In the wake of a 2005 study by the IASC Task Force on Training, the IASC authorized the development of the Emergency Team Leadership Programme (ETLP) to promote cross-organisational participation and inter-agency leadership development in order to support the development of competencies for team leaders. UNHCR was selected to administer the training and the first course kicked-off in 2006.

ETLP Overview:

The ETLP enhances the effectiveness of participants in inter-agency leadership roles or as emergency team leaders. Because of its unique inter-agency participations, the workshop focuses on leadership, self-awareness and interpersonal skills, rather than on emergency technical (e.g. emergency operations, sectoral planning, logistics, staff security, etc.) or managerial skills. Each ETLP accommodates up to 20 participants and sessions are held 2-3 times yearly.

Key themes addressed in the programme include “emotional intelligence,” “situational leadership,” “collaborative negotiation,” “decision-making in emergencies,” “team care/trust building” and “coaching.” All ETLP learning activities, discussions and presentations are contextualized to reflect humanitarian emergency environments, challenges and scenarios.

Designed as a blended-learning programme, the ETLP consists of:

1. pre-workshop phase with self-assessments, peer feedback and relevant readings
2. week-long face-to-face residential workshop
3. post-workshop learning activity including facilitator coaching.

Expected outcomes of the ETLP:

• strengthen the quality of leadership in humanitarian operations
• support stronger coordination among agencies
• foster development of best practice in emergency leadership and management
• contribute to the expansion of a larger cadre of experienced team leaders proficient in emergency leadership competencies

Target Audience:

Participants in this course come from IASC partner agencies dealing with humanitarian emergencies and disaster response. The desired profile of participants include individuals with emergency experience who are either currently in the field serving in a team leadership/coordination role (eg. at the UN P4-P5 level), or who might be deployed by their agency over the next 12 months as leaders of humanitarian response teams, heads of sub/field offices or cluster/sector coordinators.

• have a minimum of 5 years of field experience in humanitarian/emergency operations with responsibility (six months minimum) for leading staff and/or inter-agency groups;
• are able to commit the time required to do the pre-workshop learning activities (about 10 hours), attend the workshop (4.5 days) and complete a post-workshop activity (5-15 hours), and,
• exhibit the ability, potential and/or desire for leading, and possess a positive disposition towards humanitarian work, lifelong learning and leading teams.

History:

Since March 2006 to March 2017, nineteen ETLPs have been conducted. A total of 330 participants from some 25 different organizations, including UNOCHA, UNICEF, WFP, FAO, UNFPA, OHCHR, UNHCR, IOM, ICRC, IFRC, WHO, Oxfam UK, Mercy Corps, Care, CHF International, IRD, LWF, Danish Refugee Council, World Vision International, Caritas, the Refugee Consortium of Kenya, the Kenya Red Cross and the IASC Secretariat amongst others have attended these ETLP courses.

At the request of the IASC, UNHCR serves as the programme’s administrator and institutional home. Since the programme’s inception, InterWorks LLC has served as the lead instructional designer and training facilitator.

For additional information about the programme, registration and logistics please contact Peter Kessler at Kessler@unhcr.org at UNHCR’s Global Center (GLC). For additional information about the ETLP design and content, please contact Charles Dufresne at dufresne@interworksmadison.com.