Program redesign and business transformation; project coordination; business plan
ChildFund is an international NGO with an annual budget of more than $300 million, whose mission is to help deprived, excluded and vulnerable children improve their lives and have the opportunity to become young adults, parents and leaders who bring lasting and positive change to their communities both globally as well as in the US. From October, 2013 until July 2015, Richard worked with senior leaders in ChildFund to help redesign its US anti-childhood poverty program and write the business plan that is guiding this change. This project took on significant importance within ChildFund as an experiment that might inform the transformation of its business model in other countries too. The work involved overall project management, research into potential program models and partner agencies, facilitation of cross-disciplinary and multi-organization working sessions in Richmond, VA, Washington DC and Jackson, MS, preparing and making presentations to the ChildFund senior leadership, and drafting the business plan.
Rukhsana Ayyub, the US Program National Director, provided this feedback on the process. "Richard was our consultant of choice to lead this work because of his deep knowledge and extensive experience of the development field both in the US and internationally. Richard worked with us for close to two years through various stages of program development to the successful completion of the Transformed Program model. Richard brought a sense of humor, a positive can do attitude and worked extremely well with various teams ranging from ChildFund Senior leadership, US Program staff, local community partners to other consultants working on the project." Her boss, Paul Bode, Regional Director, Americas, added: "Thanks for the great team work which has surely been one of the highlights of my professional career!!!"
