Nuru Kenya Leadership Program: Overcoming Challenges One Training Series at a Time

It has been a busy few months here in the Leadership Program. Our staff has been hard at work preparing and practicing for our next round of trainings, which will begin at the beginning of October with Focus Project 2 (FP2). This training focuses on how specific staff roles and responsibilities are assigned, developed, and most importantly, linked to the successful completion of program goals. This training helps forge a deeper understanding about how someone’s actions within a program can lead to positive results. FP2 will also show how teams achieve their goals through the program’s activities. Strengthening the link between an individual’s roles, a program’s activities, and impact is a critical part of the Nuru strategy. This training helps staff to understand that their roles at Nuru can have a great influence on eliminating extreme poverty. The Leadership Field Managers have been using their critical thinking skills and extensive facilitation experience to create engaging and informative lessons. As a result, I am very excited to see how the participants receive these revamped FP2 lessons.

In addition to preparing for our Focus Project 2 training, the Leadership Zone Managers (Paul, John, and Francis) have been equally busy designing the curriculum for our Project Management Training (PMT1). It has been a long time coming, but the Leadership Program is very excited to finally begin our PMT1 pilot training in the middle of October. PMT1 focuses on equipping Nuru staff with the skills to effectively and efficiently accomplish their tasks. These include: understanding the reporting structure, the function of one-on-ones with managers, and how to properly create a weekly schedule. The PMT1 curriculum was at times challenging for the Zone Managers, especially when it came to creating activities that were relatable and engaging for the participants. However, by looking at the lessons critically, cooperating, encouraging feedback, and maintaining a positive attitude, they were able to overcome these challenges. Their positive attitude and focus has definitely had an impact on the rest of the team. Seeing the Zone Managers working collaboratively has had a positive influence on the attitudes of the rest of the staff.

This was an important team-building step for the Leadership Program. Over the next few months, as we begin the Level 2 training design phase, the Leadership Program will undoubtedly face many more significant challenges. This training series is designed to equip the upper level staff with the skills and attitudes to manage their programs and adapt to unexpected difficulties within their programs. Designing these Level 2 trainings will not be easy, but I know the Leadership Program will be able to handle these with ease. The staff is really hitting its stride and working well together. After seeing how professionally the Zone Managers have handled the PMT1 curriculum design process, I am beyond confident that our staff can work together to create a high-level training curriculum that will empower leaders to continue the fight to eliminate extreme poverty.