International Food Policy Research Institute

Objective
In mid-2010 IMA World Health faced a challenge: how should it pursue its strategic plan following a leadership transition? Mr. Rick Santos, the incoming President and CEO of IMA, asked KonTerra to review and assess IMA’s alignment with (and capacity to fulfill) the organization’s strategic plan which was developed prior to his tenure. Such a project was critical for the organization and would determine the success and sustainability of the organization and their global operations moving forward.

Solution
After in-depth discussions with Mr. Santos at IMA, it was determined that KonTerra could best support this project by providing leadership consultation support, designed to clearly identify strengths and opportunities for improvement, and to provide an experienced, objective sounding board for leadership as organizational issues were addressed. In this instance, the KonTerra leadership consultation process combined regular consultations with Mr. Santos, facilitated session with the IMA leadership team, and ad-hoc consultations as needed to support Mr. Santos.

The content of these consultations covered a range of topics, including:

• Structures and systems
• Interdepartmental strategic and operational collaboration
• Planning and budgeting
• Grants and contracts
• Work style assessment and team strengthening

Result
The leadership consultation process provided Mr. Santos and his team at IMA World Health with enhanced clarity into the current state, and future direction of the organization. This understanding of the organization’s alignment with (and capacity to fulfill) the organization’s strategic plan helped to inform the decisions of senior leadership, not only at this crucial time for the organization, but on an ongoing basis.