Save the Children's Internal Consolidation Workshop

Dear all: Save the Children's Internal Consolidation Workshop was deemed a successful event and we achieved our workshop goals which were:

1. To reflect on ECB Phase I streams of work and identify promising streams of work to apply to Save the Children
2. To elicit Area Director direction and guidance on moving promising streams of work forward
3. To align ECB promising streams of work with FY08 Operational Plans

For those of you still planning your workshops, I thought the following tips might be useful:

1. Endorsement from Senior Management. Our COO opened the event, providing a strong opening statement linking ECB to our forthcoming five year Strategic Plan.

2. Participants. We planned the Event around the Area Directors meeting at Headquarters. Area Directors have been deemed strategic leverage points for ECB and we capitalized on their presence in Headquarters for the event. We were able to elicit which ECB activities are most strategic for which regions and can now focus ECB efforts appropriately.

3. Impressive visual displays. We used the same posters from the DC Learning Event which are colorful, professional and full of interesting information. They are here with us ready to be shipped to one of you!

4. Timing. We planned the event during Department Operational Planning for FY08. Thus we designed a hands-on session using the knowledge processed during the workshop for writing ECB activities directly into Departmental Plans for the next year.

5. Link to Agency Strategic Plan. Our Agency is currently rolling out its next five year Strategic Plan. Thus we couched the workshop within that context, not in the context of an ECB Phase II. We commit to continuing certain activities because it helps us achieve our Strategic Goals, not because we anticipate Phase II funding.

6. Representation. We had wide representation from across the Agency which underscored the underlying message that emergency capacity building is a part of everyone's job.

7. Design. A design committee was set up to spend considerable time on the workshop design itself and the workshop was carried out professionally and effectively.

8. Workshop Report. An official workshop report is being prepared, not only to harness the energy generated by the event, for moving ECB work forward across the Agency and for new ECB staff as induction, but also to constitute the point of departure for the Agency Start Up Workshop if there is a Phase II.

Good luck!

Sonia