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  • Essay / Theory of Change and Strategic Planning

    The Theory of Change (ToC) is a simple, logical representation of an organization's estimated or realized impact. It is also “a set of beliefs and assumptions about what changes need to occur and how to achieve them to achieve a stated goal.” Theories of Change (TOC) “establish a context for considering the connection between a system's mission, strategies, and actual outcomes, while creating connections between the people served, the strategies or activities implemented, and the outcomes desired. » In other words, ToC is a retrospective mapping tool that connects long-term goals to the changes that need to occur for the organization to achieve those same goals. For this to happen, members of an organization must first define a vision for success, then understand how to make that vision a reality, while involving all of its stakeholders. The result of this reasoning will consist of a “road map”, or “causal chain”, which identifies the ecosystem and the actors involved and how they affect (positively and negatively) the organization. Although the methodology was designed for performance evaluation and monitoring, ToC can be of great use for strategic planning. In fact, defining a path of change towards long-term goals provides prediction tools and functions as a link between the activities to be carried out. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get the original essayStrategic planning through ToC takes into account the social value chain and works it backwards, i.e. starting from the impact an organization aims to achieve and concluding with the required objectives. results to make this impact possible. Resources required in the normal course of business, from financial to human and logistical resources Working methods, projects and goods and services provided Direct results measured by the quantity of goods and services provided Indirect results measured by social changes resulting from the goods and services services providedA common strategic plan through ToC begins by defining the scope and assumptions of the project/initiative/organization, i.e. the problem and what requires change. This step is followed by ToC mapping, where the organization's mission is formulated, or reformulated, based on the problem it wishes to solve and the impact it aims to achieve. To do this, the organization must have in mind its main activities and the proposed solution to this same problem. The underlying assumptions define the conditions under which the social value chain will evolve. Mapping the ToC will help formulate, or reformulate, the mission and vision of the organization as 1) the ToC specifies what the organization aims to achieve in the long term (vision); and 2) it defines how the organization will do it (mission). The values ​​of the organization determine the course of action. The social value chain is shaped by previously designed assumptions, or, in other words, by the preconditions (and risks) of the outcomes that support the potential success of the initiative. Hypotheses can be based on empirical knowledge or developed from research evidence and must include both internal and external conditions of the organization. However, these must be implicit in the journey and thus maintain the causal links. The social value chain helps define the long-term strategic objectives (long-term results) and short-term goals (short-term results) that will lead to).”.