Strong leadership and good management
"Leadership can come from a variety of different sources and it won't necessarily happen overnight."
-Dr. Margaret Neuse
Most successful family planning programs have strong and stable leadership at all levels. Programs need strong leaders both to manage the program and as advocates for the program with stakeholders such as in the government and the community. Management and leadership have different qualities, but they are both important to a program’s success.
Recommended Resources
Publications
Job Aids/Tools
Case Studies
jdwyer on April 07th 2008
At very high levels we sometimes think of leaders as one set of people and managers as another set of people. For most family planning programs, however, our experience is that anyone in a position to over see a group of people and achieve results needs to be able to lead well and manage well.
Leading well essentially helps to align your team around a shared vision to tap the commitment and ingenuity of all of the team members. Managing well essentially guides your team to utilize resources efficiently and effectively to achieve results.
Whether you are a Provincial Medical Officer or a Nurse in-charge at an FP clinic, knowledge of effective leading practices and effecient managing practices enables you to identify challenges, work with your team on a shared vision for success and achieve results. So we don't think of leaders and managers as separate people - these are skills and practices that everyone can learn. It is leading and managing at all levels.
Joseph Dwyer - Management Sciences for Health