Posted by Steve Waddell in M&E on May 5, 2011

Assessing the effectiveness of networks is a notoriously under-developed field. I recently took my hand at it with the co-leadership of Horacio Trujillo and iScale. We applied our thinking to the International Land Coalition, a multi-stakeholder…

Game-Changer Strategic Mapping Tool for Networks?

Posted by Steve Waddell in M&E, Net Dev on January 4, 2011

A proto-type of a new mapping tool called The Strategy Landscape™ (SL) is available for viewing. “It has the potential to be a real game-changer for the field,” explains John Branam, director of programs at Grantmakers for Education.

SL…

Seven Complexity Implications for Multi-Stakeholder Networks

Posted by Steve Waddell in Communications, Leadership, Learning, M&E on December 21, 2010

Learning to work with complexity is absolutely essential for people working with multi-stakeholder networks. It’s key to effective leadership, network development, impact measurement, communications, and change strategies. A multi-stakeholder change network developing all these for a complicated rather than complex…

Rule 2 Rationale for Business-Civil Society-Government Collaboration

Posted by Steve Waddell in M&E, Net Dev on December 7, 2010

Collaborations involving business, civil society and government are complicated and often exasperating. Rule 1 is if you can achieve your goals with a traditional organization or a collaboration of just one type of organization, go for it. Rule 2 is if you can’t, be clear about why and what you want from the intersectoral strategy.

New Resource for Complex Network Developmental Evaluation

Posted by Steve Waddell in M&E on August 10, 2010

Do you want to evaluate an initiative similar to this:

Major systems change initiative where the intervention initiative aims to “tip” a system in a major new direction…

Or maybe like this:

Many different agencies and project teams working collaboratively on the same problem with complicated interactions, impossible-to-attribute outcomes, diverse responses to unexpected events…the challenge is ongoing development of the collaborative effort and providing feedback about its effectiveness.