A Roadmap to Achieving Long-Term Impact with your Theory of Change

Planning community initiatives without a clear understanding of the necessary early and intermediate steps for long-term success can lead to missed goals and ineffective programs.

At Mundaly, we believe communities deserve a say in issues affecting their well-being, who is funded to address them, and whether they’re being solved as intended.

To engage stakeholders and community participants, understanding their Theory of Change is crucial to how we operate.

A Theory of Change provides a transparent and honest picture of the steps required to reach a goal. It allows stakeholders to assess what they can influence, the impact they can have, and whether their goals are realistic given the available time and resources.

From our last newsletter, “The Frameworks for Change”, we covered the Theory of Change as one of the most popular frameworks in impact measurement. Read here in case you missed it!

To delve deeper, let’s understand why the Theory of Change is invaluable:

1. Visual Representation: It visually maps out the change process, showing how specific activities lead to desired outcomes.

2. Strategic Planning: By identifying early and intermediate actions, it helps in planning the steps needed to achieve long-term goals.

3. Focus on Gaps: It highlights the gap between activities (what a program does) and goals (the desired outcomes), turning your project into a series of actionable tasks.

Benefits of the Theory of Change

1. Common Understanding: It fosters a shared understanding among all stakeholders about what the program aims to change and how. It strengthens the clarity, effectiveness, and focus of programs.

2. Framework for Evaluation: It provides a solid framework for monitoring, evaluation, and impact assessment.

3. Improved Partnerships: It helps identify strategic partners and supports transparent conversations around change.

4. Clear Communication: As a product, it can be used to communicate your work clearly to others.

 Key Elements of the Theory of Change

Assumptions: Conditions that must be in place for parts of the program to work as expected.

Activities: Day-to-day tasks required to provide a product or service.

Outputs: The deliverables produced by program activities, reflecting the quantity and quality of implementation.

Outcomes: The intended results of a program, influenced by the provision of outputs but affected by external factors.

Impact: The changes the program aims to make, measured by the program’s outcomes.

Long story short, how about you join us this Friday, 19th July 2024 as we host an eye opening session with a leading impact funder as they get to share their ToC and what they look for from their implementing organisations!

Register here to secure your spot and receive the meeting link.
P.S Limited to only 25 participants.

This will be a great opportunity for all impact led organisations to review their ToCs and ensure alignment among internal and external stakeholders!

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