Case study

To support Plan International to align their approach to performance management to their global strategy, Project Management and Monitoring, Evaluation, Reporting and Learning (PMERL) system, and reporting in order to understand how organisational effectiveness delivers stronger impacts.

In 2022, Plan International undertook a strategy review and, as part of this, sought to review their performance management initiatives and adopt an overarching framework and approach to results-based performance to ensure alignment with new strategic focus and to deliver a more coherent approach across the organisation.

Plan International was interested in pioneering a results-based approach that integrated the organisation’s programme and advocacy work with its organisational performance to better understand how Plan International works and delivers.

To support this work, the Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) team within the IDS Knowledge, Impact and Policy (KIP) cluster worked in collaboration with Plan International, using a Learning Journey process to explore mechanisms and approaches to bridge their existing strategic, organisational, and programmatic frameworks.

The IDS Learning Journey approach builds on IDS’ experience of similar activities with other donors and the institute’s many years at the forefront of participatory learning approaches. Learning Journeys are an accompanied reflection process with development agencies that provides thematic expertise to facilitate and enable processes of organisational change, placing strong emphasis on building ownership of relevant organisational stakeholders to ensure the relevance and utility of the learning process.

The aim of a Learning Journey is to increase organisational capacity and impact by creating space and facilitating discussion that maximise the potential to embed emerging lessons and insights into institutional practices and processes.

This particular example of a learning journey involved:

• Online meetings with Plan International staff.
• A preliminary desk review.
• Development of an organisational effectiveness outcomes framework.
• Semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions with Plan International staff across different country offices.
• A final report incorporating the final organisational effectiveness outcomes framework and recommendations for organisational implementation.

The learning activity was delivered by members of the IDS Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Team:

• Louise Clark, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Manager
• Joe Taylor, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Specilist
• Fazal Mabood, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Specilist

The IDS team worked in close collaboration with Plan International colleagues to coordinate the project:

• Rena Choudhury, Head of Organisational Performance
• Jacqui Gallinetti, Director of Monitoring Evaluation Research & Learning

The organisation-wide consultation prompted deep reflection on how data was used across Plan International and the power dynamics inherent in global reporting systems. The Learning Journey report proposed a systems approach to organisational learning and reporting and proposed a series of contextualised recommendations. These were well received by the Senior Management Team and have informed new thinking across the organisation.