Subject: Abt's Health Governance Community of Interest
From: Alexandra Hulme <[email-masked]>
To: Alexandra Hulme <[email-masked]>
Cc: Chris Lovelace <[email-masked]>, Lisa Tarantino <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 01 Jul 2013 16:38:37 +0000

Governance TWG and Community of Interest, -

You are receiving this email because you are either a member of the Governance Technical Working Group or have signed up to be part of the Governance Community of Interest (41 so far!), demonstrating your interest in staying up to date on the health governance discussions happening at Abt, or are part of our general outreach to IHD staff who may have an interest in governance and health related matters.  While some Technical Working Groups (TWGs) have a natural constituency of professionals in IHD who have been expertly working on their field, governance is a relatively new technical area for Abt (though many of you may have worked on governance related matters).   As well governance has emerged on the international development agenda as a leading area for investment, including investment in improving health outcomes.  Some of you may be wondering, what is the difference between being a member of the Technical Working Group and a member of the Community of Interest (COI).  TWG members were selected for their governance expertise, but were also selected with a view to ensuring that the TWG has the best possible mix of HQ and field staff, senior and junior staff and a broad range of governance expertise.   The Community of Interest is a broader list of all Abt staff who are, who have been involved in governance projects or are simply interested in the topic.  Other TWGs have established Communities of Excellence.  We thought we’d begin with this broader COI but over time may also evolve into a CoE.   In terms of knowledge sharing and participation in group activities, members of both groups have equal access.   The one significant difference that may affect participation is that we have budgeted time for TWG members to participate, whereas COI members will have to charge to their own project (assuming it is relevant) or participate on their own time.     Sorry, but where there is a will, we will try to find a way!

While the TWG does have an approved year 1 work plan and budget, we are open to new ideas and initiatives that will be benefit the governance cohort at Abt, increasing both our reputational capital and/or supporting new business efforts.  COI members are welcome to suggest ideas or activities for the TWG to explore.  As the TWG and Abt continue to define what Governance means for us internally, we welcome and invite those interested and motivated to become active participants in the conversation.

Here are our latest updates:

SOTA brief:   The State of the Art brief on health governance has been “finalized”.  This is very much a living/changing document but does capture some of the key concepts in the field, though how we, as Abt, view our role in this field is still being discussed, as governance is cross-cutting in all sectors of our work.  This document will be adjusted and revised as we grow our expertise and niche in the area and we welcome any new innovations, research or studies that may be relevant.

Currently, the SOTA document is for internal use by Abt staff, for the purpose of informing Abt staff and guiding strategy.   We are considering working with the communications team in preparing a Governance one-pager that will help convey to those outside of Abt our position..

We are schedule for Brown Bag lunch in October to present and discuss the Governance SOTA document.  More details on that will be forthcoming.

Workplan Activities:

Knowledge Management:  Alex has been compiling an internal list of projects with governance components and will be sending around some lists and project descriptions to draw on everyone’s institutional memory.  As new projects come up, please let her know, so we can keep the list current.  This is especially important for Business Development purposes.

Other activities:

Skills matrix: We are going to start creating a Skills matrix of Abt Staff in the realm of governance.  Please add your name to the sheet and complete as best you can, changes will be saved automatically. If you find a key category/column is missing please add.  Don’t be shy in identifying yourself and your interests/skills/experience – we know a lot of you have worked on governance related issues – even if they were not labeled as such.

You can access the Skills Matrix here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AgJIhKaSD1i8dC1hMVQ0amxkOXZQRENkblZRUEs1dWc&usp=sharing

Governance Literature Review:  Already underway, we see this as an important step to developing a stronger understanding of what is currently happening in the field, what studies and support is there to support the case that a governance lens is both cross-cutting and beneficial to improving health outcomes.  This will also look at what our competitors and different donors are doing in the field. We are starting in the form of an annotated bibliography, with further research as requested.

Case Study: Cheikh Mbengue is writing up his experience in Senegal, making the connection between governance interventions and improved health service delivery and health outcomes.   Upon its completion we hope to also have a Brown Bag to highlight the success of this activity.  We are looking to commission at least one more short piece this year and suggestions are welcomed.

Conferences: Chris Lovelace sat on a panel at the IFC/WB/USAID conference on health finance in April.  Several TWG members will be attending the MSH/LMG conference on….. in August.  We will be represented at APHA in November.

Professional Series: Beginning in September we are hoping to have a professional lecture series where we invite in experts.  Tentatively confirmed for September is Sanjay Pradhan, Vice President of the World Bank Institute and a recognized leading thinker on governance.

Who to contact:

Technical Lead: Chris Lovelace, [email-masked], ext. 4422

Technical coordinator: Lisa Tarantino, [email-masked], ext. 5738

Technical coordinator: Alexandra Hulme, [email-masked], ext. 2689

If you are interesting in continuing the conversation and joining the Abt Governance Community of Interest, please contact Alexandra Hulme ([email-masked]) and fill out the Google spreadsheet here https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AgJIhKaSD1i8dC1hMVQ0amxkOXZQRENkblZRUEs1dWc&usp=sharing.

Thank you,

The Governance Technical Working Group Team

Alexandra Hulme, MPH | Abt Associates

55 Wheeler Street | Cambridge MA 02138 | USA

O:617.520.2689 / O: 301.635.1751 |

www.abtassociates.com