Project Manager Training

16 October 2005

www.ewb-uk.org

10.30 – 11.20: • Introduction to EWB-UK• Projects Strategy for 2005/06• What sort of projects do we want?

11.30 – 12.20:• Discussion of past proposals: Ecuador, Peru• Important issues eg. funding/supervision/security

12.30 – 1.20:• Improving proposals: Brazil, Nepal• Practicalities eg. emailing/forum/Skype

1.30 – 2.00:• Assigning projects and completing feedback

2.00 onwards• Pub lunch or home

Outline of the day

Hopefully the day will have lots of input from everyone

• History

• EWB-UK: why?

• Structure

• What do we do?

• Training

• Research

• Bursaries

• Placements

Introduction to EWB-UK: Contents

• The idea behind Engineers Without Borders is not new.

• EWB was first started in France over 20 years ago and has been active in Spain for over 12 years.

• The EWB idea was copied in Canada in 2000, and in the UK in 2001.

• EWB-UK has no affiliations with any other EWB, but is building a relationship with ISF in Spain, and investigating others.

History

• Many students and graduates want to get involved in development work…

• … but it is difficult to gain experience in this field.

• EWB-UK aims to exploit the skills of students while educating them about development work; to provide the development and relief sectors with the professional people they need and to increase awareness of development among all engineers.

• EWB-UK is not directly operational and does not seek to usurp existing organisations.

EWB-UK: why?

To facilitate human development through

engineering

EWB-UK: structure• EWB-UK is run by a national “core” of volunteers, currently based in Cambridge.

• In addition to this small group EWB-UK consists of a number of university branches, active in their particular area.

• Members of the branches also assist the “core” with various aspects of EWB-UK such as corporate fundraising and organising projects.

• We are currently in the process of setting up a board of trustees who will determine the policy and direction of EWB-UK.

• We are also seeking funding for a full-time employee.

• Training & teaching: EWB-UK arranges courses, seminars, workshops and other activities to teach students about and expose them to development theory and practice.

• Research: EWB-UK aims to promote, arrange and fund research into overseas development issues, both technological and social.

• Bursaries: to provide funding for self-initiated research and overseas projects.

• Placements: EWB-UK gives those really interested in development the opportunity to work with experienced professionals on real projects.

EWB-UK: what do we do?

• Each EWB-UK branch arranges talks by experts in the field of development.

• EWB-UK branches are starting to set up practical training courses for those interested in development work.

• The next training courses run by EWB-UK in conjunction with members of RedR Cambridge will be at Clare Farm, near Cambridge, on:

21-23 October 2005

10-12 March 2006

9-11 June 2006

16-18 June 2006

(Apply at www.ewb-uk.org/training)

Training and teaching

• EWB Imperial: ‘Energy for the Developing World’ training course.

• EWB Birmingham and EWB Cardiff: visits to the Centre for Alternative Technology in Wales.

• EWB Cambridge: visit to Cranfield University for a ‘Pump Construction Day’.

• EWB-UK and Objective Security: security training course for placement students going to Rwanda, Nigeria and Nepal.

Training at branches

• EWB-UK works with universities and other organisations to promote research on aspects of development work.

• This year we will publish a list of possible university projects on our website for students and supervisors to take up.

• One of our longest-running collaborations has been with Shelter Centre, a humanitarian aid agency based in Cambridge.

• Shelter Centre supports the transitional settlement and shelter of populations affected by conflict and natural disasters.

• This project has involved: students volunteering in their vacations, students performing research as part of a degree or PhD, and graduates working full-time.

Research

• The EWB-UK bursary scheme has been created to provide funding for self-initiated projects:

• UK-Based Research Projects: Costs associated with research in the area of development engineering, at the level of undergraduate course projects, Masters/PhD projects, or independent research.

• Non-EWB-UK Proposed Overseas Placement: Expenses associated with the applicant undertaking an overseas placement self-organized outside of the standard EWB-UK placement process.

• The deadlines are: March 1st and May 31st 2006.

www.ewb-uk.org/bursaries

Bursaries

Successful applications included:

• Waste Management, Kilns & Water Filters; Guatemala

• Improved Household Water Storage Solutions in Low-Income Countries; Bolivia & UK

• Eritrean Stove Optimisation; Eritrea & UK

• Data Analysis & Software Support for Soil Erosion Management; Vietnam

Bursaries in 2005

• EWB-UK placements are run with UK and overseas NGOs to assist them with technical problems, design and research.

• Most placements are for 2-3 months in the summer vacation but some last up to a year.

• Placements are open to students and recent graduates who are residents in the UK.

• Began in 2002 when two students went to Pondicherry in India, involved in researching the potential for the use of solar power.

• Have increased each year to opportunities for 38 people in 2005…

Placements

Placements information• Placements are NOT a holiday – interns have to work hard. Almost all placements will require research to be done in the UK before departure. Others will need new skills such as languages.

• On their return interns will have to complete informal and technical reports as appropriate and complete a feedback form.

• They will also be expected to give a presentation about their experiences as part of an EWB event.

• EWB-UK provides grants of between ½ to ⅔ of the total placement cost. Remainder of money must be fundraised personally by chosen placement students – usually in the region of £400-800.

2006 Placements

• New placements will be launched in February 2006. From now until then, potential projects will be identified and researched to find the best ones.

• This is the job of EWB-UK Project Managers – members of our branches who correspond with an NGO and submit a proposal for a project.

• What is EWB-UK’s strategy for finding overseas placements for 2006?

• How do Project Managers fit into the whole system EWB-UK uses to run its placement scheme?

0. Background to placements and type of placements we want1. Number of placements2. Budget for placements3. Different types of project proposals we are going to get4. Process for submitting proposals via Project Managers system

Projects Strategy and Plan 2005-06

0. Background to placements and type of placements we want

Why do we do them?

Gives intern valuable experience that is otherwise hard to get at this level.

Provides a valuable resource for the organisations we work with.

1. Number of placements: 40-45 max

(This year: 38, made up of 24 overseas, 14 UK)

Reasons:

•We are testing a new system to increase capacity (see Project Managers) and we don’t want to overload it.•We want to maintain high quality to all the projects and increase quality if possible.•We want to maintain high quality of all interns.•A small increase, with these reasons, is enough to show sponsors that we are still growing but are seeking to expand more in other areas (e.g. training/research).•We want to provide a good range of projects in terms of the skill level required i.e. opportunities for 1st years to graduates.

2. Budget for placements

2005: 38 placements at cost approx. £41000

2006: Assuming funding levels remain approx. £1080 per volunteer on average, 40-45 placements requires budget £43000 - £49000. This figure is unpredictable and is especially dependent on the no. of year-long placements we run. For the moment our capacity for year-long placements is probably only one or two projects (2-5 placements) per year, due to the difficulty in attracting suitable candidates and the extra work in organising and funding it. This could raise the budget up to £60000.

Additional budget required for phone calls to Project Managers and overseas NGOs. Unsure of the likely figure (£100?) but think it would be very valuable to use phone as a means of contact more than I have done this year.

3. Types of project proposals we are going to get

A) Someone with a project idea or contact that we can use: they or someone else is Project Manager.

B) Someone with a project idea who wants to do the project themselves and take a team with them (eg. Mo and Ecuador):

1. They are the Project Manager and they can apply for a bursary towards their costs OR 2. It is done as a ‘Branch Project’ a new system which will be trialled for 2005-06 and reviewed at the end of the year to see if it will be continued for the following year.

Note: Someone with a project idea who wants to do the project themselves (for one person) – they apply for a bursary.

4. Process for submitting proposals via Project Managers system:

Project Manager: extension of previous “NGO contact” role.

Involvement will start from project definition to completion. May be able to find someone to take over the role if not available for this entire period. Familiarity with the placement scheme and some experience in development work are helpful but not essential. 

Likely to be on screeners and interview panel. Will also prepare interns for placement after selection e.g. suggesting research opportunities.

Project Mentor: new role to increase quality of projects and give added credibility to the process. Chris Moller is the first mentor, assisting with the Malaysia project this year.

A person from the professional network is attached to a particular project.Their involvement will hopefully include:

Reviewing/refining the proposal.Sitting on interview panel.Being available to give advice to Project Managers and interns.Receiving the placement feedback and possibly being involved in review process

Project Mentors' names should probably appear on the webpage and maybe other publicity associated with the project to provide credibility and give them credit.

Projects timeline:

Now onwards. People come to us with ideas or wanting a project to work on. Project Manager assigned.

Project managers submit their idea using similar pre-proposal form to this year (‘Pre- Proposal 2006’) by 1st Dec 2005.

Reviewed by team of 3 ‘Project Reviewers’, which ideally includes one member of the Professional Network. Ideally this will be a professional who has experience of the sort of work proposed in the project and is willing to act as a ‘Project Mentor’ to the project. Other members likely to be experienced core or branch members.

The review should be returned by Dec 21st, with one of 4 options:

Accept / Accept with minor changes / Resubmit with major changes / Reject

From return of the review to 13th Jan 2006 the Project Manager works to refine the proposal if needed using comments from the Project Reviewers, and advice from the Project Mentor.

By 13th Jan 2006 the ‘Final Proposal 2006’ is submitted.

Projects are launched on 29th or 30th Jan 2006. Applications open 1st Feb 2006.

Advertising placements:

Advertise well before Christmas that we will have placements launched in Feb.Launched at branches as before.Branches told to use their careers services, email lists etc.Harder placements or more specific ones (e.g Aidworld) may need to be advertised through other sources eg. engineering companies, development jobs websites eg.Devnet

When advertised on the website the projects should be assigned one of three categories:

1. Entry-level: The project is mainly suitable for 1st to 3rd year undergraduates or above, or those with limited experience.2. Mid-level: The project is mainly suitable for 2nd to 4th year undergraduates or above, and will require some specific skills.3. High-level: The project is mainly suitable for 3rd or 4th year undergraduates or above, and will require highly specialised skills and experience.

NOTE – These categories are intended as a guideline only and are flexible.

23rd Feb 2006 applications close – placements team kicks into action!

EWB-UK 2 to 12 month placement with partner NGO

EWB-UK undergraduate and

postgraduate Research Projects

Results fed back to NGO and disseminated further to others

Research projects defined during and after placement

Interns’ own preparation prior to placement, encouraged and supported by EWB-UK

Awareness raised by:• Launching placements at all branches around the UK• Interns giving talks afterwards• Reports and press releases• Disseminating results

Interns greatly benefit from EWB-UK experience

EWB-UK Training

Programmes

Committed interns bring fresh enthusiasm, ideas and skills to the NGO and community

EWB-UK Professional

Network

Weekend training course for interns run by EWB-UK and RedR Cambridge

Training session and written guidelines for Project Managers

Project Manager

Project Mentor

Back-up team (especially for

longer placements)

Interns (selected by application and interview)

PROJECT TEAM

Researches, defines and manages project

Project team gains valuable exposure to development work

•Library and internet research in UK•Assistance with funding proposals•Past interns provide continuity•Other help when needed

EWB-UK Publicity

More than just a placement: how the placement scheme is supported by and complements the other activities of Engineers Without Borders UK

Encourages more people to become involved, e.g. in project team

The role of an EWB-UK Project Manager splits into two main areas of responsibility (if you are not available for this whole period we may be able to find someone to take over the role):

1. From now until December 2005:

Researching the potential project by email with the NGO and submitting a proposal to EWB-UK for review by 1st December.

2. From December 2005 until project completion, provided the project is accepted:

Finalising the details of the project, helping select interns and working with the selected interns to prepare them for the project.

If the project is approved you will be given more details explaining your role from that point. Your role is likely to include:

• Consulting the Project Mentor (an experienced member of the Professional Network who will act as an advisor to the project) and ensure they are informed about the project.• Keeping in contact with the NGO until the interns are selected.• You may be asked to assist with interviews and/or short-listing of candidates (there will be another training weekend in January for this).• Explaining the current details of the project to the interns once they are selected and put them in contact with the NGO.• Monitoring correspondence between the interns and the NGO. Making sure project is on track.• Suggesting ways the interns can prepare for the project.• Handing over to the next Project Manager if the project is ongoing over more than one year (which ideally it will be).

Don’t worry if all this seems like a lot – working on one project is very manageable and allows you to really get into that project, make a valuable contribution and gives you a great insight into development work. We will always be available to help with any questions you may have.

1. From now until December 2005:

Researching the potential project by email with the NGO and submitting a proposal to EWB-UK for review by 1st December.

What do we look for in a potential project?

What sort of proposals do we want?

… and what sort of things don’t we want?

What do we look for in a potential project?From group discussion. Remember these are all ideal but may not be completely fulfilled in every project!:

Good use of skills and knowledge of studentHigh impact or reasonable trade-off with benefit to studentAre we needed at all?Appropriate TechnologyLogistics eg. accommodationBenefit to communityCommunity involvementCan it be continued/linked to researchWhat is the NGO doing at the moment?Appropriate time of year/season and project lengthNGO reliability – website? Ethics? Communication between NGO and project managerClearly defined goalsCosts/benefitsCan previous research be used?No duplicated workSustainability – will it be continued by charity? SafetyRange of opportunities

… and what sort of things don’t we want?From group discussion:

Over-complicationOver-ambitionBenefits only short termDangerous projects!Unethical projectsFinancial reliance on EWB-UKInappropriate thingsNot a one-of project

0. Background to placements and type of placements we want

Why do we do them?

Gives intern valuable experience that is otherwise hard to get at this level.

Provides a valuable resource for the organisations we work with.

Types of projects we are looking to move towards:

Opportunities where EWB-UK can bring something useful to the project that would not otherwise be available e.g. pre-departure research using UK facilities.

Particular fields where we feel there is a need for experienced personnel in the development community, e.g. water and sanitation.

Projects involving work with established aid agencies with very good reputations and respected operations.

Getting involved with some ongoing projects, where we can take part over several summers and be part of a long term plan to solve a problem and phase ourselves out.

• Do you think that the project work suggested can be carried out by students at university level?• Does the NGO seem committed to the long-term goals of the project? Do you think they will make good use of and continue the work done by EWB-UK students after the placement students have left? Will there be work for EWB-UK to contribute in future years?• Will the interns be adequately supervised for the duration of their placement?• Could the project be done easily by local staff – is there really a need to send students all the way overseas to do this work? (i.e. simple installation projects)• Could we enhance the impact of the time spent there with design/research and preparation before departure?• Might it lead to research projects on completion?• Could EWB-UK bring something useful to the project that would not otherwise be available? For example, by making use of research facilities in the UK beforehand: broadband internet and libraries, as well as the human resources available to us: the professional network and our academic connections.• Is the estimated total cost for each student (including flights from the UK) going to be reasonable? (roughly in the region of £1000-£2000 pounds for 2-3 month placements)

What do you think of these proposed projects?

Ecuador proposalFrom group discussion:

1 person may get lonelyWhere is the funding coming fromConnecting 5 PCs doesn’t take 3 months!High cost – funding NGO is unsustainableWill the women actually work and use the skillsNo thought given to medical care etcNot worth sending someone to Ecuador

Peru proposalFrom group discussion:

Too vague/broadMisunderstanding with sender of the proposalNo undertstanding of the NGO focus (is there an NGO?)Not an NGO contactPossibly look for an NGO in the area to partner withMore info about the actual community people neededToo big for a 2-3 month project

Thanks for the information. Unfortunately EWB-UK does not feel that this project should be one of our summer 2005 placements. There are two main reasons for this:

1) We do not feel that the level of technical skill required is sufficient to justify sending a student to Ecuador. The project goals are mainly simple installation of computers and software.

2) The project costs are much higher than the usual project costs for an EWB-UK placement. The total project cost is listed as £7600 of which OSNU will provide £2750. This would leave almost £5000 for EWB-UK to fund for a 4 week placement. EWB-UK placements usually cost £1000 - £2000 for a 2-3 month placement (usually about £1500).

If this project is to go ahead it seems better to approach it by trying to obtain second-hand but still useable computers, perhaps via one of the existing charities that supplies PCs that are no longer needed in the UK to developing countries. If this was possible, as your budget shows, it looks like OSNU would be prepared to fund the necessary training etc.

Regards

Stephen EWB-UK’s actual reply to the Ecuador proposal

No worries Stephen...

I think that the actual engineering problem was not on how to install the computers. But rather, on how to find the hardware that was suitable and would be affordable. We were all aware the costs was above the limits of what we could all afford, the true challenge was how to make this affordable. Plus synchronizing a whole network with computers running different versions of windows, that has restricted access to different users and the public, with allocated space quotas for each user, printer quotas and all the other assets of well managed networks, requires a lot specific technical expertise.

Anyhow, its a pity this project is not happening, because it is the sort of things that are really needed over there and truly make a difference, and no one has any capital to implement. Build a school Stephen, a good school, and you have sustainability... I believe that, that alone is a worthy goal to pursue. Plus I am sure you would agree with me, that trying to build something useful out of very little is one of the hardest forms of engineering. It does not require novel price winning science, or complicated mathematics, but just a lot of creativity, patience and hard work.

Anyhow, don't worry about it... Good luck with the rest of the placements and we are in touch.

…. And the reply we got back

Dear Mauro

We are sorry that there has been confusion over this matter. However the people we send on placements are only students working voluntarily in their summer vacation. They are able to assist and support the work of professional engineers and NGOs. But they do not have the capability to organise and run large-scale projects simply because they do not have the skills or experience.

The EWB UK website does make clear these main points. In the section 'About EWB/ What EWB does/Placements' it explains that we place students with partner NGOs. And in the main 'About EWB' bit it says:

EWB is not operational in that it does not undertake its own projects, but supports those of other organisations

We wish you and your community success with your project in the future, and hope that you will be able to find appropriate people and organisations to work with.

Best wishes EWB-UK’s actual reply to the Peru proposal after various dialogue and suggesting that the proposer needed to find NGOs or universities to work with on particular aspects of the project

Some important issues that may come up:

• Budget and funding

• Supervision of the interns

• ‘Type’ of placement

• Security

The budget and funding for a placement

Individual volunteer costsThis budget should be based on the reasonable level of expenditure for essential costs, for example ‘food’ should not include luxuries or going out, just basic living costs.

Project costsSome EWB-UK projects may require the interns to spend money on materials, equipment and extra travel essential for the project. This can be difficult to estimate before departure. If you think the project may require costs such as these, please get in touch with the EWB-UK projects team projects@ewb-uk.org to discuss this, then please provide the best estimate you can at this stage of a realistic figure for these costs if needed:

NOTE – In most EWB-UK projects, these costs should be covered by the partner NGO. However this is not always the case. EWB-UK will also not contribute to the operating costs of the NGO (e.g. salaries) since this is not a sustainable way of funding projects and would not be continued after the EWB-UK project ended.”

Examples of ‘project costs’ that have been approved in the past:

Nepal 2005:

£100 for a CO detector to test the stove designed for levels of smoke produced.£100 for paying the workshop to make new stove designs to be tested.

Suriname 2005:

£500 to purchase materials and equipment for making and testing the medical waste incinerators being designed.

ALWAYS get in touch to ask if this issue comes up.

The issue of project costs will often depend on how closely we are working with the NGO, which links in to how much supervision there is ….

Supervision of the interns

The interns must be ‘adequately’ supervised for the placement. This depends on the project, the interns and the NGO!

Do they meet the NGO every day? Every few days? Every week?

Does the NGO have technical staff? At what level? Does there need to be technical back-up from somewhere/someone else?

Examples:

The interns in Spain, Cambridge and India 2005 worked in one fixed location where the NGO was based and were always in close contact with them…. On other placements the interns travelled much more and had much less contact with the NGO. In Nepal the technical advice was mainly provided by an additional project partner – the local university.

‘Types’ of project

In 2005 our projects included the following:

• Desk-based research with occasional site visits.• Laboratory based research in a university in consultation with the NGO.• Providing technical advice to a community installing their own project.• Working in the field to explain and promote an appropriate technology to people.• Research at an NGO’s dedicated research centre which included making and testing prototypes.• Setting a project up for an NGO to be able to continue in future and helping them apply for funding and find additional partners.

This is not a restrictive list but it gives an idea of the sort of things we have worked on so far. Note that they are not manual labour or simple ‘installation’ projects.

Security

Always a very important consideration!

Check www.fco.gov.uk and sign up for the email up dates on the necessary country.

Is there a need for an official ‘risk assessment’? This was needed for the Nepal project 2005.

As Project Manager, you may do the risk assessment or if needed we will find someone else to become part of the project ‘back-up’ team and do it for you.

EWB-UK will always follow FCO advice.

What do you think of these proposed projects?

What improvements could be made?

Brazil proposalFrom group discussion:

Generally goodIs there a need for us if a local uni is already involved? (Yes, they don’t have enough time/resources to properly commit to it)Need more info/background on the communityLogistics not mentioned here (they weren’t asked for in the pre-proposal last year, only later)Link it in with UK uni research or preparationDo more in the time available

This is pretty much what happened in the end – the interns did lots of research before they went, got the community involved when they were there and helped the NGO find further funding and partners to continue the project

Nepal proposalFrom group discussion:

Also generally goodCould some of the electricity project be done from the UK (Yes – this is being done partly this year)Get more to the root of the problem – try to make sure there is less smoke by more efficient combustion before trying to remove it by something extraAre solar panels to power extractors overcomplicating the project? Shouldn’t chimneys etc be investigated first?

Yes – the EWB-UK review of the proposal came up with similar points

Some practicalities:

• Emailing and cc’ing

• Using the forum

• Using Skype

• Final Project Proposal

Emailing and cc’ing

Please cc projects@ewb-uk.org in on EVERY email you send to the NGO.

Please ask me a question any time you are unsure of something.

This just helps me keep track of things!

Using the forum

Go to www.forum.ewb-uk.org

The password is amber6. You will need to register and be approved.

Make a new topic in the Projects 2006 folder.

Copy and paste all emails to and from the NGO as new posts in that topic.

This helps look up the whole dialogue if it is needed.

Let us know if you have any other ideas for doing this because I realise this can sometimes seem a bit of a pain!

Skype

At some point it may be very valuable to phone the contact with the NGO – Skype allows us to do this cheaply:

Download it from www.skype.com. (You will also need a microphone – most laptops have them already)

Let me know you need to use it and I will tell you the EWB Projects Team account and password. (Check the Skype rate for the call destination).

Have a good discussion with the NGO and keep a record of how long you spoke for and when so I can check it with the Skype record if needed.

The Final Project Proposal form

The Project Pre-proposal form will be returned to me with comments and a recommendation from the Project Reviewers.

I will pass it on to you with these comments so you can work with the NGO to adjust/improve the proposal if needed.

The Final Project Proposal is used by EWB-UK to make a final confirmation that it wishes to proceed with the project, and to describe the project when it is advertised to candidates, so it is important that the information you submit is the most available to you at that stage.

It must be submitted by 13th Jan 2006 (and earlier if possible) so that the placements can be ‘launched’ at the end of January.

Hopefully at this point most of you will have a good project proposal that EWB-UK will want to run….

And even if your proposal is not eventually accepted (this may be due to budget constraints etc.) you should have had good experience of corresponding with an NGO and learning how a development project can get off the ground….

And hopefully you will have had fun working with EWB!