Theme 3:
Empower
Leadership

Unlock, build and empower leadership locally, and across the delivery system, to mobilize communities and assure local accountability for impact.

• Leadership is a critical resource for successful scaling. Scaling itself is a complex and varied leadership challenge, with specific leadership needs depending on the nature of the program, the scaling strategy and phase, and the organizational context.
• Across cases there are common principles for successful leadership of these programs:
  
  • Shape the approach to create the conditions for leadership to emerge from within communities, including within vulnerated groups. Leadership potential is a vital latent resource that can be called forth to enable scaling.
  • Nurture awareness, engagement and commitment of leaders throughout the delivery system.
  • Encourage leaders to build their goal and outcome orientation – this includes agreeing goals and measuring outcomes as part of the core work of a leader.
  • Leave space for local leaders to have a discovery mindset, and empower leaders to develop and to innovate on how to deliver.
  • Set the leadership work in a wider community-building frame.
  • Honor human dignity by explicitly creating contexts for equal respect, including promoting gender equality and social inclusion.
  • Empower leaders outside the direct service delivery system, for example religious leaders, traditional leaders, and interested community members – e.g., women, and representatives of different age groups – each of whom can contribute knowledge to the work and help bridge divisions.
  • Establish communities of practice (see the section on discovery, learning and adaptation above) in which peer learning, and leadership development, can flourish.