INRM Activity Start-Up Work Plan

The task order supports the uptake of ENRM across the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) by providing strategic support to the Agency's missions, technical offices, and other operating units on integrated programming. The INRM contract was signed on July 30, 2020, and the Activity Start-up Plan covers operational and technical actions from July 30, 2020, through November 30, 2020. The INRM management structure is demand-driven, with buy-ins integrated into the design. The team is comprised of broadly skilled personnel, capable of rapidly, flexibly, and efficiently engaging across activities. These personnel have been organized into a matrixed structure of task leads and technical specialists, supported by cross-cutting expertise and operations staff. The project will assign a lead for each task area, yet the INRM team will work collaboratively across task areas, drawing on specific core team and subcontractor expertise and recruiting external technical assistance as needed, to form integrated activity-specific teams. The INRM core team includes staff from three subcontractors, and each of the seven subcontractors will have designated representatives on the Strategic Advisors Group (SAG). The subcontractor consortium will play an active role in shaping annual workplans through participatory workshops and in the design and resourcing of subsequent activities. The Chief of Party (COP) and the Director of Administration and Operations (DAO) will meet with each partner quarterly to ensure that subcontract resources are being used effectively and to monitor the progress and quality of subcontractor contributions. The INRM team will work collaboratively across task areas, drawing on specific core team and subcontractor expertise and recruiting external technical assistance as needed, to form integrated activity-specific teams. The COP and the DAO will be responsible for ensuring that the overall and individual critical paths of the program's tasks are advancing as planned, and that activity-specific teams are well aligned with their USAID Activity Manager counterparts. The INRM team will also participate in activity scoping to ensure that all subcontract, procurement, and logistical/operational requirements are identified and planned for in a proactive and efficient manner. The INRM team includes a diverse range of expertise and resources, including cross-sectoral program design and implementation, integration theory and practice, private sector engagement, and innovative financing. The team also includes thematic experts across the sectors of NRM, biodiversity conservation, WASH, health, food security, climate change, governance, and economic growth. The INRM team will work collaboratively to share and learn from each other and produce results that cumulatively advance INRM and USAID's learning and impact. The INRM team will also participate in start-up activities, including a dedicated DAI US start-up manager and associate. These staff will support the project's start-up activities, including the development of the annual work plan, the monitoring, evaluation, and learning plan, and the branding implementation plan. The INRM team will also participate in key meetings, including the start-up workshop, and will work collaboratively to ensure that the project's start-up activities are completed efficiently and effectively.