SCALE+ methodology

Map the local ecosystem

To successfully collaborate with all system actors and generate lasting change, it is important for project teams to understand the system in which they are working. Mapping the local system helps project teams better understand the development topic and appreciate the issues, nuances, stakeholders, interconnectivity, and leverage points.  

The Cross-Sector Advisory Committee (CSAC) — a nonformal committee of volunteer leaders formed at the beginning of the project to advise, shape and form the project’s SCALE+ interventions from a systems perspective — helps the project team understand the local system’s dynamic intelligence, existing resources and potential cross-sector partners.  

SCALE+ guides project leadership, in consultation with the funder and the CSAC, to identify existing and new stakeholders, capture system demands, and appreciate interconnectivity and leverage points.

Identify existing and new stakeholders 

The project team conducts a contextual analysis — based on research and consultations with the CSAC, funder networks and local leaders — to define challenging issues and identify system actors so the team can go beyond partnering with the “usual suspects” associated with funder assistance. Mapping the system fosters broader thinking about the potential of new partners from other sectors (economic, environmental, governmental and social) and can uncover techniques to identify and engage them. 

Capture system demands  

Mapping the local system allows a project team to understand the demands of the system so it can determine where there is a shared desire for change, identify potential for working collaboratively, and make crucial decisions about where to invest resources and technical assistance. The CSAC keeps the project focused on system demands rather than the narrow needs of the few. A project team can either develop its work plan based on these demands or — if applying SCALE+ at a later stage — can adjust, modify and improve an existing and approved activity. 

Appreciate interconnectivity and leverage points  

Because each component requires dedicated human resources, SCALE+ suggests the project team assign the task of coordinating stakeholder collective actions and promoting increased integration and information-sharing throughout project implementation to a Systems Integration (SI) Team.  

The SI Team continuously builds a project database of relevant partners and captures critical information about where, how and on what issues stakeholders are working. The SI Team uses social network analysis (SNA) to uncover the complex relationships and leverage points in the system, and this information informs strategies for investing in collective action and system-transforming activities.