Overview of ‘full’ and ‘light’
capacity assessment
November 2008
NOTE:
1. This tool/guidance has been developed based on the experiences of the DaO
Pilot countries.
2. RCO to hire external team to support capacity assessment, Team to conduct
capacity assessment
10 December 2008
Table of Contents
1
2
3
4
5
7
Context .................................................................................................................4
Prerequisites ..........................................................................................................4
Tool objectives ......................................................................................................4
Key outputs and timeline ........................................................................................5
Process Overview ..................................................................................................6
Activities and Tools ...............................................................................................7
Next steps ............................................................................................................12
iii
OVERVIEW – CAPACITY ASSESSMENT (“full” and “light” version)
NOTE: The capacity assessment needs to be (at least partly) facilitated by an external third
party. This is required to ensure impartiality
Context/ Purpose of Capacity Assessment:
Why conduct a capacity assessment?
• The capacity assessment forms part of the change management process related to UN
Coherence, Effectiveness, and Relevance (CER)
• An analysis of current capacities is important to ensure that the UNDAF or common
programming tool that is developed reflects the capabilities of the UN system in the
country
• An analysis of required capacities is important to understand what resources are
required to implement the vision
• The capacity assessment is part of the required organizational change to ensure
appropriate action can be taken for the vision to be achieved and the UN Integrated
programme and operations strategy to be implemented successfully
• It supports the development of sufficient capacities to deliver against the UN Integrated
programme and operations strategy and the efforts to cluster and co-locate teams to
create synergies. (Note that the extent to which this is applicable varies by country)
When to conduct a capacity assesssment?
• In the context of CER to deliver on the objectives of UNDAF or common programming
tool and business operations
• Change of external environment, i.e. Changing demands on UN in Country
• Internal changes affect capacity requirements, e.g. business process reeingineering
Prerequisites:
 To define required capacities, it is important to have a vision and strategy in place
 There is strong support and commitment from the UNCT and the Resident Coordinator
to conduct a capacity assessment
 Government and external stakeholders support the process and are willing to take part
in the exercise
 Resources (financial and human) are available for the capacity assessment
Tool Objectives:
The Capacity Assessment toolkit is designed to help the UNCT in conducting a capacity
assessment. A capacity assessment forms part of the change management process related to
CER. It helps in-country management to identify the required changes to resources, skills and
expertise across the agencies to respond more effectively to the immediate and medium term
development needs of the country.
The objectives of this particular exercise in COUNTRY are:
4
1. Estimate current capacity of the UN system (in country, regional and HQ) to deliver
against the UN Integrated programme and operations strategy efficiently and effectively
2. Estimate required capacity of the UN system (in country, regional and HQ) to deliver
against the UN Integrated programme and operations strategy efficiently and effectively
3. Identify key capacity gaps of the UN system (in country, regional and HQ) using the
results from objectives 1 and 2
4. Develop plans to close the capacity gaps so the UN is able to deliver against the UN
Integrated programme and operations strategy results and outcomes efficiently and
effectively.
The results of the capacity assessment will form the basis for developing a roadmap to address
current skill and capacity gaps through training, capacity building and reorganization.
Key outputs:
The key output from the capacity assessment is a concise analysis that characterizes required
roles and assesses the capacity to deliver on the UNDAF or common programming tool. It
describes the key capacity gaps and options to fill them and suggests a respective action plan.
Once aware of the gaps and options to bridge them, agencies will be able to make informed
decisions regarding recruitment and human resources management, and prioritize budget
resources accordingly.
Timelines / Location:
 2-3 weeks/In- and out of country – Assess need and readiness for capacity assessment,
engage team and determine schedule, and discuss methodology
 4-6 weeks / In- and out of country – Detailed analysis of both current and future roles and
capacities
 1 week / Out of country – Complete capacity analysis and identify most important capacity
gaps
 2-3 days / In country – Conduct workshop for validation of findings and development of
options for closing gaps
 2 weeks/ Out of country – Refine recommendations and detail implementation and
communication plans
NOTE: A ‘light’ capacity assessment can be completed in half the time
5
Process Overview:
NOTE: The overview assumes a full capacity assessment is conducted. See differences
between full and light capacity assessment under 0.b.
Capacity Assessment (CA) and human resources plan
0 – Context/
Planning
Duration
• 2-3 weeks
Activities a. Assess need
and readiness
for CA
b. Determine
scope of CA
c. Engage team
and develop
work plan
d. Kick off CA
with UNCT
Deliverables
•
•
•
•
Tools
•
•
Communication
Phase 1 – Assess and
validate current capacity
(JD analysis)
• 2-3 weeks out of country
a. Assess in depth the current
capacities (including in-and
out-of country resources,
potential for working through
partners)
b. Ask each agency to validate
job description analysis and
non resident capacity
analysis
c. Conduct time allocation
survey to identify how well
job descriptions match actual
work
Workplan
• Concise analysis characterizing
TORs
required roles/competencies and
(External)
assessing capacity for delivery of
team hired
UNDAF
Methodology • Non resident capacity analysis
• Survey results based on a
representative number of
responses
Kick off UNCT • JD analysis template and
presentation
guidelines
Communicatio • NR Capacity Analysis
ns One Pager • Time allocation Survey
to Staff
• Memo from
RC/HoA
• Communications One
Pager from
Communicatio
ns Group
Phase 2 - Identify
existing and required
capacity
• 4 weeks (2 in country)
Phase 3 - Compare
requirements to existing
capacity
Phase 4 - Develop an
implementation and
communication plan
• 1 week out of country
• 2 weeks in/out of country
a. Send out data requests/
a. Consolidate analysis per
a.
pre-interview
agency into overall picture of
questionnaires to HoAs
the UN system in COUNTRY b.
and working groups
b. Conduct gap analysis to
b. Review data received in
identify most critical skills
preparation for interviews
missing as well as excess
capacity
c. Conduct interviews with
c.
HoAs and working groups
d. Conduct donor and
d.
government interviews if
not already covered in Step
2 (Stakeholder analysis)
Conduct workshop to discuss the
results of gap analysis with UNCT
Develop plans for addressing the
capacity gaps so that UNCT can
achieve its goals for UN
Coherence
Prepare implementation and
communication plans
Refine recommendations and
detail implementation and
communication plans
• List of intervention types and • Documentation of all analyses • Documentation of workshop results
subject matter expertise
conducted
• Final numbers/qualifications on
• Data confirmation sheets
• Presentation to UNCT on key
capacity requirements
(including quantitative and
findings about capacity gaps • Implementation and
qualitative data)
and facilitation of discussion on communications plan, i.e. action
• List of capacity requirements
options to fill the gaps
plan for closing gaps decided by
for in and out of country
UNCT
capacity
• Data request template
• Workshop presentation for
• Final report summarizing all
• Pre-interview questionnaires
UNCT meeting - Day 1
findings and UNCT decisions on
• Interview guides for Heads of • Workshop presentation for
action plan
Agencies (R & NR),
UNCT meeting - Day 2
• Implementation plan template
Government & Donors, OMT,
• Guidance note on means/tools to
interagency working groups
adjust capacity
• Meetings with Staff
Associations
• Staff time allocation
questionnaire to get staff
input to the work
• Communication to staff
following UNCT workshop
6
Key activities and tools:
Phase 0 – Planning
a) Assess need and readiness for capacity assessment
Considerations for the RCO and UNCT:
 What are the internal and external perceptions of the ability of the UN system in
COUNTRY to deliver on the objectives of UNDAF or common programming tool/ to meet
the requirements of the country?
 Are there overlaps between the work different agencies do?
 What is the typical intervention mix (policy advice, technical assistance, programme
mgmt, etc) by agency?
 In what areas will the UN system in country be undertaking joint services?
b) Determine scope of capacity assessment
In a first step a decision will need to be taken on whether to do the full or light version of
the capacity assessment:
The “light” capacity assessment does NOT include:
 Analysis of specific capacity requirements for all activities planned in the UNDAF
or common programming tool, for each agency (including NRAs involved)
 Workshops with Operations Management Team to specify and prioritize
operational plans for common services and harmonized business practices, and
to identify capacity implications of those plans (OMT interview is limited to asking
if the OMT itself has the required capacities for its work).
 Review of key “soft” skills / competencies required for “Delivering as One”
Depending on the RCO’s preference, in the “light” capacity assessment Heads of
Agencies may conduct the job description analysis. In that case, Heads of Agencies
map the current capacity of their organization/unit. The consultants validate the
exercise with a spot check review of job descriptions and follow up discussions with
the Heads of Agencies.
In the light capacity assessment, the time allocation staff survey is only conducted for
staff working on programmatic or both programmatic and operational interventions
but not for operational staff.
NOTE: Typically, a light capacity assessment would be appropriate in a small or Middle
Income Status country context.
In a second step the UNCT will need to take a number of decisions around whether the
capacity assessment includes...:

...all agencies in COUNTRY - i.e. should agencies that are not fully taking part in CER be
included? Should non-UN agencies such as IOM be included? (In the pilot countries all
agencies were encouraged to participate)

... out-of-country capacity to reflect the realities of the different business models of the
agencies? (It is recommended to include out-of-country capacity consistently across all
7
agencies. While different business models entail a different level of reliance on out-ofcountry capacity, for methodological consistency out-of-country capacity should be taken
into account in all cases in which it exists. A typical non-resident staff member may
spend 20% of his/her time on COUNTRY, so would be counted as 0.2FTE)

...capacity outside the capital city/main location (Again, this is recommended to provide
the UNCT with a complete picture)

...all in-country resources including project staff, consultants, interns, UNVs, etc. (In a
first step the UNCT will reach agreement on common definitions of project staff and
consultants (for example, based on contract types, length of service, type of functions,
etc). In a second step, they will decide which of the capacities to include. Whereas this is
up to the UNCT to decide, the experience of the pilot countries may serve as an
example: If a resource was paid by UN agencies it was included in the capacity
assessment - even if located in a ministry. Resources not paid through the agencies
were not included. To distinguish properly between different types of contracts,
resources were classified accordingly)
c) Engage team and develop workplan
Engage a team of 2-3 full time resources for the data gathering and data analysis period
Agree on realistic timing (including 2-3 days workshop at which all HoAs will be present)


d)




Kick off Capacity Assessment with UNCT
Review agreed objectives, activities and methodology with UNCT
Prepare kick off presentation for UNCT
Conduct kick-off UNCT meeting to present methodology, obtain feedback and refine the
draft approach/tools
Finalise methodology, templates and interview guides
Tool – Kick off presentation:
The kick off presentation introduces the team as well as the approach (i.e. methodology) to
conducting the capacity assessment. The meeting is intended both as an informative
session as well as an opportunity to review the process and make adaptations to the
methodology to fit the requirements of the country.
Tool - Communication to all staff
The One Pager on the Capacity Assessment is intended for distribution among all staff in
country prior to the capacity assessment. Its purpose is to raise awareness for the mission
and provide an overview of what the capacity assessment is about
Phase 1 – Analyze existing capacity – please refer to Job description review and job
description analysis template for a detailed description on how to conduct the analysis
a) Assess current capacity
 Analysis of current roles based on review of organigrams and job descriptions and
interview with relevant agencies (the assessment will not include evaluation of staff nor
will it be based on staff evaluation forms)
 Assessment of current capacity to include info on capacities available from HQs, Reg.
Offices and implementation partners
8

Analysis of all CER and non-CER planned activities, for each agency, including
quantitative and qualitative information on non-resident capacity (number of missions,
types of missions, duration of missions, timeliness of service, quality of service, location
of experts)
Tool - Job description analysis template:
The JD analysis template is used to perform the JD analysis – i.e. a categorization of each
job description by e.g., subject area, intervention type, level of seniority, etc. The list of
subject areas and intervention types made need to be updated according to country specific
situation.
The guide to the JD validation provides a detailed description as well as examples of how to
perform the JD analysis as well as how to validate it.
b) Ask agencies to validate Job description analysis (including non resident capacity
analysis)
 Seek feedback from agencies on Job description analysis and on all data confirmation
Tool - Job description review template:
This tool gives detailed guidance on how to review the Job description analysis
c)





Conduct time allocation survey
Review wording of time allocation survey with RCO/UNCT
Make time allocation survey available online
Request RCO to send out email to all staff requesting them to complete questionnaire
Collect and analyze responses
Compare survey results to job description analysis to identify mismatches
Tool/ Communication- Time allocation questionnaire:
The purpose of the questionnaire is to validate the Job description analysis by
understanding the real roles that staff play (which can often differ from the job descriptions).
The time allocation questionnaire seeks to explore whether there are inconsistencies
between what staff are expected to do according to job descriptions (which may be
outdated) and what they are actually doing in their daily work.
Phase 2 – Identify required capacity
a) Send out data request/pre-interview questionnaires to HoAs and working groups and
collect data
 Adopt pre-interview questionnaires to country specific situation
 Send out data request to agencies
 Coordinate data collection with RCO
Tool - Data request:
The data request template will ideally be sent out to all agencies prior to the capacity
assessment mission(s). The agencies should be able to complete the data request within 1
to 2 weeks.
9
The data request includes
- The required data to carry out the job description analysis (i.e., an overall picture of
current capacities per agencies based on all job descriptions):
o All job descriptions
o Up to date staff list (including name, job title, grade)
o Agency organigram (including reporting lines to HQ and regional hubs)
- Qualitative and quantitative information on non-resident capacity
- Key CER documents such as UNDAF or common programming tool, common budgetary
framework, etc.
b) Review data received in preparation for interviews
 Get a basic understanding of business models, size of operations, existing and required
capacities
 Compare data across agencies
 Do basic validity checks
 Note any questions/points for clarification
c) Conduct interviews with Heads of Agencies and working groups
Interview the Resident Coordinator, Heads of Agencies and others needed to identify
capacity requirements, Operations Management Team, Staff associations and others as
needed to:
o Identify all planned CER activities, including both programmes and business
operations
o Estimate required capacity for various activities, including listing required roles/job
families and competencies and estimating numbers
o Select best approaches to assessing current capacities vs. future requirements
(including capacity available from HQs and Regional Offices)

d) Conduct interviews with Donors and Government (Note: This is already covered in the
external stakeholder assessment in Step 2. Donor and Government interviews are not
required at this stage unless Step 2 has not been conducted)
 Interview the Donors and Government to get their perspectives on strengths and
weaknesses of current capacities of the UN system from an external point of view
 Ensure to interview a variety of ministries since line ministries and central ministries have
different interfaces with the UN system
Tool – Interview guides
 Head of Agency Interviews are conducted to discuss
o Amount of funding within common budgetary framework
o Extent to which capacities are currently in place for meeting future needs
o Requirements for UNDAF or common programming tool (including number and
qualification of staff)
o Business model specificities and out-of-country capacities
o Vision for UN system in 5 years

Government and donor interviews are intended to get an understanding of where
government/donors see the UN in COUNTRY today and in five years time. This will
inform capacity requirements and ensure that the capacity assessment fully takes into
10
account the internal view of the UNCT as well as the external view of government and
donors. Typical questions during such an interview will include
o What are your/the country’s major requirements today for support from the UN
system?
o What do you view as the strengths and weaknesses of the UN system in meeting
your needs?
o How do you expect requirements to change over the next 5 years, given the
country’s strong economic growth?
o What changes does the UN system need to make in its capacities to meet those
(new) requirements? (i.e. which subject areas and type of work does the UN
need to focus on/ do staff have the qualifications to meet the requirements?)

Programme Coordination Groups/Working group interviews are intended to get a better
understanding of how interagency working groups operate (including how much
progress they have achieved, what the working mode is, what the time requirements for
group members are)

OMT interview serves to identify projected operational synergies from CER.
e) Analyze required short and medium term capacity identify
Assessment of type and number of future roles (and respective competencies) required
to carry out all activities, based on review of documents, interviews and feedback on
drafts

Communication: Interview Staff Associations
The purpose of the interview with the Staff Associations is to ensure 2-way information – i.e.
understanding staff expectations and concerns as well as updating the staff associations on
the progress of the capacity assessment
Phase 3 – Compare existing capacities to required capacities
a) Consolidate information for each agency into overall picture and show the different cuts
(i.e. by intervention type, by seniority level, by resident vs non resident capacity, by
subject matter expertise)
b) Conduct gap analysis
 Compare results of job description analysis to country requirements
 Compile information on most critical missing skills as well as excess capacity
Tools: Workshop presentation for UNCT Meeting Day 1 and 2: The workshop presentation
includes all the data on the analysis conducted to give the UNCT a full picture of existing
versus required capacities at the country level. The agenda leaves room for extensive
discussion on how to approach challenges and how to come up with an implementation and
communication plan
11
Phase 4 – Compare existing capacities to required capacities
a)



Conduct workshop with UNCT
Validate findings
Discuss results of gap analysis
Develop options for closing the gap
b) Develop plans for addressing the capacity gaps so that UNCT can achieve its goals for
CER - Prepare implementation and communication plans
 Assess pros/ cons and cost of options
 Discuss options and define initiatives to be taken
 Prepare implementation plan
c)






Refine recommendations and detail implementation and communication plans
Use workshop outputs to refine the communication and implementation plans
Send out final presentation to UNCT
Define impact KPIs and assess their impact
Craft core communication messages and define channels, vehicles, timing
Ensure that all key UN leaders are on board (UNCT, OMT, SA) and encourage UNCT to
take actions on the results of the capacity assessment, such as
a. Coordination of cross agency activities
b. Monitoring of morale and crafting critical interventions
c. Tracking impact on regular basis and reporting to key stakeholders
d. Capturing learnings and knowledge
Finalize transparent communication and implementation plan
Tool: Final report
Tool: Implementation plan template
This tool encourages the UNCT to develop a concrete implementation plan
Communication: Follow communications plan developed during the UNCT workshop to
ensure staff receive updates
Tool: Next steps/Guidance note on options after the capacity assessment
The outcomes of the capacity assessment will be used to prioritize and sequence adtions to be
taken by the UNCT and to refine implementation of the UN Integrated programme and
operations strategy
Next steps after conducting capacity assessment (Note: The following is a list of options)
• HR inventory, i.e., looking at contracts, retiring dates, etc
• Conducting a job matching exercise or organizing a job fair
• Hiring new/additional staff
• Capacity building, i.e., targeted training to develop specific skills
12
•
•
HR strategy, i.e., measures to ensure disciplined future recruitments of preferred profiles
and no replacement of less needed profiles (when leaving or retiring)
HR processes, i.e., professionalized recruiting, development and retention processes
13