Monthly Report #17

The team conducted all meetings and outreach virtually to ensure continuity of services to the client and its stakeholders. The TCMST provided regular updates to the Bureau for Development, Democracy, and Innovation (DDI) Change Management (CM) Working Group Lead. The team supported DDI Operating Units (OUs) with OU Formation through the Nine-Step Team Building Process. In March 2021, the TCMST completed all sessions for the Innovation, Technology, and Research Hub (ITR) and facilitated two strategic planning workshop sessions with the Program Office (PO) leadership team. The TCMST's activities in March with DDI Hubs and Program Office are described in more detail below. The team met with the PO Deputy Assistant Administrator (DAA) and Director on March 24, 2021, for a debrief on the outcomes of the workshop and next steps. Both expressed their appreciation for the work done during the workshop, the great teamwork among the TCMST, and emphasizing the Change Management Lead's great facilitation skills which kept discussions on track. The TCMST facilitated a seven-day team building retreat for all ITR staff in March 2021. The retreat consisted of three mixed Teams with representatives from each of ITR's Divisions. Each day consisted of a 2-hour session hosted on Google Meet. The teams completed Day 1 and Day 2 of the retreat separately and came together for Day 3 of the retreat. The TCMST worked with two facilitators who assisted with retreat design and facilitation. The ITR Teams met over two days to get to know one another better through icebreakers, brainstorm, identify and vote on ITR values, and create a list of questions for the ITR Hub leadership. Day 1 was focused on small group work to identify bright lights (opportunities) and blind spots (challenges) of ITR coming together as a Hub. Day 2 was focused on identifying specific actions that may help capitalize on the bright lights or mitigate the blind spots. The facilitators used a variety of tools, such as Google Jamboard for the values activities and breakout rooms for icebreakers and bright lights and blind spots activities to keep the sessions engaging. On March 23, 2021, the entire ITR staff came together for Day 3 of the retreat. The facilitators shared results of the top values and two volunteers from each of the three Teams shared their identified bright lights and blinds spots, as well as suggested top actions. The ITR DAA and Deputy Directors also attended and answered selected questions from the list that Teams generated on Day 2. The three Teams had collectively submitted over 60 questions. With the aim of addressing the rest of the questions through the Task Force or other means, the leadership team chose five high-level topics to address on Day 3, namely on the timeline and impact of the new Administrator's confirmation, ITR leadership's bright lights and blind spots, next steps for the Task Force, and the future of work/life balance. Based on the evaluations and comments, participants valued the opportunity to chat informally with their colleagues and often requested more time during the icebreakers. They also highlighted the effective use of the various tools to keep everyone engaged and appreciated the opportunity to share their opinions with one another, often feeling supported and validated during the process. Finally, participants appreciated the well-structured format and facilitation of the retreat. The TCMST plans to submit a report to ITR leadership containing all staff inputs and feedback from the retreat by early April. If needed, the TCMST will guide ITR through the next steps of the Nine-Step Team Building Process, including the creation of the Task Force and the development of the Task Force charter and action plan. The TCMST is continuing to collaborate with the Inclusive Development Hub (ID) leadership on the agenda and dates for a strategic planning workshop with their staff. The team is also working on a draft retreat agenda for the PO leadership team and is awaiting their feedback. The TCMST has shared a draft Program Office Support/POCs matrix with the leadership team and is awaiting their feedback. The matrix will be adapted for Bureau dissemination and shared with the DDI on April 1, 2021.