Biesshop Consulting

A strategic plan also known as a Road Map in reality is a living document which directs the overall functioning of any Organization.    Strategic planning is important, but at the same time can be a complex issue especially for new and small organizations. Looking at the NGO sector, one may find that many NGOs do not have well drafted strategic plans and the few NGOs that have the plans are written in a very complex way – not  comprehensible  by the communities they serve. These are either too lengthy or too complicated to implement and are therefore not put into use. What better way to describe the importance of planning in our day to day lives. Successful people or entities plan their actions and work tirelessly & endlessly to stick to their plan; while the not so successful people or entities, plan a lot but hardly ever implement the plan to the letter. The key to success is therefore not just having a plan but also executing it to achieve you...

Understanding the skills or competencies potential employers are seeking is not only key but the first step in laying out you application / cover letter when it comes to making successful applications and performing well at interviews. During the interview, it is prudent that you not only cite the competencies that you possess, but go a step further and cite examples of how you have applied those competencies and how they have transitioned to success or improved programming for an organization or business venture. This approach is more likely than not to show that you have the skills that the interviewers require as you are more likely to convince them of your strategic merit and ability to do the job. Relating your skills to the post Upon having studied the post that you are applying for, you will have a clear picture of what the organization you are applying to wants in the person who is to be the position holder. For further clarity, you can go a step further to study what ...

Accountability is a very large and academic term that encompasses several issues for an individual, household, group, society, organization or Government; some of these may include organizational management structure, financial procedures, and human resource policies. Organizations and governments with high accountability and credibility are often preferred by donors and are more likely to get funded. World over, NGOs chiefly work to compliment government efforts and bridge gaps on various societal matters and on instances; act as a social monitor to ensure that government accounts. In Africa for instance, NGOs have worked very effectively in areas where both government and private players have failed miserably, this ability of NGOs to work in the most fragile and backward places has been recognized and applauded by both national and international entities regionally and internationally. With the rising influence of NGOs in the development sector, there also has been an incr...

In recent times, many donor agencies prefer their grant-seeking applicants to submit a comprehensive concept note about their proposed project before submitting a full project proposal. In my 7 year career in development work, i have also observed this trend in many of the major aid organization. In some cases, these concept notes can be highly structured requesting in-depth information about the project and in some other cases, it can just be an overview of the project idea. Nevertheless, the concept note is your initial step to tap the donor agency for funding. If the idea is interesting, you may be requested to submit a full proposal. Many a times as a training and capacity building programmer in development work, I have been asked on numerous occasions these questions: What exactly is a concept note? How much time does it take in preparing it? What should go into it? A concept note is a brief outline of the project you have in your mind. A simple version of it will ...

10 years ago, who would tell that social media or the www platform would be the source of most of what we know and the platform to communicate most of what we do – professionally and socially? Very few of us, if any. With the various social media platforms and the surge of people having mobile phones – more so in Africa – communication has become instant and fairly affordable for everyone. Clicking pictures and recording videos on the internet is so easy these days and as proximal as on your mobile phone. While working in Eastern Uganda, I was part of the Sponsorship team that piloted a project that was aimed at making a shift from narrative and still picture to motion picture story-telling. Visual storytelling is a way to tell your story through videos. Many NGOs are steadily making a shift from narrative story telling in the form of MSCs to visual storytelling. They are now focusing on ethical photography and videography in their fundraising campaigns also. It should ...

Fundraising forms the most important activity of any Organization to sustain and continue their efforts towards development. Practitioners consider fundraising or resource mobilization as the driving force of an organization as its decline spells doom and its increase guarantees longevity of the organization and the development agenda at large. However, this is much easier said in theory and a daunting task in practice, but with some mentoring, coaching and sustained practice one can boost up your fundraising efforts leading to securing actual resources to implement projects and programs. While there are no blue print applicable approaches as a result of the dynamics of the development sector, this write up sees to offer some strategic tips and guidance on what has worked and what can potentially work for organizations depending on application and practice. The following are some of the to-dos that have worked for me while working with International ...

If I cry two tears for her that will be the most that I would give her. She left me stranded in my nightmares taking pictures of my memories while she right there. Twisting the blade in my heart deep, always in my mind so I can’t sleep. She used to tell me she was all mine now the only way I see her is online. I’m doing drugs just trying to feel you; I’m killing me trying to reach you. I built my life around you; I thought I found it all when I found her. How’ you really feel I may never know. As I walk around with my hands on my waist and my eyes fixed to oblivion I realize some things never change; once in love and its gone you don’t look at it the same. To hell with love cause she doesn’t live here. I am soaked in blood but am still here. Heart breaks, straight faced, stressed out now feeling like I up and left you. I will be the first to say she ain’t the one you want to play with. I said I wanted love and now am a slave to my grave, I won’t get out and I can’t quit. She m...