A concrete example for high integration would be a NADEL student/practitioner integrating knowledge on different planning tools (e.g. logframe, theory of change, budget) for designing a water project in a complex situation with the practical skills of translating it into the project’s adaptive work plans, and with an attitude of being willing to address ill-defined problems and showing respect for the international country team with which they are working. Transformative integration would set in the moment the student was challenged to radically change their approach, including for instance fully letting go of ‘Western’ logic and complexity thinking, and instead embracing indigenous knowledge systems (e.g. storytelling, spirituality).
Through key informant interviews, different mechanisms were identified, also reflected in literature (Harvey, 2000; OECD 2011; Cherry, 2021). As shown in Table 4, examples include mentoring, peer to peer learning and coaching; formal training; practice-oriented placement; leadership/organisational practices; and self-learning initiatives. Unless indicated otherwise, the described
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Key informants underline two cross-cutting factors for effectively acquiring attitudes through high and transformative integration: mechanisms facilitating individualised acquisition of attitudes and combining different mechanisms as much as possible. In fact, more holistic approaches offering different acquisition options or formats to different audiences and combining formal training with practice-orientation and exposure, are more promising. They nurture attitudes more specifically and regularly, and/or through longer-term accompaniment of students / practitioners in their professional (and personal) transformation into their roles in work. However, there are challenges, which will be dealt with in the next chapter.
Challenges to develop competencies
What are the most important challenges to acquire these competencies for potential employees in the IC who have only a limited experience in this sector. How are they different from challenges to those knowing the sector? A range of challenges to develop competencies were identified through key informant interviews and literature. These challenges discussed below are specific to the IC sector. Unless stated otherwise, they apply to new and experienced professionals alike. Structural issues with the sector: Key informants mentioned the systems, structures, and procedures within the IC sector more broadly that can prohibit competency development. The tendency towards outsourcing or the tendering/commercial approach was identified as a barrier to learning by two key informants. It was linked to short termism and knowledge loss within IC organisations. “The current tendering process has a strong focus on good CVs that can win tenders. This is not conductive to long term training and building competencies of staff within institu-
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mechanisms hold similarly for new and experienced professionals. Depending on several factors such as context, the learner’s motivation and existing competencies, available time, etc. all of these mechanisms can contribute to the development of all listed competencies to varying degrees. This is supported by literature ( Dunn et al., 2021; Inner Development Goals, 2022; Joynes et al., 2019), and there was consensus amongst key informants that a combination of mechanisms is needed for competency development: certain mechanisms offer more, others less opportunities necessary to acquire relevant competencies.
tions.” This issue was also linked to a lack of time for learning, caused by competition between organisations within the IC sector. The procedural workload and time pressures associated with the IC funding systems was also identified as a barrier. “We are constantly under pressure and overwhelmed (with procedural work) in order to quantify and make measurable, which limits time for learning.” Lack of organisational enabling environment: Several key informants also mentioned organisational barriers, which in many cases were linked to the above-mentioned IC sector structural issues. This varied from a lack of time and internal systems and procedures to enable learning, to organisational cultures that value the wrong competencies or don’t enable employees to challenge ideas and assumptions or effectively deploy competencies. Several key informants mentioned the lack of resources (including financial and human resources), space and time to enable learning. “Many organisations still do not invest sufficient resources into promoting
