Terms of Reference: Consultancy for organizational assessments, -strengthening and -development

Objectives of the capacity building assessment

• Serve as a basis for a dialogue about the organisational partnership between Kvinna till Kvinna and the respective Partner Organisation.
• Tailor Kvinna till Kvinna's support to our partner organisations to their specific/relevant capacity gaps and needs.
• Obtain a quantitative scoring of the organisation in a set of dimensions related to organisational development and strengthening. The scoring of the first-time assessment will be a baseline. Follow up assessments will then serve to measure change in these dimensions, compared to the baseline, and hence the potential result of the interventions carried out based on the respective assessment.
• Serve as a basis for a plan of interventions for organisational development and strengthening and thereby support Kvinna till Kvinna to be more systematic in its work when supporting organisations with organisational strengthening and development.
• Be able to map similarities and differences between different partners’ strengths and weaknesses and subsequently identify opportunities for peer-to-peer mentoring.

Details of the assignment Deliverables and reporting requirements

• Desk review of existing assessment data (location tbc):

1. Previous assessments of organisational documents related to the questions in the tool should be collected and reviewed to support the scoring.

1. Review of existing project documents to assess the alignment between vision and activities (reality) in addition to the self-assessment scoring (this could also be based on an exercise with staff reviewing their own documents).
2. Adapt and tailor the organisational capacity assessment tool according to the findings of the desk review and the operational context.

• Independent preparation, implementation and facilitation of workshops for self-assessment for the partner organisations (6), including preparations of materials in Arabic, with the support of Kvinna till Kvinna (locations TBC in the Middle East)
• Support partner organisations (6) in analysing the findings of the assessments (location tbc)
• Develop and finalise an action plan of interventions for organisational strengthening and development based on the findings of the assessments for each of the partner organisations in collaboration with them and the programme team at Kvinna till Kvinna (location tbc).

Deliverables and reporting requirements

Inception

• Submit an inception report (around 1-2 pages) explaining how the consultant envisions the process of the organizational capacity building assignment and a detailed work plan, including tentative timing.

Desk review and preparation of workshops

• A review should be done by the consultant including assessment of existing project documents and previous assessments per partner organization;
• Tailor the organizational capacity assessment tool to each partner according to their operational context of partner and their different needs and capacities;
• Preparation of workshops for the partner organisations, including preparation of materials in Arabic, considering participation for staff who cannot attend the workshop in person, and all logistics connected to the workshop, with the support of Kvinna till Kvinna;
• Presentation to and discussion with the Kvinna till Kvinna programme team before finalizing the workshop plans per partner, for approval by Kvinna till Kvinna;

Workshops:

• Conduct 6 workshops of 2 days for each partner organization in locations TBC in Middle East and/or Europe
• At the end of the workshop, the partner organisations should have the self-assessment findings presented to them by the Consultant, and have discussed and given input to the Consultant for an organizational capacity building plan;

Development of capacity building plans for partners:

• Follow-up skype calls with key staff in each partner organisation to discuss and finalize the capacity building plans per organisation.
• A report (format can be discussed) that includes overall findings, observations and recommendations per partner organisation to be shared with the concerned partner and Kvinna till Kvinna.

Final reporting:

• A final report (format can be discussed) that includes summaries of overall findings, observations and recommendations per partner organisation, an analysis of common needs/gaps/situations in the current partner portfolio of Kvinna till Kvinna’s Syria Regional Programme, an overall assessment of the usefulness and efficiency of the capacity building approach, and recommendations for further follow-up in the relationship between Kvinna till Kvinna and the partner organisations.
• The report should be sent to the Syria Regional Programme team

Management and organisation

The consultant will be working closely with the Kvinna till Kvinna Syria Regional Programme team. The consultant is responsible for completing and delivering the above specified deliverables to the Syria Regional Programme team.

The total duration of the consultancy is to be decided between the consultant and Kvinna till Kvinna, based on a time frame submitted by the consultant in accordance with the points specified in this ToR, but is anticipated to not be less than 25 days or more than 55 days. The suggested time frame must include sufficient time allocated per organisation including preparation, workshop, analysing the findings and/or the findings of other assessments, support in developing action plan and follow up. In addition, the consultant shall contextualise the organisational capacity building assessment tool to Kvinna till Kvinna’s programme and the operational context of partner organisations, and deliver reports to Kvinna till Kvinna on the implementation of the consultancy

Consultant fees shall be specified as fees per day including taxes, social security contributions and VAT. The tender shall state an estimated total value of tender, including expenses such as telephone, internet or postage, and expenses for travel to the Middle East related to the assignment

Contracted consultant cannot further subcontract the assignment. In cases where the tender includes a team of consultants, their division of work shall be presented.

Kvinna till Kvinna will cover the costs for travels as well as accommodation and per diem during the trainings and follow-up sessions. 

Required qualifications

• Substantial experience from supporting organisations in organisational development and -strengthening.
• Good understanding of women’s rights, civil society and development programming.
• In-depth knowledge of the Syrian context
• Fluency in Arabic and English, both written and spoken.
• Strong facilitation skills and the ability to lead a group through a set process.
• Experience of planning and conducting workshops.
• Experience in developing methods and writing publications.
• Educational requirement: University degree or equivalent of relevance for the assignment.

The work plan for the implementation of the consultancy will be developed in partnership with Kvinna till Kvinna and its partner organisations. The deadline for submitting applications is 23 March, 2018. Please submit a cover letter along with curriculum vitae, documentation of credentials/qualifications, list of references (3), and a financial offer including VAT together with a time frame and a methodological note. All materials shall be submitted in English to [email protected]

Please note that only candidates invited for an interview will be contacted.

For more information, please contact Tina Sandkvist per e-mail [email protected]