Topic > The Theory of Change and Strategic Planning

The Theory of Change (ToC) is a simple and logical representation of an organization's estimated or realized impact. It is also “a set of beliefs and hypotheses about what changes need to happen and how to achieve them to achieve a set goal”. Theories of Change (ToC) “establish a context for considering the connection between a system's mission, strategies, and actual outcomes, while creating connections between who is served, the strategies or activities that are implemented, and the desired outcomes. " In other words, ToC is a backward mapping tool that connects long-term goals to the changes that must occur for the organization to achieve these same goals. For this to happen, members of an organization must first define a vision of success followed by understanding how to transform this vision into reality, while involving all its stakeholders. The result of this reasoning will consist of a “road map”, or “causal chain”, which identifies the ecosystem and the actors involved. how they influence (positively and negatively) the organization. Although the methodology was designed for performance evaluation and monitoring, ToCs can be of great use for strategic planning. Indeed, defining a path of change towards objectives in the long run it provides forecasting tools and works as a link between the tasks to be done. Get an original essay Strategic planning through ToC considers the social value chain and works it backwards, i.e. starting from the impact an organization aims to achieve and concluding with the required outcomes to make that impact possible. Resources necessary for the normal performance of the activity, from financial to human and logistical ones Work methods, projects, goods and services provided Direct results measured by the quantity of goods and services provided Indirect results measured by the social changes resulting from the goods and services providedA The common strategic plan through ToC begins by defining the scope and assumptions of the project/initiative/organization, i.e. the problem and what requires change. This step is followed by ToC mapping, in which the organization's mission is formulated, or reformulated, based on the problem it wants to solve and the impact it wants to achieve. To do this, the organization must have in mind its main activities and the proposed solution for the same problem. The underlying hypotheses design the conditions towards which the social value chain will evolve. Mapping the ToC will allow you to formulate, or reformulate, the organization's mission and vision as 1) The ToC specifies what the organization aims to achieve in the long term (vision); and 2) defines how the organization will do so (mission). The values ​​of the organization determine the course of action. The social value chain is shaped by previously conceived assumptions or, in other words, the preconditions (and risks) of the outcomes that support the potential success of the initiative. Hypotheses can be based on empirical knowledge or developed through research evidence and must include both the internal and external conditions of the organization. However, these must be implicit in the path and thus support causal connections. The social value chain helps define the long-term strategic objectives (long-term outcomes) and the short-term objectives (short-term outcomes) that will lead to those objectives. Short term goals will be).”.