NGO Soul + Strategy 032. Chasing Innovation: can we do better as NGOs? In discussion with Chris Meyer of MzN International
Tosca is in conversation with Christian Meyer zu Natrup, Managing Director of MzN International, in the first episode of of a three-part podcast series. The other two episodes which will air in February 2022 will cover ‘Chasing Funding’ and ‘Chasing Impact’
Summary
Are INGOs inherently inefficient, slow and lack innovation to the point that they will go, or ought to go, extinct?
And if not, what should leaders do to transform their organisations into solution providers at a time when the world faces unprecedented upheaval, a climate crisis, pandemics and a myriad of other challenges?
In the very first episode, I discuss with Chris whether non-profits at risk of being incapable of solving problems and therefore at risk of becoming obsolete. How can our organizations get better at innovating?
Christian’s Bio
- Managing Director of MzN International
- Disaster relief and assessment coordinator at European Union (2006 – 2013)
- Senior Executive at Ernst and Young Consulting company
We discussed:
- NGO, like all bureaucracies, can be shaped - and intentionally so.
- Unfortunately, some NGOs start out with good intentions but end up being shaped by the rules and confinement of government grant guidelines, rendering them inflexible while chasing compliance legislation
- They get used to a comfortable existence with moderate impacts, rather than solving a problem. This is acceptable if their aim is a continuous existence in a relatively stable environment. It is less helpful if they want to solve problems in a fluid context. For that, they need to be agile.
- We discuss, among others:
- Trade-offs between being a large organization with an ability to offer scale and work across many sites, i.e. multi-sectorally, vs. offering sharply delineated competencies
- Leadership mindsets that get in the way of spurring innovation
- The problem with a compliance mindset, or 'falling in love with the solution too early, not with the problem' (Ann Mei Chang)
- Is a lack of innovation funds part of the problem?
- The balance needed between unleashing creativity and maintaining a certain level of discipline within an innovation policy
- Overreliance on in-house production of solutions vs. buying 'off the shelf'
- Insufficiently flat organizations
- Innovations not aligned with strategy or strategic priorities
- Being too process-oriented
You can also watch the episode here.
Resources:
Next episodes alert:
- Episode 2: Chasing Funding - will it ever end?
- Episode 3: Chasing Impact - ever more desperate? And are we actually interested in measuring and knowing our impact?
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