The VVLead Fellowship: Best Practices for Implementing Women's Leadership Programs

THE VVLEAD FELLOWSHIP BEST PRACTICES FOR IMPLEMENTING WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS

PROGRAM DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION

IMPACT MEASUREMENT

ENSURING SUSTAINABILITY AND REPLICABILITY

THE VVLEAD FELLOWSHIP BEST PRACTICES FOR IMPLEMENTING WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS IN 2013, VITAL VOICES GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP, WITH FUNDING FROM THE UK GOVERNMENT’S DEPARTMENT OF INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, ESTABLISHED THE VVLEAD FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM TO SUPPORT A GLOBAL NETWORK OF EMERGING AND ESTABLISHED WOMEN LEADERS WHO ARE ADDRESSING CHALLENGES AND PROVIDING INNOVATIVE AND SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS TO ENSURE FULL PARTICIPATION OF WOMEN AND GIRLS IN SOCIETY AND THE ECONOMY.

The three-year pilot program tested a blended learning model aimed at fostering women’s leadership. Through online and in-person engagements, VVLead fellows embraced the three pillars of the VVLead Fellowship Program: connect, learn and collaborate. The online and in-person engagements consisted primarily of online courses, in-person Peer-to-Peer and South-South exchanges, and funding opportunities through Challenge Grants. In tandem with these formal program offerings, fellows were connected through various social media channels and discussion forums in the Desire2Learn (D2L) Platform. The structure and offerings of the VVLead Fellowship Program are discussed in The VVLead Fellowship: A Programmatic Approach to Women’s Leadership and Peer-to-Peer Exchange: Best Practices for Designing Learning Exchanges.

As this innovative program is closing, we want to ensure that the lessons we learned through its implementation are not lost.

The purpose of this paper is to build on the preceding VVLead practice notes by offering insights and recommendations for organizations that are building or enhancing blended learning capacity-building programs. All recommendations discussed in the following sections are based on both observations from VVLead staff and feedback from VVLead fellows.

THEY ARE BEST UNDERSTOOD AS BELONGING TO THREE DISTINCT BUT RELATED CATEGORIES:

PROGRAM DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION

IMPACT MEASUREMENT

THE VVLEAD FELLOWSHIP: BEST PRACTICES FOR IMPLEMENTING WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS

ENSURING SUSTAINABILITY AND REPLICABILITY

OVERVIEW

PROGRAM DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION

IMPACT MEASUREMENT

ENSURING SUSTAINABILITY AND REPLICABILITY

ENSURE DIVERSITY OF PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS

ESTABLISH AN ACCESSIBLE ONLINE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

One of the most compelling features of the VVLead Fellowship

Through the Desire2Learn (D2L) platform, VVLead offered online

Program was the immense diversity of fellows. Fellows came

courses such as Strategic Planning, Human Resources, Branding

from different socioeconomic backgrounds, regions and sectors,

and Strategic Communications, among many others.

spoke a variety of mother languages, were of different ages and physical abilities, and each held different levels of experience in

We found that fellows were most engaged in online

their respective fields. The international makeup of the program

courses when the course content offered transferrable

proved especially valuable. Fellows were able to learn and gain

skills that fellows could readily apply in their day-to-day

global insight about approaches taking place beyond their borders

work. We were also able to keep fellows engaged in these

and then apply them to their local context. The international

online offerings by providing fellows access to both live

network also provided opportunities for some fellows to expand

and recorded course modules.

their work across borders, which ultimately provided fellows with global exposure and more professional opportunities.

To accommodate fellows’ various time zones and personal schedules, each course was stored on D2L as a recording within

The diverse age pool also proved beneficial, as the fellowship

48 hours of the course airing live. Understanding that each fellow’s

engaged women at varying points in their careers, as well as

access to reliable internet varied, the courses were stored in

varying years of experience. As a result, each fellow was able to

a downloadable MP3 and MP4 format, while coursework was

give and receive unique support from others in the program and

stored as downloadable PowerPoint, Word and PDF documents.

act as both the mentor and mentee to various fellows at different

Alongside engagement in the online courses, the fellows interacted

points in the fellowship, despite their differences in age. These

socially on the VVLead Fellowship Facebook group. Fellows were

peer mentoring relationships helped reinforce the fellowship’s

able to share both personal and professional updates on the

non-hierarchal nature. Despite the vast differences in background,

VVLead Facebook group, as well as spark conversations about

all fellows had the desire to enhance their leadership skills and

developments in their societies.

were deeply committed to improving the lives of those in their communities.

THE VVLEAD FELLOWSHIP: BEST PRACTICES FOR IMPLEMENTING WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS

PROGRAM DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION

PROGRAM DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION

IMPACT MEASUREMENT

ENSURING SUSTAINABILITY AND REPLICABILITY

ENSURE ALL FELLOWS HAVE AT LEAST ONE IN-PERSON OPPORTUNITY

MANAGE EXPECTATIONS ABOUT RELEVANT FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

Many fellows reported that the in-person Peer-to-Peer Exchanges

During the course of the fellowship, VVLead piloted a portfolio of

and South-South Exchanges were highly influential to their ongoing

Challenge Grants. These short-term, one-time matching grants

participation in the program. While many connections were in

supported the launch and kick-start of new and innovative

fact initiated online, it was not until fellows met face-to-face that

initiatives for which fellows may not have previously had the

they formed strong bonds and collaborations with their peers,

resources to support. At the end of the program, some fellows

further strengthening their commitments to one another.

reported that they would have appreciated additional funding opportunities outside of this limited portfolio, despite the fact

Some fellows expressed that it was only when they met other

that VVLead was not intended to be a financial institution that

women during these in-person exchanges that they felt fully

funds individual fellows’ projects or businesses.

committed to and a part of the program. Similarly, many of the collaborative efforts between fellows were solidified during the

Rather, VVLead strives to build fellows’ strategic planning,

in-person trainings. In the future, we recommend ensuring all

communication and fundraising skills during the program

fellows have at least one opportunity to participate in a Peer-

so that they are empowered to raise the necessary capital

to-Peer and South-South Exchange throughout their tenure in

for their respective programs and businesses in the future.

the fellowship.

The issue-specific grants, which required fellows to match VVLead funding with other in-kind and/or monetary funding, were created in order to build fellows’ skills as leaders and increase their capacities in areas such as fundraising, advocacy and outreach and program development. Therefore, we recommend creating targeted messaging to all incoming fellows explaining the purpose and limitations of the Challenge Grant portfolio from the onset of the program, thereby ensuring that fellows do not have financial expectations that cannot be met by the program.

THE VVLEAD FELLOWSHIP: BEST PRACTICES FOR IMPLEMENTING WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS

PROGRAM DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION

PROGRAM DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION

IMPACT MEASUREMENT

ENSURING SUSTAINABILITY AND REPLICABILITY

ESTABLISH A 40 TO 1 STAFF-TO-FELLOW RATIO

ESTABLISH A PROGRAM TIMELINE THAT ENSURES ENGAGEMENT

The VVLead Fellowship Program expanded each year with

In order to increase the absorption rate of course subject matter,

the subsequent acceptance of new classes of fellows. In order

and to maximize programmatic offerings, we recommend that a

to maintain high-touch, personalized relationships with each

program duration is established from the outset that allows for

fellow accepted into the program, we recommend that individual

maximum engagement and optimal retention rate.

program staff be the point of contact for a cohorts of 35 to 40 fellows diverse in age, region and sector.

For the VVLead Fellowship Program, the ideal program duration was two years. For some fellows who participated in the program

It is extremely important that each individual staff member

for three years, we noticed diminished returns in engagement, as

not only be responsible regularly checking-in on the

third-year fellows tended to be less active than first and second-

fellow, but also act as an advocate by sending relevant

year fellows. This may be a result of the fact that, although VVLead

opportunities and resources to the individual fellow.

staff added new course offerings every year, the core course offerings were reiterated for new classes of fellows each year.

THE VVLEAD FELLOWSHIP: BEST PRACTICES FOR IMPLEMENTING WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS

PROGRAM DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION

PROGRAM DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION

IMPACT MEASUREMENT

CONDUCT LONG-TERM ANALYSIS ON WOMEN LEADERS’ POSITIVE IMPACT IN COMMUNITIES

ENSURING SUSTAINABILITY AND REPLICABILITY ESTABLISH AND STANDARDIZE M&E DEFINITIONS, PROCESSES AND SYSTEMS AT PROGRAM INCEPTION

We acknowledge that, in some cases, it was very early to draw

What VVLead discovered through its Data Quality Assessment

conclusions regarding the outcomes and impact of fellows’

is that many fellows lack rigorous M&E systems within their

participation in VVLead. This is due to the fact that many fellows

organizations to accurately track number of beneficiaries served.

were at points in their careers where they had identified their

In response, VVLead developed Tracking Impact: A Handbook

goal, but due to funding and human resources limitations, they

for High Quality Data as a way to help fellows improve their

had not fully implemented their ideas.

M&E systems – thereby allowing VVLead to collect more accurate quantitative data as it relates to the multiplier effect. However,

Additionally, for fellows who recently launched their respective

similar to the recommendation above, more time is needed to see

initiatives, their long-term impact was not readily apparent.

improved accuracy in fellows’ data collection and recordkeeping

While the knowledge gained from the online courses, and

processes.

the connections made from the in-person trainings and online platform were more easily verifiable on a short-term basis,

Therefore, in order to monitor the impact more accurately, VVLead

the full impact may not be wholly seen for years to come. As

recommends creating a long-term M&E tracking strategy beyond

a result, while the M&E team was able to identify plausible

the two to three years of the formal fellowship experience.

linkages between the fellowship’s outputs and the fellow’s leadership capacities and achievements, the data could only be strengthened with follow-up interviews with each subject in three to five years’ time.

THE VVLEAD FELLOWSHIP: BEST PRACTICES FOR IMPLEMENTING WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS

IMPACT MEASUREMENT

PROGRAM DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION

IMPACT MEASUREMENT

ENSURING SUSTAINABILITY AND REPLICABILITY

PARTNER WITH LIKEMINDED FUNDERS

ENSURE ONLINE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIAL PLATFORMS EXIST PAST PROGRAM EXPIRATION:

The Leadership for Change Programme, which encompassed the

As previously discussed, D2L and the VVLead Facebook group

VVLead Fellowship Program, was a pilot portfolio managed by

were the online hubs of the fellowship experience.

DfID aimed to provide three-year kick-starter funding to launch innovative women’s leadership programs. We recognize the unique

We recommend creating an online platform at program

and rare opportunity to collaborate with a funder committed to

inception that integrates both social networking and

piloting new methods of fostering women’s leadership. As the

online courses in a readily accessible online environment.

Leadership for Change Portfolio closed in 2016, the funding received from DFID for the VVLead Fellowship Program came to

By integrating the learning environment into free social networking

an end in March 2016. To date, the VVLead Fellowship Program

tools such as YouTube, Google+ and Facebook, fellows can have

continues to pursue alternative funding possibilities.

permanent access to the both the online course content as they sustain the lasting bonds of the fellowship network.

Given the proven positive impact of the VVLead Fellowship over the past three years, we would highly recommend that interested funders and donors continue to invest resources in building women’s leadership, particularly through innovative models such as the hybrid learning approach.

THE VVLEAD FELLOWSHIP: BEST PRACTICES FOR IMPLEMENTING WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS

ENSURING SUSTAINABILITY AND REPLICABILITY

THE VVLEAD FELLOWSHIP

PROGRAM DESIGN IMPACT ENSURING SUSTAINABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION MEASUREMENT AND REPLICABILITY BEST PRACTICES FOR IMPLEMENTING WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS

ABOUT VITAL VOICES Vital Voices Global Partnership invests in women leaders who improve the world. Founded by former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, and guided by the belief that women are essential to progress in their communities, we partner with leaders from more than 140 countries who advance economic opportunity, increase political and public leadership, and end violence against women. Our programs in strategic planning, business, advocacy and communications build critical skills needed for creating transformational change at scale. Through our global platform,

AUTHORS: ELYSE GAINOR Program Assistant Global Programs Vital Voices Global Partnership LAURA THOMPSON Program Coordinator Global Programs Vital Voices Global Partnership JANA SPACEK Senior Program Coordinator Global Programs Vital Voices Global Partnership ELIZABETH ANDREWS Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist Global Programs Vital Voices Global Partnership

women leaders expand their connections and visibility, accelerating

EDITING:

shared progress for all.

LUCINA DI MECO Senior Program Manager Global Programs Vital Voices Global Partnership

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: We want to extend a special thank you to VVLead fellows. This publication would not have been possible without their feedback, stories, ideas and commitment during their participation years in this fellowship program.

Vital Voices also gracefully acknowledges the support of the UK Government’s Department for International Development (DfID).

THE VVLEAD FELLOWSHIP: BEST PRACTICES FOR IMPLEMENTING WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS