Learning and Development for NGOs and Social Enterprises
Training planned from need rather than from the calendar.
What this looks like in ngos and social enterprises
The parts of learning and development that are specific to this sector, rather than general.
Development on Restricted Budgets
Where training is rarely a funded line.
What this coversHide
Development on Restricted Budgets
Where training is rarely a funded line.
What this coversHideSector development is constrained by the fact that donors fund programmes rather than staff development, so most learning has to be built from what the organisation already has.
- Development funded from core budgets where possible
- Donor-funded capacity building used deliberately where available
- Internal knowledge sharing between projects and field teams
- Safeguarding and code of conduct training as a non-negotiable base
- Field safety and security training before deployment
- Management capability for programme leads
- Peer learning and sector networks used as low-cost channels
- Development discussed despite funding uncertainty
Sharing knowledge between projects is the cheapest development available and the most commonly lost, because project teams operate as silos with separate reporting.
The general method — what learning and development covers, the questions it answers and what an engagement produces — is the same whatever the sector, and is set out on the learning and development process page. What is above is the part that differs for ngos and social enterprises.
Other HR topics for ngos and social enterprises
Where to start
Most engagements begin with a review of how this runs in your business today, then a written process and the sequence to implement it.
See all HR topics for ngos and social enterprises, or another industry.