For empowering technical field teams in humanitarian organisations

Field Team Impact Kit

Stronger Teams = Better Outcomes

The FieldTiK provides practical guidance and tools to improve leadership, management, knowledge and learning.

It is a step-by-step approach to achieving more accountable, locally driven, high-quality, sustainable outcomes and enhanced well-being
in technical field teams in humanitarian organisations.

Kathryn Harries designed the FieldTiK in her PhD research,
building on global good practice and practitioner experience.

The field team, displayed as a ball, progressing through the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle to improve outcomes and roll up a continuous improvement slope towards best fit. With a wedge to capture knowledge, so improvements aren’t lost.

Challenges facing field teams

  • Tough environment

    More devolved decision-making
    (less ‘command-and-control’) than in other emergency services. Field teams operate semi-autonomously.

    Dual accountability
    to people affected by disaster and donors, generally under the leadership of government.

  • Insufficent support for team leaders

    No practical tools

    Team leaders learn from personal experience, not global knowledge sharing.

    Training focuses on individual soft skills, rather than practical guidance and tools for effective team functioning.

  • Lack of resources

    Finding practical relevant resources (on technical and/or cross-cutting issues, such as accountability and inclusion)
    can be difficult.

    Inadequate training, connected only loosely to change in practice.

  • Lack of useful systems at team level

    Teams lack the systems needed to
    adapt and continually improve,
    within and between emergencies,
    as part of a system-wide response.

  • Poor retention of knowledge

    within and between emergencies, due to

    • High turnover of team members

    • Poor team-based
      knowledge management

  • Insufficient support for team well-being

    Low energy and commitment.

    Poor staff retention.

FieldTiK: A step-change in professional practice

Empower individuals to function more effectively as a group.

Phase 1 - Find your gaps | Use the team diagnostic to select the top 1–3 areas to work on

Phase 2 - Fill your gaps | Follow the examples and resources to develop new team-specific practices

Phase 3 - Review and improve | Use the reminders and templates to review every 1–3 months

1. Prioritise, 2. Action, 3. Review and improve

What people are saying…

  • FieldTiK "is the missing element. Ensuring we have a dynamic team of people really working together, that's when we can really make great changes"

    -Global technical specialist

  • "This is very, very useful"

    -National technical specialist

  • "Local NGOs are probably one of the biggest customers"

    -Senior manager, from Global South

  • "Very practical"

    -Local technical specialist

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Interested in the guide or pilot program?
Expressions of interest welcome