a specific condition in a defined group of patients.

Measuring health You wish to quantify some aspect of health among a particular group of individuals with a common defining characteristic.

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Measuring opinions, beliefs or attitudes You wish to elicit the opinions, beliefs or attitudes of a particular group of individuals with a common defining characteristic. Most researchers in emergency medicine will be most familiar with quantitative, rather than qualitative, research methods. In quantitative research the question is often phrased as a hypothesis (i.e. a prediction). For example‘outcome after sprained ankle is improved by physiotherapy’ or ‘wearing a cycle helmet reduces the likelihood of serious head injury’. The research question is therefore simply- is the hypothesis true?Alternatively, the question may take the form of a measurement, such as ‘What is your probability of survival to discharge home after a cardiac arrest?’ or ‘How long does it take to recover from a Colles fracture?’

Whatever form the question takes, it needs to be well-defined. One useful way of focussing a research question is to use the PICO approach: People, patients or population- who are you asking the question about? Intervention- what intervention are you interested in? Control or comparison- what are you comparing the intervention to? Outcome- what outcome are you interested in measuring? Although this approach may only seem relevant to clinical trials, with some minor modification it can be applied to studies of causation, diagnostic tests or prediction. Instead of considering the intervention and control, you would need to consider the causal factor(s), the diagnostic test or the predictive feature(s) respectively. Taking the question ‘Is outcome after sprained ankle improved by physiotherapy?’, we need to define which patients with sprained ankle we are interested in, what exact physiotherapy they will be given, what the alternative to physiotherapy will be, and what the most important outcome is. Hence, a refined version of this question might be‘Do patients, with uncomplicated, grade II or III ankle sprains, who receive a course of physiotherapy return to full weight bearing quicker than those with routine instructions’. This process should not simply consist of choosing the most convenient patients, interventions and outcomes to study, but should focus on the important patients, interventions and outcomes. Having chosen an important research topic you must focus on the important issues within that topic. Some questions do not fit easily into the categories outlined above, particularly if they involve investigation area of health care about which very little is currently know, or if they are concerned with investigating complex psychological, social or cultural issues. In these situations qualitative research methods may be required and the ‘measuring’ or hypothesis testing approach outlined here will be inappropriate. Finally, it is worth considering the relevance of your research question. Some questions are highly relevant to a particular institution or individual but of little relevance outside that setting. Other people are unlikely to be interested in your research findings if they are not relevant to their situation. Source: Royal College of Emergency Medicine, UK (www.rcem.ac.uk)

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www.oxfam.org.uk/policyandpractice

Writing Terms Of Reference For Research Why Master This Skill? Oxfam strives to base its programmes on good quality research. Each year we devote significant resources to undertaking and commissioning research that will support and help to improve our work and that of our partners. Are we getting value for money in the research produced? The clarity of the Terms of Reference (TOR) given to the researcher(s) is one of the most important factors determining the quality of a piece of research. These guidelines and the accompanying template present a format for writing a clear and effective TOR. The following sections mirror those in the Terms of Reference for Research template and should be used as a guide to completing this document.

Title box Add the title of your research and your name (as author of the TOR), and keep the date and draft number current as you make revisions.

1. Background and rationale Describe the broader programme/campaign that this fits into. Explain briefly what this research is about and why this issue matters to Oxfam. What is at stake? Why now? – Remember that the researcher may be new to Oxfam’s programmes/campaigns. Don’t use jargon or acronyms when explaining the background context. – Don’t write too much background information here, i.e. keep it to 2-3 paragraphs maximum. The focus of this document is the new research to be commissioned. You can always give the researcher more background information separately. – If there is other ongoing research for the same project, make this clear. You could provide the TORs of related research in an annex, so that your researcher knows how their work fits in.

2. Audience and use of findings Describe who will be the audience for the research and explain briefly how the findings will be used. Will they be published directly or used as background for a larger Oxfam report? – Make it clear how the research will be used – this will clarify for the researcher the kind of information we need. – Summarise the kind of written and/or other outputs required (reports, presentations, other media) and provide further detail in the relevant sections below.

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3. Research objectives Concisely state the primary objective of this research (what you aim to get out of it). Then set out 3-6 specific objectives following on from it. Writing clear objectives is key to designing good quality research. It is very common to write far too many objectives, in the hope of learning a great deal about many topics. This is likely to produce scattered research, focused on what the researcher knows best, not what you want to know most. In order to ensure the best possible research, think through the following steps: What is this research for? Why do you need this new information? What will it be used for? Where, then, should the focus be? Don’t start from scratch. You probably already have a lot of background information about the research topic. It’s best to do a literature review first so you know what is already out there, and are not simply repeating it (for more on this see Oxfam’s guidelines on reviewing existing literature). Are you trying to fill in key gaps? Are you trying to update old data? Share your literature review or other documents with the researcher and focus on what needs to be added. Clarify the objectives. Are they as specific, focused and clearly written as possible? Ask another colleague to read them and then tell you what they think the objectives are asking for. Remember not to use jargon or acronyms. Prioritise the objectives. Make it clear in your document which objectives are most important and so should be covered in most detail.

4. Research questions The research questions flow out of the objectives and are the main questions that you want the researcher to answer. Focus on a few key questions or topics – if you ask too many, they will not all get answered. Consider structuring your list of questions in an order similar to the way you want the researcher’s report to be structured because this will help to clarify what you expect to see in the report. (You can also discuss and agree an outline for the report with the researcher.) Discuss and clarify with the researcher which of these questions is top priority and which are background – this is the most important part of the TOR. Oxfam aims to mainstream gender and HIV/AIDS issues in its programmes and campaigns, so ensure that the researcher is aware that they should take a gendered perspective and raise any relevant HIV/AIDS concerns in the research.

5. Suggested research methods It is a good idea to discuss research methods with the researcher and document the following: The kind of methodology you want them to use – e.g. are you expecting interviews with key informants or a statistically significant survey of hundreds of people? Any interviews or case studies that they must include in the process. For example, make sure you brief the researcher well on gathering ‘human stories’ if that is part of the task (see guidelines on creating human- interest case studies for more information on this). If there are other researchers doing related studies, then the research teams should meet early in the process, then again at the first draft stage, to learn from each other and make their work coherent. Write this into the TOR as part of the process they must follow. If there is specific data you want them to collect, it is a good idea to draw up a table for them to fill in (one example would be a table documenting labour rights under national law in one column and then the reality of labour practices in the next column).

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6. Ethics and risk State any specific or possible ethical issues that the research raises and provide the researcher with a copy of Oxfam’s ethical guidelines (included in the TOR for Research template). State any risks that might arise during or as a result of the research and suggest a process for mitigating them (or indicate that this must be discussed further once the TOR is agreed).

7. Key sources and people to be consulted Get the researcher off to a good start by listing: Key Oxfam documents, e.g. background reports or earlier research; Key external documents that are essential reading; Oxfam staff and contacts who would be important sources of information; Other obvious key informants who should be interviewed as part of the research process, to whom Oxfam could provide an introduction.

8. Style and length of report / research products If the research is going to be written up into a report, clarify the expected style – this is especially important if it is going to be made public. Should it be technical and for an expert audience? Or accessible to an educated lay reader? Researchers know that Oxfam does advocacy and so sometimes write up their research in an advocacy style, with lots of rhetoric, but this is rarely what we want from them. Make it clear that the style should be factual, and emphasise the importance of documenting all sources used (see Section 12 below). It is not essential to specify a target length for the report, but it may be useful especially if you don’t want the report to be too long or too short. If you decide to definte the length of the report, it’s best to specify the number of words, rather than the number of pages, because of graphs, different page spacing, etc. (As a rough guide, one A4 page, single-spaced is around 480 words). It’s a good idea to discuss the expected lengths of different sections with the researcher, to clarify where you expect most detail to be. If you’ve asked for the research to be presented in other formats or media, then provide similar directions about style, length, and other relevant parameters.

9. Timetable Outputs depend on the project: they may include initial notes, first drafts, final drafts, supplementary notes, data analysis, consultations, presentations, etc. Don’t try to squeeze the research into too little time. A heavy time squeeze usually results in poor quality research. Discuss with the researcher how much time is realistically needed, so it can be agreed on by both sides. Remember to plan in enough time for Oxfam staff and partners to read and comment on drafts: two weeks is usually realistic. Commit to a date on which you will give Oxfam’s comments on the first draft back to the researcher. When setting dates, be specific. ‘October 2012’, for example, could mean the 1st or the 31st of October, and so creates a lot of misunderstanding. Commissioned researchers too often lose some of their allotted time because Oxfam takes longer than expected to approve their contract. So the timetable must be checked and revised once the TOR is actually approved and research has begun.

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Remember to plan in enough time between the delivery of the final piece of research and publication (if the research is going to be published). This time may be needed for formatting and design, printing and distribution, publicity, etc.

10. Research management State who will be responsible for managing the research process – the primary point of contact. If the commissioning manager is a different person, state also who this is.

11. Qualifications and experience required List any essential qualifications or experience required in order to carry out this work. Don’t create a wish list, but focus on ‘must-haves’. These might include: experience with research methods; language skills; familiarity with a country or context; disciplinary approach (such as anthropology, or economics).

12. Avoiding libel in research It is essential for all researchers to avoid libel in producing research, and the guidelines included in this section of the TOR template must be read by every researcher or consultant. You don’t need to make any change to them in the TOR.

13. Ensuring research with ethics This section in the TOR template sets out the minimum ethical standards required to be met by all research conducted by or for Oxfam, and so must be read by the consultant. You don’t need to make any changes to it in the TOR.

14. Documentation of research It’s very important to be clear with researchers about the need to document sources because un- sourced information is a common problem in the research we commission. If Oxfam cannot trace the source of a statistic or quote, we can’t use it in our public work, so it’s important to document it well. Discuss with the researcher how they will submit to you all the background sources needed. Will they give you electronic copies of the documents? Or photocopies of web pages in a file? If ownership and/or access to this and other additional material (e.g. field notes and recordings, survey data) is important, then make sure that this is specified in the TOR and/or contract with the researcher.

© Oxfam GB November 2012 This guideline and the accompanying template have been prepared by Oxfam’s Global Research Team and Oxfam GB’s Policy and Practice Communications Team for use by staff, partners, and other development practitioners and researchers. They were originally written by Kate Raworth and have been revised and updated by John Magrath and Martin Walsh. The text may be used free of charge for the purposes of education and research, provided that the source is acknowledged in full. The copyright holder requests that all such use be registered with them for impact assessment purposes. For copying in any other circumstances, or for re-use in other publications, or for translation or adaptation, permission must be secured and a fee may be charged. E-mail publish@oxfam.org.uk Oxfam welcomes comments and feedback on its Research Guidelines. If you would would like to discuss any aspect of this document, please contact research@oxfam.org.uk. For further information on Oxfam’s research and publications, please visit www.oxfam.org.uk/policyandpractice The information in this publication is correct at the time of going to press. Published by Oxfam GB under ISBN 978-1-78077-217-2 in November 2012. Oxfam GB, Oxfam House, John Smith Drive, Cowley, Oxford, OX4 2JY, UK. Oxfam is a registered charity in England and Wales (no 202918) and Scotland (SC039042). Oxfam GB is a member of Oxfam International.

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Terms of Reference for Research [Title of Research] [Date and Draft Number] [Drafted by] 1. BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE 2. AUDIENCE AND USE OF FINDINGS 3. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES 4. RESEARCH QUESTIONS 1 2 3 4 5 6

5. SUGGESTED RESEARCH METHODS 1 2 3 4

6. ETHICS AND RISKS 7. KEY SOURCES AND PEOPLE TO BE CONSULTED

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8. STYLE AND LENGTH OF REPORT / RESEARCH PRODUCTS* [*edit as appropriate]

9. TIMETABLE 1

OUTPUTS

2 3 4 5 6

10. RESEARCH MANAGEMENT

11. QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

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DATE DUE

FORMAT

12. AVOIDING LIBEL IN RESEARCH: OXFAM GUIDELINES British organizations are answerable in law courts in the UK and overseas for libel in research materials that are published: in the UK; in other countries; on the Internet. These guidelines contain relevant information and research standards which all researchers should comply with in order to manage risk.

What is libel? The publication of any statement that harms the reputation of another.

Who can claim for libel? Any company or individual. In the UK, governments cannot claim for libel, though individuals within government can. In some countries the rules are wider and libel is used aggressively by governments to silence opposition. Oxfam policy is that allegations that can impact on staff security need to be cleared with the International programme.

What defences are there? The truth of the allegation is a defence, but only if it can be proved. The below explains the kind of proof that would be needed. There may also be a defence of â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;privilegeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, even if we cannot prove the allegation, but in order to succeed in this defence we need to show we have exercised due diligence. The below also sets out what due diligence researchers are required to take.

What evidence is required? The evidence required varies depending on whether:

1) The information is primary research, i.e. the allegation is being directly made based on its own information, in which case you must hold the evidence; or

2) The information comes from secondary sources, i.e. the allegation is based on another organisationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s research, e.g. a newspaper, in which case you need to be able to demonstrate that all reasonable efforts to establish the truth of the allegation have been made.

1) Primary research Researchers must wherever possible provide evidence that could be relied upon in court. If that is not possible, they should indicate why it is not possible and what efforts have been made. For example:

Documents Where possible, documents or copies of documents should be provided, together with the research report that they support. For example, if you allege that an arms dealer has flown a shipment of goods to an embargoed destination, do you have a copy of the flight documents? Or, if we have a copy of a fax giving information, can we identify who has sent it?

Interviews If the allegation has come out of information given in an interview, the researcher must provide either the original interview notes, or a copy of these, or a note of the interview made as soon as possible after the event. The notes must be dated and signed by the interviewer.

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Use of secondary sources Where the researcher relies on secondary sources, whether newspaper articles, published or unpublished works, or document found on the Internet, the researcher must provide sufficient details of the secondary source to enable Oxfam to obtain a copy. In the case of a published book, this should include the name of the author and publisher, and if possible the ISBN number. In the case of a magazine article, the same information is required but with an ISSN number. In the case of an unpublished work, the researcher must either provide a copy of the work (this is preferable) or the means by which Oxfam can obtain one.

Internet sources Where the source is on the Internet, the researcher must provide a copy of the downloaded page, which must be dated. This is particularly important as web pages can be taken down easily and without notice.

Allegations of criminal offences If the researcher has included information in their report that a criminal offence has been committed, you should draw it to the project managerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s attention. In some cases you or your organization may choose to refer the issue to the relevant authorities, e.g. money laundering, or breach of Customs & Excise rules. If you are going to use the allegation in a publication, evidence is particularly important.

Names of companies When a company is named in a report, provide details of the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s full name and registration where possible, so that the wrong company is not identify by mistake. On one occasion the publication of a report was halted because the wrong initials had been used to identify a company, and another company with the same initials claimed that its reputation suffered by the false reference.

2) Secondary sources In order to obtain the privilege defence, Oxfam needs evidence of the due diligence of the researcher in checking the secondary sources. Accordingly:

1. Where the source is more than one year old, the researcher must check whether the information is still valid, and confirm this has been done;

2. Where the source is a newspaper article, the researcher should email or telephone the newspaper to check whether the subject made any complaint and, if so, whether the newspaper published a retraction or correction. The researcher must provide a copy of any such exchange with the newspaper and, if it is in a telephone call, a dated and signed note of the conversation. These steps are essential to obtain the privilege defence. However, if the allegation has been repeated in several national newspapers, and is an undisputed matter of public record, this is not required.

Names of individuals If an individual is identified, further identifying information should be given where possible, e.g. address, occupation, workplace. Why? Because in one of the most famous libel cases a newspaper reported the name of a man jailed for bigamy. Unfortunately, there were two men with the same name living in the same town. The innocent one won libel damages against the newspaper.

Further advice If you have concerns or queries about avoiding libel or a potentially libellous allegation in Oxfamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s research, please contact research@oxfam.org.uk for further advice.

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13. GUIDELINES FOR UNDERTAKING RESEARCH WITH ETHICS Any research must follow ethical principles and particular care must be taken when it involves people as participants or is likely to impact directly upon them. This section sets out minimum ethical standards required in all commissioned research. When context-specific and/or more detailed guidance is provided, researchers must adhere to the relevant protocols and demonstrate that they have done so.

The three principles of research ethics: Respect: The researcher must recognize the capacity and rights of all individuals to make their own choices and decisions, and their right to be treated with dignity;

Beneficence: The researcher’s primary goal must be to improve the lives of participants and protect their physical, mental and social well-being;

Justice: The researcher must ensure that the benefits for participants are at least as great as the risks. Putting the principles into practice These principles need to be reflected in each stage of research including: designing research; selecting participants; gaining their consent; conducting the research; and using the research findings.

1. Designing research The research must be designed to reduce risks for participants and increase their possible benefits from its outcome. The research must be designed especially to protect vulnerable participants – for example, children or women workers in a garment factory. Questions for surveys and interviews should be respectful and phrased in culturally-appropriate language.

2. Selecting participants Participants should only be involved in research that has potentially some benefit for them. Possible outcomes, such as a safer society or better working conditions in the long-run, may be benefits if the individual participants consider them to be so. Some participants may feel a benefit simply from having the chance to tell their story. But it is up to them to decide whether or not this is so. No individual or group of participants should face more risks than benefits from participating. If the research has a higher risk than benefit for participants, then it should be redesigned to reduce those risks.

3. Gaining the consent of participants Researchers must gain informed and voluntary consent before conducting research with participants. This means that the participants must: – have the relevant information about what the research is; – understand it, including the possible risks and benefits to themselves; – be free to choose whether or not to participate, without inducement; – give their consent, either written or verbal; – have the right to withdraw from the research at any time. The depth of this consent-taking process will depend on the topic of research and the extent to which it could impact on the participants’ lives. If research involves children (as defined by national law, or as those under 18) then their parents or guardians must also give consent. It is best to get their written consent, in (the rare) case of disputes later. Special care must be taken when seeking consent from vulnerable groups, for example prisoners. Researchers must ensure that no participants are forced to take part, for example by their employer, their parents, or by village elders.

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4. Conducting the research Researchers should be qualified and/or trained for the task. They need to have good self-awareness and strong listening skills. Research should be conducted in places that are socially comfortable for the participant and where they are able to speak freely. If the participant has incurred direct financial costs for participating then they can be reimbursed, but they should not be paid to participate. The participants must be able to contact the researchers, either directly or through local partners. If a participant reports any serious adverse effects as a result of participating – such as losing their job, or being physically abused – then this must be reported to the project manager by the researcher.

5. Using the research findings Participants in research should be told how the research findings are likely to be used (for example as part of a campaign). They must then be asked, and must be free to choose, whether or not: they can be quoted in materials; their real name can be used in materials; their photographic image and/or film of them (if taken) can be used in materials. Their choices must be clearly recorded and always kept with their testimony and/or the relevant media. If it is agreed that all or any part of a participant’s testimony should be confidential then that commitment must be clearly recorded and respected. If the testimony is to be made anonymous, or used with a false name, make sure that any other identifying details are also changed.

Additional resources on research ethics The standards in this guideline are based on the materials produced by FHI 360 (formerly Family Health International) for its Research Ethics Training Curriculum, which includes a free, online self-study course that takes 2-3 hours to complete. Although this focuses on health-related research, it is highly recommended for any social science researcher (see: http://www.fhi360.org/en/RH/Training/trainmat/ethicscurr/index.htm). The Framework for Research Ethics (FRE), produced by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), provides the basic standards for UK-funded social science research (for further information and a copy of the FRE see: http://www.esrc.ac.uk/about-esrc/information/research-ethics.aspx).

Further advice If you have concerns or queries about particular ethical issues in Oxfam’s research, please contact research@oxfam.org.uk for further advice.

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14. GUIDELINES FOR DOCUMENTATION OF RESEARCH In order to use the research findings in publications and campaigns, you should provide full information and documentation of the sources used so that these can be substantiated. The final report(s) must provide endnote references for all specific facts and statistics used. The report(s) must also include a bibliography of the major references used. Please see the Oxfam Style Guide for guidance on reference formats. Primary sources must be used wherever possible over secondary sources. For example, the researcher should reference a statistic to its original report, not where it is cited second-hand by a newspaper or website. If people have been interviewed in the course of the research, the interview notes should be submitted, signed and dated. If quantitative analysis has been done as part of the research, the raw data should be provided, and all steps of calculations shown, in relevant software. If Internet sources have been used, a printed out page from the website showing the cited facts and the date the page was viewed should be included with the documentation. It is important to have documented proof of the content, since web pages are often updated or removed. www.oxfam.org.uk/policyandpractice

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Infosheet 18: Ethical Considerations All Research funding proposals that involve a University will need to pass ethical clearance prior to implementation. This is a rigorous and time consuming process.

Key points to consider: Apply for ethical clearance at least two months before you plan to start fieldwork Research that involves previous studies or analysing archived data does not usually require ethical clearance or risk assessment, but it is best to check. Pay attention to: - Confidentiality – preserving anonymity where necessary - Participation – explain it is voluntary to participate, but be aware that there may be settings where it is difficult for subjects to say no, where there are power plays and peer pressure in evidence - Consent – must be informed, ie: participants understand the aims of the research and outcomes - Children – sensitive rules around safeguarding and consent. Parents/guardians may not be the best to give or deny consent in domestic violence or gender based situations - Feeding back – share findings with participants. Frequently not done well due to lack of time and money. There is a need, therefore, to manage expectations realistically Think whether your subjects would be happy for you or other researchers to conduct more research with them again

Further references / resources on Ethics : British Sociological Association -- http://www.britsoc.co.uk/NR/rdonlyres/801B9A62-5CD3-4BC2-93E1FF470FF10256/0/StatementofEthicalPractice.pdf Association of Social Anthropologists of the Commonwealth -- http://www.theasa.org/ethics/Ethical_guidelines.pdf Social Research Association - www.the-sra.org.uk/ethics03.pdf The Research Ethics Guidebook, an ESRC-funded resource for social scientists http://www.ethicsguidebook.ac.uk/ ESRC Research Ethics Framework 2006 http://www.esrc.ac.uk/ESRCInfoCentre/Images/ESRC_Re_Ethics_Frame_tcm6-11291.pdf ESRC Research Ethics Framework 2010 – updated http://www.esrcsocietytoday.ac.uk/ESRCInfoCentre/Images/ Framework%20for%20Research%20Ethics%202010_tcm6-35811.pdf The National Committee for Research Ethics in the Social Sciences and the Humanities. 2001. Guidelines for research ethics in the social sciences, law and the humanities. http://www.etikkom.no/In-English/Committee-forResearch- Ethics-in-the-Social-Sciences-and-the-Humanities/ ‘As well as the subject: additional dimensions in development research ethics’, UEA research network www.uea.ac.uk/dev/ethicalanalysis

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www.oxfam.org.uk/policyandpractice

Undertaking Research With Ethics Any research must follow ethical principles and particular care must be taken when it involves people as participants or is likely to impact directly upon them. This section sets out the minimum ethical standards required in all research conducted or commissioned by Oxfam GB. When context- specific and/or more detailed guidance is provided by Oxfam or its partners, researchers must adhere to the relevant protocols and demonstrate that they have done so.

THE THREE PRINCIPLES OF RESEARCH ETHICS Respect: The researcher must recognise the capacity and rights of all individuals to make their own choices and decisions, and their right to be treated with dignity; Beneficence: The researcherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s primary goal must be to improve the lives of participants and protect their physical, mental and social well-being; Justice: The researcher must ensure that the benefits for participants are at least as great as the risks.

PUTTING THE PRINCIPLES INTO PRACTICE These principles need to be reflected in each stage of research including: designing research; selecting participants; gaining their consent; conducting the research; and using the research findings.

1. Designing research The research must be designed to reduce risks for participants and increase their possible benefits from its outcome. The research must be designed especially to protect vulnerable participants â&#x20AC;&#x201C; for example, children or women workers in a garment factory. Questions for surveys and interviews should be respectful and phrased in culturally- appropriate language.

2. Selecting participants Participants should only be involved in research that has potentially some benefit for themselves. Possible outcomes, such as a safer society or better working conditions in the long- run, may be benefits if the individual participants consider them to be so. Some participants may feel a benefit simply from having the chance to tell their story. But it is up to them to decide whether or not this is so. No individual or group of participants should face more risks than benefits from participating. If the research has a higher risk than benefit for participants, then it should be redesigned to reduce those risks.

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3. Gaining the consent of participants Researchers must gain informed and voluntary consent before conducting research with participants. This means that the participants must: have the relevant information about what the research is; understand it, including the possible risks and benefits to themselves; be free to choose whether or not to participate, without inducement; give their consent, either written or verbal; have the right to withdraw from the research at any time. The depth of this consent-taking process will depend on the topic of research and the extent to which it could impact on the participants’ lives. If research involves children (as defined by national law, or those under 18) then their parents or guardians must also give consent. It is best to get their written consent, in (the rare) case of disputes later. Special care must be taken when seeking consent from vulnerable groups, for example prisoners. Researchers must ensure that no participants are forced to take part, for example by their employer, their parents, or by village elders.

4. Conducting the research Researchers should be qualified and/or trained for the task. They need to have good self- awareness and strong listening skills. Research should be conducted in places that are socially comfortable for the participant and where they are able to speak freely. If the participant has incurred direct financial costs for participating then they can be reimbursed, but they should not be paid to participate. The participants must be able to contact the researchers, either directly or through local partners. If a participant reports any serious adverse effects as a result of participating – such as losing their job, or being physically abused – then this must be reported to the Oxfam project manager by the researcher.

5. Using the research findings Participants in research should be told how Oxfam would like to use the research findings (for example as part of a campaign). They must then be asked, and must be free to choose, whether or not: they can be quoted in Oxfam materials; their real name can be used in Oxfam materials; their photographic image and/or film of them (if taken) can be used in Oxfam materials. Their choices must be clearly recorded and always kept with their testimony and/or the relevant media. If it is agreed that all or any part of a participant’s testimony should be confidential then that commitment must be clearly recorded and respected. If the testimony is to be made anonymous, or used with a false name, make sure that any other identifying details are also changed.

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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES ON RESEARCH ETHICS The standards in this guideline are based on the materials produced by FHI 360 (formerly Family Health International) for its Research Ethics Training Curriculum, which includes a free, online self- study course that takes 2-3 hours to complete. Although this focuses on health-related research, it is highly recommended for any social science researcher (see: http://www.fhi360.org/en/RH/Training/trainmat/ethicscurr/index.htm). The Framework for Research Ethics (FRE), produced by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), provides the basic standards for UK-funded social science research (for further information and a copy of the FRE see: http://www.esrc.ac.uk/about-esrc/information/research- ethics.aspx).

FURTHER ADVICE If you have concerns or queries about particular ethical issues in Oxfam’s research, please contact research@oxfam.org.uk for further advice.

© Oxfam GB November 2012 This guideline has been prepared by Oxfam’s Global Research Team and Oxfam GB’s Policy and Practice Communications Team for use by staff, partners, and other development practitioners and researchers. It was originally written by Rajiv Dua and Kate Raworth and has been revised and updated by John Magrath and Martin Walsh. The text may be used free of charge for the purposes of education and research, provided that the source is acknowledged in full. The copyright holder requests that all such use be registered with them for impact assessment purposes. For copying in any other circumstances, or for re-use in other publications, or for translation or adaptation, permission must be secured and a fee may be charged. E-mail publish@oxfam.org.uk Oxfam welcomes comments and feedback on its Research Guidelines. If you would would like to discuss any aspect of this document, please contact research@oxfam.org.uk. For further information on Oxfam’s research and publications, please visit www.oxfam.org.uk/policyandpractice The information in this publication is correct at the time of going to press. Published by Oxfam GB under ISBN 978-1-78077-222-6 in November 2012. Oxfam GB, Oxfam House, John Smith Drive, Cowley, Oxford, OX4 2JY, UK. Oxfam is a registered charity in England and Wales (no 202918) and Scotland (SC039042). Oxfam GB is a member of Oxfam International.

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Malawi Medical Journal; 20(2):46 - 49 June 2008

Ethical challenges in conducting research in humanitarian crisis situations Joseph Mfutso-Bengo1, Francis Masiye1, Adamson Muula1,2 1. Centre for Bioethics in Eastern and Southern Africa, College of Medicine, Malawi 2. University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA. Corresponding author: Professor J. M. Mfutso-Bengo, Centre for Bioethics in Eastern and Southern Africa (CEBESA), Department of Community Health, College of Medicine, Private Bag 360, Chichiri, Blantyre 3, Malawi Phone: +265 1 871 911 ext 310, Email: mfutsobengo@medcol.mw

Abstract Research is vital to accurately describe phenomena in humanitarian emergency situations and to evaluate the effectiveness and appropriateness of interventions. Although the ethical principles of justice, beneficence and respect for autonomy/ respect for persons should be upheld in research, their application in emergency situations may differ from nonemergency situations. Just like in non-emergency situations, research in emergency situations should be conducted in the best interest of the victims or future victims. The research should not unnecessarily expose human subjects and the researcher to careless harm, and should be of adequate scientific rigor. Victims of emergency situations are vulnerable populations that need special protection from exploitation. Technical competency to conduct research in emergency situations should include the ability to conduct a fair risk-benefit assessment in order to come up with a risk management plan, and being culturally sensitive to the needs of the victims of the humanitarian crisis. In emergency situations, the roles of Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) may have to be modified without compromising the ethical standards that health researchers have globally attempted to achieve.

Introduction Natural and unnatural (man-made disasters) are increasingly being reported across the globe. Research in emergencies is important in order to describe the living situations, assess the needs of the victims of the emergency situations, and to monitor and evaluate interventions so as to provide adequate and safe care to victims of emergency situations. What may be acceptable in the non-emergency situation may have to be adapted and evaluated in humanitarian emergency conditions.1 A humanitarian emergency is a crisis which requires immediate attention and response. While the general principles of research ethics used in non-emergency situations are similar to those in emergency situations, that is, adherence to the principles of respect for persons, beneficence and justice, the unique circumstances of emergency situation avail themselves with special considerations as the social fabric may be significantly disrupted and the functioning of institutional review boards (IRBs), where they may have existed, may be compromised. Emergencies may also be associated with perpetrators of violence, who may be the cause of the humanitarian crisis and victims of the ensuing violence, a situation that may not be as applicable to non- emergency situations. Research aspects of a humanitarian crisis can be conducted during or after the emergency situation. In this paper, we attempt to discuss the ethics of conducting research in

emergency situations and suggest some guidelines that would enable researchers to have sign posts in ensuring that research conducted in humanitarian crises is of acceptable ethical standard. For the purposes of this paper, an emergency situation and humanitarian crisis have been used interchangeably.

Beneficence The guiding principles of research are essentially the same whether in emergency situations or in non-emergency situations. However, research conducted in emergency situations must be in the best interest of victims of the humanitarian crises or future victims. As it is generally agreed that the primary needs of victims of a humanitarian crisis are life, safety and security, these needs should receive the utmost priority. Good intentions for conducting the research should not only be implied but as much as possible they should be demonstrable. The results of any research conducted in humanitarian crisis should benefit the victims directly by improving their life, safety and security unlike in nonemergency situations, where the results of the research may indirectly benefit the research participants but instead provide direct future benefit to the society at large.

Respect for autonomy /respect for persons Generally, respect for personal autonomy is provided for when informed consent is obtained from research participants or their legal representatives. This stems from the understanding that individuals are independent moral agents and that those deemed unable to exercise such autonomy are protected and are treated as if they would have made informed choices. Victims of humanitarian crises are a vulnerable group and therefore are worthy of added protection. However, such protection should not be to the extent that they are prevented from participating in research in which they have volunteered to participate. A dilemma exists when the situation they are in provides them an inducement to participate in research. For instance, a hungry victim of a crisis may volunteer more readily to participate in a nutritional supplementation intervention program than if they were not starving. Although where practicable, individual informed consent should be sought, certain situations in an emergency situation may mean that such is not always possible. The consent of the appropriate legal state or community representatives may be sought.

Justice The principle of justice is usually manifested in the fair selection of research subjects. Non-beneficial (futile) research should never be carried out in emergency situations. In clinical trials, it is generally agreed that study participants should have the opportunity of accessing the care that is superior when the results of the trial show that one intervention is better than the other. Of course, this notion is modified to suggest that the goal should really be access to the minimum standard of care within that community. Consider a famine where a food supplement such as the ready-to-use food (RTUF) is being tried in an emergency situation. RTUF have been reported as beneficial in reducing malnutrition and improving catch-up growth amongst children in Malawi.2,3 It may be argued that if found to be more beneficial than some other standard care practices, the study participants should have the benefit of accessing the RTUF from the research team. Now, the challenge that could be anticipated

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is that those enrolled in the study may leave a proportion of the community suffering from the humanitarian hunger crisis. Tension may araise if the researchers provide RTUF only to the research participants, other persons affected by the hunger, may face harm.

Cultural sensitivity Being culturally sensitive is an attribute that research teams needs to exercise. This is due to a number of reasons but mostly to ensure active community involvement as the community does not perceive overt threats to their way of life. For instance, in some cultures, it may not be perceived as appropriate for social public body contact between members of the opposite sex. In some of these cultures, a hand shake between a male and a female, who may not be married to each other, could be perceived inappropriate and a manifestation of sexual advancement. A researcher from another culture who may not be conversant with such cultural norms and values may endanger themselves by such “inappropriate” behavior but could also result in the research work being hampered as the community may not be cooperative as research participants. It is impossible for researchers from another social environment to know all the acceptable and unacceptable cultural practices in another area. It helps however to attempt to be appraised on such cultural practices through either review of the literature or discussions with members of the target community. As much as is practicable, researchers should also attempt to incorporate within their research teams individuals with similar cultural background as the research participants. A research team that plans to conduct research in any area where contact with human is scheduled should always ensure that there is appropriate recognition or appreciation of the cultural and religious beliefs of the community. In many emergency situations, there may be not only one but multiple cultures and religious beliefs that the researchers may find. In particular areas where emergencies result from cultural and ethnic conflict, involvement of persons within the research team who may be perceived as sympathizers to the perpetrators of the conflict may pose as a challenge and possibly be counter-productive and potentially expose the research team to unnecessary and potentially avoidable harm. Where the researcher or his/her assistants are not speakers of the language of the victims of the humanitarian crisis, administering a research questionnaire, for instance, poses particular challenges. The interpreters, guides and assistants must be those that will be acceptable to the subjects and the community. A reasonable understanding of the culture is particularly useful. For example, it is probably safe to have women research assistants interviewing fellow women and men interviewing males. Exceptions may occur but as a general rule this may be acceptable. There may be times when it may be possible to get a particular gender (most likely women) to be research assistants in humanitarian crises as women are in many cases perceived not as much threats in many societies. Like in all cases, exceptions do occur. For instance, involving women as research assistants could potentially expose them to hazards such as sexual abuse in war torn environments.

Non-maleficence The idea of non-maleficence is even more critical in emergency situations where the researcher is dealing with vulnerable populations. Harm can be avoidable or unavoidable, and anticipated or unanticipated. In conducting research, avoidable and anticipated harm should be minimized. Harm should be prevented for the research team as well as the victims of the humanitarian crisis.

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Undue inducement or necessary care Just as in non-emergency situations, study participants should never be unduly induced to participate in research. Although study participants in emergency situations are vulnerable, they must participate voluntarily and no inducements should be offered to participants to make them participate in studies. However, life-saving care to victims of emergency situations should never be withheld in order to provide the environment for research and neither should it be withheld to ensure that there is no accusation of inducements. For instance, it is unethical to withhold food intervention just because the researchers later want to study the effectiveness of RTUF i.e. the conditions of human suffering should never be created, aggravated or maintained by the researchers. However, the researchers need to make it clear to the potential subjects that being a beneficiary of an intervention does not have any bearing on the victims’ participation in the research, if the intervention itself is not a matter of research. In conducting research, investigators should also consider, anticipate and attempt to prevent misconceptions, misestimation and unwarranted optimism about the intervention4. The above terms are thus reported by Horng and Grady: a) Therapeutic misconception: This term was first described by Appelbaum et al in 1987.5 This is where the research participant confuses, or does not differentiate between or “conflates” research and clinical practice. b) Therapeutic misestimation: This is where the research participant underestimates risk, or overestimates benefit, or both. c) Therapeutic optimism: This is where the research participant hopes for the best individual or personal outcome. In virtually all emergency situations, the primary needs of the victims are preservation of life, safety and security. Even though research may contribute to the realization of these needs, such may not be perceived as such by the victims. The need therefore of truthfulness is particularly crucial in research situations where the subjects may be misled to think that the collection of data is such that the researcher is identifying a particular group i.e. either as beneficiary of impending relief interventions or individuals whose names are to be presented to the aggressors.

Relationship with relief agencies In a humanitarian crisis, the researcher should ensure that they work with the humanitarian or relief agencies that are attending to the needs of the victims in terms of safety, security, food, health care and rehabilitation. The researchers should endeavour to limit how much the research activities hamper relief efforts. The basic survival needs of victims should rank first before research pursuit. There may however be circumstances where research may have to precede humanitarian relief efforts especially when life is not in immediate danger. Researchers and relief agencies should work in cooperation and desist from creating situations where the efforts of the other may be undermined.

Access to emergency care Conducting research in emergency situations will almost inevitably lead the researchers to come in contact with people who may need health and other essential care not available at the time or place where the contact with research subjects is occurring. This raises the question as to what would be the role of researchers in such situations. For instance, there is an individual who has been bitten by a venomous snake as he participated in the study. What would the research team have to do? Immediate health care may not be available within the locality but may be so available elsewhere. It is prudent for the

research team to assist as may be practicable within the prevailing resources. Where possible, the research may have to assist in facilitating access to life-saving care.

Scientific rigor Just because research is being carried out in emergency situations does not mean that haphazard and unsound research techniques should be employed. If research would lack scientific rigor, that would essentially expose both the research team and subjects to unwarranted cost in time, resources and the sometimes inadvertent hazards that may be inherent in emergency situations. Within the limits that are inherent in an emergency situation, all that would ensure implementation of sound research methodology must be done. There is no room for mediocrity. While research rigor is a necessity, there must also be demonstrable research value of the study. A study can be of high methodological standard and yet be wanting in how it adds to the body of knowledge that may be useful to enhance standard of life for humanity.

Risk-Benefit assessment By its nature, research in emergency situations could potentially expose study participants and the researchers to relatively higher potential for harm than may be the case in research conducted in non-emergency situations. Researchers in emergency situations should weigh the risks as opposed to the potential benefits of such research. Risk can be to the research team itself, research participants or others not directly involved in the research, such as the community. Consider, for instance, a refugee situation which has been created by tribal or ethnic conflict. Research that has potential to alleviate the suffering of the refugees ( for example, the use of RTUF) may be perceived as harmful to the adversary as the research has potential to limit the harm that had been created by the violence. The adversary may then attack the refugee camps or the researchers so that the suffering of the refugees is prolonged and exacerbated. Research should only be conducted where the potential benefits outweigh the potential harms. Anything less than that is unethical. Having conducted a risk-benefit assessment, and the decision to carry out the research is reached, there should also be a risk management plan in place for both the research team and the study subjects. Negligence defined as absence of due care, can be exhibited through exposure of either the research team or subjects to unnecessary harm without risk management plan in place. While harm may be intended, it must be reasonable to be acceptable but not careless.

Sustainability of potential interventions In conducting research in emergency situations, the researchers should give due consideration of the acceptability and sustainability of the intervention in the communities. It is questionable when research introduces an intervention which the communities may not be able to continue accessing or using once the research project has concluded. Researchers should also potentially and overt controversial intervention. An example could be the introduction of genetically modified (GM) food as therapy for malnutrition in a humanitarian crisis. While there are significant benefits to be accrued from such GM crops, the sensitivities and opposition to such technology can not be easily neglected.

Relationships with authorities An appropriate relationship with authorities, however organized or legitimate such may be, is an important consideration of

conducting research in emergency situations. Authorities may be useful in providing relevant permission to conduct the study, and may provide security for both researchers and subjects during the research period. There are however associated risks that people may be exposed to, for instance by perceptions of being collaborators to authorities. For instance, in situations where the authorities are perceived as aggressors or perpetrators of a social harm, research subject may associate the research team as an equally unwelcome entity. Association with authorities therefore has to be purely on a professional level and this should be defined. Where there is potential for confusion, the research team should endeavour to clear the suspicion through processes that may be in their power, without putting themselves in unnecessary harm.

Exemptions from IRB review In some sense, Institutional Review Boards (IRB) can be like bureaucracy. Mattox has suggested that “bureaucracy breeds inaction”.6 The conditions in emergency situations may be such that obtaining IRB approval may not be practicable; for instance, where an IRB does not exist or the urgency of the situation will render the delay by any IRB to be unacceptable, the guiding principle should be the best interest of the victims of the emergency situation. Where such research enhances local capacity to respond, facilitates delivery of appropriate intervention and does not expose subjects and researchers to undue harm, such research may be permissible. Even in non-emergency situations, some research may be exempted from stringent reviews of Institutional Reviews Boards. Several situations in educational research are exempt from IRB review. These include; research performed on regular or established educational settings and involving practices that are commonly accepted; research on educational tests or observation of public behavior where the subjects can not be later identified or on elected or appointed public officials and research that utilizes existing data which are publicly available or the subjects cannot be identified. Research that is conducted to study or evaluate or examine public benefit of a welfare program for instance, may be IRB exempt when the head of the particular agency or department involved has given permission. In emergency situations, research may have to be expedited. For instance, it may be important to study the living situations of the immediate aftermath of a disaster situation, such as the Asian Tsunami disaster. If the formal IRB situation were to be followed, in many cases, by the time such authority was provided, the situation may have changed either due to lapse of time or interventions that may have been implemented. Of course, a retrospective study could be conducted, but depending on the nature of the study, this may not be considered as appropriate. In such situations, IRB approval may not be practical. However, research should endeavour to obtain permission for the recognized authority; which may be the State, local government authority, UN agencies or other similar organizations. In situations where certain humanitarian crises can be anticipated, it is possible to have IRB review of a research project in advance. Although this may be perceived as “wishing” human suffering, it has to be also appreciated that the researchers do not have a hand in the causation of the suffering but are attempting to contribute to the solution of such disasters.

Especially vulnerable persons Although in humanitarian crises large groups of persons experience suffering, the situations of particular groups such as aliens, the elderly, widows, orphans, physically and mentally challenged possibly deserve particular attention as research subjects. These groups are not capable of making individual decisions whether to participate in a study or not. The explicit

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permission of the relevant authority figures on their behalf may be required. However, this should not override individual choices except in the case of the mentally challenged whose cognitive faculties may be impaired by illness.

Acknowledgements The authors of this paper are supported by the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) and the National Institutes of Health-Fogarty International Centre.

Dissemination of findings

References

Emergency situations present particular demands with regard to the publication of research findings. The questions as to when, how, to who are particularly pertinent as careless dissemination of findings may predispose both the researchers and the subjects to potential harm. For instance, researchers may identify particular institution’s shortfalls in the response to human needs or identify the perpetrators on a social ill. Understandably such findings may not be acceptable by some sections of the community who may feel the researchers have not been a fair representation of their role in the crisis. For instance, a government that has been identified as doing little to alleviate human suffering may penalize, even banning relief agencies from the country of the researcher(s) accusing them of “spying” or intentionally aiming “to tarnish the image of a democratic government”.

Summary guidelines Although the Code of Ethics for Emergency Nurses7 was primarily formulated to deal with clinical emergencies, we find the same to be reasonably appropriate to humanitarian crises. The following are the summary guidelines adapted from the Code: 1. The researcher should ensure that he/she conducts research with compassion and respect for individuals and communities. 2. The researcher should maintain the highest sense of scientific rigor and competency. 3. The researcher should ensure that victims of emergency situation’s welfare are not further jeopardized because of the research. 4. The rights to privacy and confidentiality of subjects have to be respected. 5. Research should not hamper relief efforts but rather facilitate the delivery of the same 6. Where appropriate, collaborations with other researchers and agencies should be encouraged in order to enhance care. 7. Research in emergency situations should be carried out only when similar data can not be obtained otherwise. 8. Research should be responsive to the needs of the victims of the emergency 9. Only research that does not hinder or obstruct effective and appropriate interventions should be carried out. 10. Research should improve interventions and/or local capacity to respond to the current or future emergency.

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1. Leyennar J. (2004). Human immuno-deficiency virus and infant feeding in complex humanitarian emergencies: priorities and policy considerations. Disasters. 2004; 28, 1-15 2. Sandige H., Ndekha M, Briend A, Ashorn P, Manary MJ. Home-based treatment of malnourished Malawian children with locally produced or imported ready-to-use food. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2004; 39: 141-6. 3. Manary MJ, Ndekha M, Ashorn P, Maleta K, Briend A. Home based therapy for severe malnutrition wit ready-to-use food. Arch Dis Child. 2004; 89: 557-61 4. Horng S, Grady S. Misunderstanding in Clinical Care: Distinguishing Therapeutic, Misconception, Therapeutic Misestimation, and Therapeutic Optimism. IRB: Ethics and Human Research. 2003; 25(1): 11-16 5. Appelbaum PS, Roth LH, Lidz CW, Benson P, Winslade W. False hopes and best data: Consent to research and the therapeutic misconception. Hastings Center Report. 1987: 12(2): 20-24. 6. Mattox K. The World Trade Center Attack. Disaster Preparedness: health care is ready, but is the bureaucracy? Critical Care. 2001; 5(6), 323-5 7. Emergency Nurses Association. Code of Ethics for Emergency Nurses. 2004 Accessed from: www.emergency.net/ethics.htm

Tool 12: Research Uptake Checkli st Question

Y/N

Comments

Stakeholder engagement Is there a plan to map relevant stakeholders? Will the research design take into consideration the needs of end users? Are there plans for on-going engagement with stakeholders throughout the programme? Are there plans to facilitate evidence-informed discussions?

Capacity Building Will an assessment of internal capacity to carry out and communicate research be done? Will an assessment of external capacity to make use of research results be done? Is the mix of capacity building approaches proposed appropriate? Does the programme team have the capacity to implement their capacity building strategy?

Communicating Are there plans to carry out research synthesis during the inception phase and/or later? Is the programme team aware of the donorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s open and enhanced access policy? Will outputs be published in peer review journals? Is there a plan to package and communicate findings to non-specialist audiences? What use will be made of Social Media? What use will be made of other platforms such as ELDIS, ALNAP, ReliefWeb, Alertnet etc? Are there plans for a final workshop or conference? If so, who will it be aimed at? Will the research programme have a website? If so, who will fund and update this (some donors will not fund websites)

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Question Monitoring and Evaluation Is research uptake appropriately reflected in the logframe? Is there a strategy for gathering and recording data on research uptake? Is there an appropriate evaluation strategy? Is sufficient resource allocated to monitoring and evaluation? Is there a strategy for sharing learning on research uptake?

Logistical, administrative and financial Who will lead on Research Uptake and Outreach? Is there capacity within the team or will someone need to be recruited? What budget will be required? Accessibility of final event location (visa requirements, availability, ease of travel to etc) Adapted from UK Department for International Development

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Y/N

Comments

Proposal / EOI development tips

Infosheet 19: Proposal Preparation Tips - Nuts and Bolts Whilst some of these might be blindingly obvious to many, it is surprising how many proposals fall at the first hurdle for not having taken into account such things as eligibility, word count and format (many donors are increasingly strict on font size and margins). Always read the Terms of Reference / Call for Tenders very carefully – check for the following: Deadline – time, timezone and date Address if postal, email address if email submission Eligibility – do you have the requisite verification documents in place, eg: three years’ worth of accounts, registration in your country, specific policies in place that might be required (such as equal opportunities, child safeguarding etc) – the same for any organisations in your consortium Word count / page limits for each section of the proposal Formatting: margin and font size Specific areas they are focusing on

Specific tips for Research Proposals Research funders are looking for well articulated research questions with the evidence generated through robust and relevant methodologies – if these are not clearly described in the proposal it will count against you. You might have a wonderful, highly relevant idea for the donor, but if your methodology is weak, you will not get funded. Much emphasis is put on the experience and publishing track record of your Principal Investigator. At the level of Research Council funding and other scientific bodies, it is unlikely that a junior academic with few publications, who has just finished their PhD would attract funding as a Principal Investigator. They could, however, prove a vitally important team member with specific research expertise and adding significant value Research uptake and user engagement should be embedded into the programme from the start – the days of one way dissemination of research findings is over (and has never guaranteed uptake!) There should be a mix of publication outputs ranging from peer reviewed journal articles and monographs to more immediately available Policy and Practice Briefs or Working Papers Agree on timelines that suit all parties – academics work to a very different timeline than practitioners Ensure you have clearance from your Ethics Review Boards (this can take a long time so build it into your timeline)

General Tips Remain true to your organisation’s mandate – if the project doesn’t fit, don’t waste time bidding unless you are very sure you can make a good fit Allow plenty of time, especially if working with multiple members of a consortium. Time zone differences, national holidays and current workload commitments should be shared by all members to enable effective planning and preventing hold ups/bottlenecks. If there is time, and you have the resources, once you have written the proposal and are basically happy with it, get a national speaker of the language in which you are submitting your proposal to read it through for any final edits, checking figures of speech etc. It will come across much more professional as a result. The reviewing of proposals is frequently contracted out to external consultants – not necessarily experts in the field that is second nature to yourselves. Therefore, you need to explain concepts and organisations clearly – write any acronym in full the first time it appears with the acronym in brackets. If it is possible, provide a list of acronyms and definitions of key concepts (it is rare to be able to do this)

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Use the donor’s language – if your work is based on participatory principles, but the donor calls it community engagement – use the phrase ‘community engagement’ – it’s easier for the reviewers to pick out from the myriad of proposals they will be reviewing and score you positively. Get the legal issues sorted and cleared by all parties’ organisations and establish which country’s law prevails for the project as a whole (this can also take time as individual organisations/institutions try to align a variety of legal requirements, plus some donors may well stipulate which country’s Rule of Law applies) Establish which member(s) of the consortium has ‘duty of care’ for field staff The Budget tells the real story. You can say what you like in your narrative, but the Budget can give you away. For example, if you are selling your engineering project as a capacity building one, if the Budget comprises mainly costs for building wells, with a low cost for training in maintenance etc, the donor will see through this!

Online submissions Increasingly donors have online submission processes that provide the applicant with character limited boxes, which can appear daunting and inaccessible. I personally find they restrict my creativity / ability to write effectively and coherently (quite literally ‘boxed in’), so recommend the following: Write the various sections of the proposal as they come to you, in Word, without any thought to word limit or format. Aim for a narrative that flows and progresses logically through the donor’s questions at this stage Write the proposal as a coherent whole, using the questions / headings of the proposal format If you are co-authoring a proposal, get all the inputs from contributors into one document Print it out, read through making initial edits and moving text around that have ‘best fit’ within the proposal headings Leave for a couple of days (this might of course, be a luxury!) Go back to it fresh and then start the ‘micro-edit’ in earnest: - Cull any duplicated text (but think carefully where it might sit best within the proposal) - Look to see if particular phrases that use up a number of words or characters can be condensed into one word/less words (without becoming completely unintelligible, or using words that are not commonly used/understood) A thesaurus is a good tool, but can lead to some bizarrely articulated sentences – use with caution (especially for those for whom English, or the language in which you are submitting, is not a first language) - Keep checking on the word count by highlighting that particular bit of text using Word’s ‘wordcount facility’

Postal and Email submissions There are a few tricks you can perform if there is a page limit (rather than a word or character count): Condense the font – a facility within Word under the Font section. If you reduce your character spacing to 0.8 it is still the same size font, but you can fit a lot more words per line/page. Don’t leave any lines between headings and text. If necessary embolden the heading, insert a colon and continue your narrative on the same line. If you have a diagram that demonstrates what you are seeking to convey that might take a couple of paragraphs to explain verbally – use the diagram – especially for project accountability/management structures. Source: Partnership for International Development (www.P4ID.org.uk)

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Partnership Guidelines Research for Health in Humanitarian Crises The Research for Health in Humanitarian Crises (R2HC) programme requires all those applying for funding to submit collaborative applications that involve both a research institution and an operational humanitarian organisation. The programme also encourages applications that involve organisations based in countries most affected by humanitarian crises. This document is intended to guide potential R2HC applicants in forming strong collaborative partnerships, and explain the support that ELRHA can offer.

Why partnership is important The ultimate aim of the R2HC programme is to improve health outcomes in humanitarian crises. It does this by strengthening the evidence base for public health interventions in crisis situations. For this to work well, researchers need to work effectively with humanitarian public health specialists. The involvement of organisations local to the research is also crucial, both to capture knowledge of the country context and to maximise research uptake by local, national and international organisations. Note that applications to the R2HC can be led by organisations from any country. R2HC is managed by Enhancing Learning and Research for Humanitarian Assistance (ELRHA), an organisation which has extensive experience and expertise in identifying, supporting and developing effective partnerships between research institutions and operational humanitarian organisations. A list of resources and services available is given overleaf.

Key considerations The most successful applications in the first round of R2HC funding were those that successfully combined the expertise and knowledge of research approaches and methods on the one hand, and the experience and knowledge of humanitarian needs and practices on the other. Partnering organisations will need to jointly agree the aims and objectives of the research proposal. These should be the focus of initial discussions between potential collaborators. It may help to be clear at this early stage about the research question that the proposed project will seek to answer. For the R2HC, partners need to submit letters of support to demonstrate their commitment to the proposed objectives. Once the aims and objectives have been agreed, think about the combination of partners in your proposed collaboration. Do your partners have the requisite skills and experience to achieve these aims and objectives? For the R2HC, potential partners might include universities, local or international NGOs, community organisations, local or national government organisations, expert consultants, statisticians and others. Consider setting up a written operational agreement. Any such agreement needs to be clear about who is doing what, by when and why so that every member of the collaboration takes responsibility for their part and is accountable to the rest of the group. An agreement can also be a vital point of reference if things go wrong between the partners. An agreement is not a requirement for the R2HC but is highly encouraged. The R2HC provides seed funding, for applications which are shortlisted after the Expression of Interest stage, to support the development of strong and effective partnerships. These funds, of up to ÂŁ10,000 per application, can be used to cover travel and other costs associated with bringing the various partners together, as well as doing some preliminary data collection to support the proposal. The institutional environment for academics and humanitarians is very different. Universities have structures such as Ethics Review Boards and Human Resources procedures which take time to negotiate and navigate. Humanitarian agencies have protocols that need to be observed, such as Security Protocols and Child Safeguarding Procedures. An understanding of these institutional requirements at the outset will smooth the path towards achieving the projectâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s aims and objectives.

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The difference in timeframes within which academics and humanitarians are accustomed to working must also be taken into account. Because of the nature of research, timeframes are much longer in academic institutions than in humanitarian organisations, which need to respond extremely quickly to a crisis. The academic calendar has an annual rhythm of pressure points that will need to be factored into time plans. Incentive structures play a major role in organisations coming together. What is it that each partner seeks to take away from the initiative? For academics it will need to lead to peer reviewed publications. For humanitarians it will be to provide a better and more informed response â&#x20AC;&#x201C; but quickly! Many agencies are publicly funded so are under pressure to be seen to perform. They are also subject to media scrutiny in the face of a high profile disaster such as Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines in 2013.

Partnerships in the 1st and 2nd Calls Of the 18 grants awarded thus far, the lead applicants have comprised eight academic institutions, eight NGOs and two UN agencies. The majority of these had local partners with significant implementation and research capacity. It was important that the lead application organisation had a track record of running complex research projects, and that the Principal Investigator had previous published research. A number of applications were not recommended for funding due to insufficient expertise in the team concerning research methods, particularly sampling and statistics. The seed funding offered for those through to full proposal stage played a vital role in helping develop the collaboration and proposal.

ELRHAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Effective Partnership Support ELRHA offers a number of partnership support initiatives ranging from online services to customised partnership brokering workshops to assist new or emerging collaborations to coalesce around their idea, establish their combined resources, build their proposal and understand their team. More information on these resources is available as follows:

Online Guide to Effective Partnerships ep.elrha.org Research Matching facility www.elrha.org/researchmatching Partnership Request Form specifically for R2HC www.elrha.org/work/r2hc Partnership Brokering workshops â&#x20AC;&#x201C; customised to fit your partnership group needs. Frances Hill, ELRHA Research Partnerships Manager, can provide more information on content, tools and processes More information available from: Frances Hill Research Partnerships Manager, ELRHA f.hill@savethechildren.org.uk

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Next steps and further reading

Worksheet 7: Next steps and action summary Area

What action

Who

When

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Infosheet 20: Links to Relevant Articles Partnerships and Collaborative Working Intermediary Mechanisms in Humanitarian Collaboration, Betwixt & Between, May 2013, By Joanne Burke & Lucy Pearson, Humanitarian Futures Programme, Kings College, 8 May 2013 http://partnershipbrokers.org/w/journal/intermediary-mechanisms-in-humanitarian-collaboration/ Partnership between WWF and American Red Cross http://www.worldwildlife.org/what/partners/humanitarian/green-recovery-and-reconstruction-toolkit.html “Reducing Risk and Vulnerability: An Environmental and Humanitarian Reconstruction Partnership” Anita Van Breda & Bob Laprade http://www.worldwildlife.org/what/partners/humanitarian/green-recovery-and-reconstruction-toolkit.html Emergency Capacity Building project. ECB Partnership (CARE, CRS, Mercy Corps, Oxfam GB, SCF, World Vision) www.ecbproject.org Partnership Brokering Project http://www.partnershipbrokers.org ICVA http://www.icva.ch Child Protection in Emergencies Coordinators’ Handbook 2010 http://oneresponse.info/GlobalClusters/Protection/CP/Documents/handbookFINAL.pdf Humanitarian Accountability Partnership International (HAP) www.hapinternational.org Comprehensive Disaster Management Programme (CDMP) Bangladesh ‘developing knowledge base and upload to its disaster management information centre and website’ “Identifying Partnership Needs and Opportunities” Twigg, J (2009) Disaster Studies Working Paper 18 Aon Benfield UCL Hazard Research Centre www.abuhrc.org/rp/publications/Pages/wpdsm.aspx. John Twigg email: j.twigg@ucl.ac.uk “Commercial and Humanitarian Engagement in Crisis Contexts: Current Trends, Future Drivers” ODI and HFP Discussion Paper 2011 Humanitarian Relief Initiative (WEF) “Religion and Humanitarianism” a conference organised by Geneva Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, October 2009 www.graduateinstitute.ch/ccdp “Collaboration and Partnership in Humanitarian Action” Humanitarian Exchange 45 Dec 2009 www.humanitarianforum.org “Confronting War: Critical Lessons for Peace Practitioners” (2003) Anderson, M, Olson, L & Doughty, K www.cdainc.com/cdawww/publication.php http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/home/ opendocPDFViewer.html?docid=4c99bad49&query=humanitarian%20partnerships Principles of good Humanitarian donorship www.goodhumanitariandonorship.org Learning and Skills Improvement Service

http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20130802100617/http:/lsis.org.uk a range of in depth tools to analyse collaborative practices, assess risk etc ELRHA’s Guide to Effective Partnerships http://www.elrha.org/ep/the-online-guide-for-effective- partnerships/

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Research Aspects ECB Good Enough Guide www.ecbproject.org/goodenoughguide; www.ecbproject.org/geg Oxfam’s Policy and Practice Research Guidelines – www.oxfam.org.uk/policyandpractice

https://ori.hhs.gov/education/products/rcradmin/index.html - excellent resource on collaborative research Swiss Commission for Research Partnerships with Developing Countries (KFPE) “A Guide for Transboundary Research Partnerships: 11 Principles, 7 Questions” 2nd Edition Guidelines for writing a research proposal: http://www.geog.ox.ac.uk/graduate/apply/research_proposal.html Research Methods Knowledge Base: http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/contents.php Royal College of Emergency Medicine Research Technical Guide:

http://www.rcem.ac.uk/Shop- Floor/Research/Technical%20Guide Royal College of Emergency Medicine “How to write a Research Proposal”

http://www.rcem.ac.uk/Shop- Floor/Research/Writing%20A%20Research%20Proposal Guidance from UNICEF – excellent videos and briefs on what different things mean, including casual attribution and methods such as RCTs. Useful for practitioners to provide a good grounding out of these concepts and methodologies. See link and scroll down to the yellow boxes http://www.unicef-irc.org/KM/IE/ DFID Resources on Research aspects: · DFID ethics principles for research and evaluation – principles to support high standards of integrity in the research and evaluation we fund www.gov.uk/government/publications/dfid-ethics-principles-for-research-and-evaluation · How to note: capacity building in research – provides guidance on improving the capability of organisations and individuals to do and use research www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-note-capacity-building-in-research · Logframe guidance for research programmes - logframes are not an R2HC requirement but that many projects will find making a logframe useful www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/209569/Logframe_guidance_for_rese arch_programmes_Final_PDF_version.pdf A good introduction if partners are grappling on the ground with these ideas:

http://www.alnap.org/resource/6264 Interesting introductory text for humanitarians by MSF http://www.alnap.org/resource/13024 Humanitarian Exchange (forthcoming) ELRHA will have a piece about research in the Ebola crisis.

http://www.odihpn.org/humanitarian-exchange-magazine

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