Intervention Cycle Management Guide

The Intervention Cycle Methodology Guide was developed and compiled by INTPA D4 -Performance, Results and Evaluation; Internal Communication, Knowledge Management and Collaborative Methods - based on an extensive process of consultation with colleagues. The unit would like to recognize the work of all these colleagues within Delegations and at INTPA headquarters who contributed to and supported Unit D4 both in relation to individual methodologies and the Intervention Cycle Methodology Guide.

In recent years, the body of knowledge needed by operational managers and INTPA staff to design, implement, monitor and evaluate interventions has been steadily growing.

Operational managers need to develop competencies related to procedures and norms, but also to approaches, methodologies and tools which can ensure quality output at all phases of the intervention cycle. To this end, INTPA and the European Commission have developed several guides, methodologies and tools, both generic and thematic. These complement more traditional and broadly used methodologies and tools (e.g. on capacity development), delineate the INTPA approach (e.g. for internal monitoring) and/or relate to the values and political priorities of the Commission. This last category covers core cross-cutting issues which must be assessed and mainstreamed all along the cycle: a human rights-based approach, gender equality and women's empowerment, the environment and climate change, and conflict sensitivity and fragility.

Taken together, these guides, methodologies and tools aim to inform and enhance staff capacity to analyse an intervention's context, engage in meaningful relations with stakeholders, monitor the effectiveness of implementing partners, and integrate and mainstream European Union values in all phases of the intervention cycle.

The guide seeks to promote better use of already available resources by:

• Complementing the INTPA Companion, exclusively on methodological support, while maintaining a direct link with existing procedural sources;
• Presenting operational managers with a compendium of all guidance to be considered in designing and implementing interventions;
• Guiding operational managers in identifying the most appropriate sources of methodological support in each phase of the intervention cycle;
• Helping operational managers develop a level of competence commensurate with their level of responsibility and terms of reference through providing direct links to original sources as well as to complementary methodologies and tools produced by other stakeholders;
• Enabling a clear understanding of respective roles when external contractors are involved regarding monitoring and evaluation functions.

The guide is organised as follows:

• A common approach linking processes and methods shows how the policy framework, methodological approach and focus on results frame the institutional vision of INTPA and structure its interventions in partner countries.
• The cycle step by step is the main body of the guide. It explains to operational managers what guidance and methodological support is available at each phase of the intervention cycle, linking theory and practice in an easy-to-use manner. The chapter includes a series of matrices which associate, for each intervention phase, the areas/fields of analysis; guiding questions; and available guides, methodologies and tools. Hyperlinks to formal INTPA procedures are provided.
• Methodological Fiches & Tools presents a set of guides, methodologies and tools available to INTPA staff for developing and implementing interventions to ensure they are in line with EU principles and values. Each is presented as a separate 'fiche' which captures its main characteristics. In this way, the operational manager will know at a glance which guides, methodologies and tools are appropriate to the intervention at hand.

Contact: INTPA-ICM-GUIDE@ec.europa.eu

Note: While most of the references are public, some sources are restricted to European Commission internal users. They are identified by the symbol

INTPA is engaged in several initiatives aimed at creating, retaining and disseminating knowledge. The ultimate purpose is to translate expertise into operational reality, linking knowledge to processes, products and results.
Consequently, and given the geographic distribution of its staff, INTPA has long adopted digital tools to develop collaborative workspaces and methods. Three main knowledge hubs are available for INTPA operational managers: EU Learn, EU INTPA Academy and Capacity4dev.

EU Learn

EU LEARN  is is the learning environment of EU institutions, agencies and other bodies. It is part of the EC's Learning and Development startegy and has been adapted to the 70:20:10 model: 70 per cent of what we learn is by doing our job, 20 per cent is from feedback given by managers and 10 per cent is from formal training.

EU Learn puts users in the driver's seat regarding their own learning. With easy access via an EU login, EU Learn is designed for both desktop and mobile devices. The platform provides access to courses, events and learning materials such as videos, e-books, podcasts, articles and print books.
At EU Learn, users can:

• browse courses, events and learning material;
• register for classroom training, events, conferences, on-the-job learning, e-learning and blended courses;
• access learning materials curated by experts;
• bookmark learning materials, courses and events for future reference;
• interact with other course participants via communities of practice.

EU restricted trainings Fundamental Training Package - Intervention Cycle Management (FTP-ICM).

EU International Partnership Academy

The EU International Partnership Academy - INTPA Academy - provides the public with access to online learning content. It has been part of an ongoing effort to open learning opportunities with and to Member States and partners including international organisations, civil society and partner countries.

The content available through INTPA Academy consists of e-learning courses, learning material and (increasingly) videos and webinars aimed at:

• providing implementing partners with access to required know-how;
• adding value to learning content initially produced for staff through sharing with others;
• helping to standardise development work by widely disseminating INTPA approaches;
• increasing the visibility of INTPA's work and methods of operation.

The Academy includes additional features such as the ability to provide live online courses (allowing staff in Delegations to participate) and links to existing communities of practice on the Capacity4dev platform. Most importantly, the Academy is open to the wider international development community, thereby promoting policy coherence and learning.

The learning offered on INTPA Academy is organised across different topics, so users can easily search for courses and other material of interest to them.

All content in the Academy is free of charge. Users simply enrol in a course and complete it for certification. They are free to use as many learning resources as they want, but course certification requires full completion.

Capacity4dev

Capacity4Dev is the EC's knowledge-sharing platform for development cooperation where participants can share, learn and collaborate with development professionals. Capacity4dev aims to improve capacity development through knowledge sharing by consolidating knowledge and building institutional memory, supporting thematic expertise, enabling cross-learning among practitioners from EU institutions and other organisations, and consolidating knowledge-sharing tools and communities of practice around a common environment.

• Articles. There are hundreds of knowledge pieces available on the site, featuring development actors from across the world sharing knowledge on development practices and policies, with operational insight. Many of which contain video interviews, comprising a virtual treasure trove of collegial and expert insights and views. Capacity4dev topics cover a broad range of international development themes from policy to education.
• Membership. Members can post information, upload documents and comment on content. They can stay up to date with key developments relating to their professional field or areas of interest, by signing up for email notifications.
• Online groups. The platform enables learning and knowledge exchange through online communities. Members are welcome to join or create communities targeted to specific audiences in order to collaborate and engage with peers. Group features make it easy for members to share documents, ask questions, post comments, promote events, and share best practices and lessons learnt.
• Online projects spaces. Projects allow to share knowledge based on experiences implementing key methodologies and/or working methods, sharing lessons learnt along the way. You can easily offer visibility to a specific project and programme (ongoing or completed), and the pages will be publicly visible, even after completion.
• Resources. Capacity4dev provides easy access to useful tools and guidance such as “Team Europe Initiatives and Joint Programming Tracker” and “Results and Indicators for Development”.

• A common approach linking processes and methods
• The cycle step by step
• Methodological Fiches & Tools
• Abbreviations and Acronyms
• Glossary