Internship Description
Over the course of my summer fellowship, I was assigned two clients and a summer knowledge project. My two clients were the Patient Care Intervention Center (PCIC) and the Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA). My summer knowledge project was a thought piece on systems thinking and how it affects the development field. All three projects were great to work on together, as I was able to see how Imago used a systems-thinking approach to their consulting practice. PCIC is a values-based health care technology company that integrates data to allow cross-sector collaboration between health, social, and government agencies. During the summer, my main projects were helping with investment pitch decks for potential impact investors and working on a competitive analysis for the company's strategic team. On the other end, I worked with SEWA on their Project MOVE in conjunction with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. SEWA is one of India's largest women's labor collective, and Project MOVE is a grant project to build their Enterprise Solutions System. During my time over the summer, I worked on a needs assessment protocol that would be used to help replicate the scaling-up process for SEWA's various social enterprises under their umbrella. It was great to see these projects and learn how to consult under Imago's mission. Imago believes in the base (or bottom) of the pyramid stakeholders and how, at most times, they are not consulted in project design. The best part was co-creating the project design and theory of change with my clients.
It was great to apply my MPA in development practice coursework over the summer. In particular, I leveraged my Development Practitioner Lab course and used the development theory that I learned over the last semester. Applying Theory of Change, Gaant Charts, and DEI, I utilized these tools during my needs assessment protocol project and designed a deliverable that allowed for an effective scaling plan.
The biggest challenge that I faced this summer was the remote aspect of the fellowship. Although our project coordinator did a fantastic job setting up learning opportunities for us, we still faced challenges when all work was done via Zoom and through computer screens. The most arduous struggle, in particular, was when trying to make recommendations but not being able to get context for what it is like on the ground day-to-day. Although Zoom calls and interviews helped, not being able to see first-hand made it difficult.
The biggest takeaway from the summer was my knowledge project on systems thinking. Before the summer, I had a small grasp of the subject. However, the research I conducted over the summer allowed me to see how industries, companies, and individuals are all tied together through the concept. I hope to leverage my knowledge to become an effective program/project manager in the development space through this approach. It truly taught me that work and becoming a professional is more about just turning in deliverables. To be truly successful, one needs to constantly learn and improve their skillsets to improve their part in the company, project, and system as a whole. I hope to continue learning and improve project connections throughout my time in the field.
"Imago Global Grassroots was founded to support and scale existing innovations at the grassroots level to give power to communities at the base (or bottom) of the pyramid. However, Imago’s distinction lies in its centrality on collaboration and co-creation, as well as its commitment to work with its clients while leveraging their unique strengths and respecting their culture and context.
My work consisted of five main work streams: (1) supporting the Patient Care Intervention Center (PCIC) in setting up a framework to identify impact investors to support the creation of its for-profit arm; (2) creating a competitive analysis with matrices to be able to concisely identify PCIC’s competitive edge, which led to; (3) the redesign of the investment pitch deck. Moreover, I was engaged in working on Imago’s scaling up course, a hands-on learning experience to assist grassroots organizations in taking their social innovations to the next level. Finally, I worked on a knowledge product throughout my placement, where I created a series of blogs on impact investing to debunk the many myths around the topic in an easy and digestible manner. All the work was very much aligned with Imago’s mission as collaboration and incorporating feedback was a core pillar in approaching and undertaking the different work streams.
A lot of what I learned in my first year at Columbia supported the work that I undertook during my fellowship. Courses at Columbia Business School allowed me to deepen my understanding of the field of social entrepreneurship and innovation in the nonprofit, private, and public sectors. Moreover, my MPA in development practice curriculum at the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) equipped me with key tools and techniques for effective program design and management of a full project lifecycle. This was particularly useful in working on Imago’s scaling up course as knowledge of the different methodologies for program design, such as human-centered, agile and adaptive design, were instrumental in this workstream. Moreover, I was also able to apply skills in strategy and marketing when working with PCIC on the redesign of the investment pitch deck, as well as a video demo to highlight their competitive edge.
Due to COVID-19, my internship was remote, which presented some challenges. Thankfully, most of the fellows were based in NYC, and we were able to meet in person to work on joint projects and even work together, which was very helpful in creating a sense of community. Moreover, Imago’s core staff were cognizant of the challenges of working remotely and were open to feedback on fostering a sense of belonging while being remote. We had regular happy hours and weekly brown paper bag lunches where Imago’s staff and the fellows joined to discuss a topic of interest within the international development space.
Having the opportunity to work with PCIC and support their strategy in a crucial time of organizational restructuring to grow its for-profit arm has been very rewarding. Also, being able to regularly meet and think through strategic challenges as they come along gave me insight into how organizations stay resilient in times of uncertainty.
Working with Imago — a minority-led nonprofit — throughout the fellowship was an insightful and eye opening experience. Imago’s commitment to equity and respect of people’s lived experiences within the organization (in addition to the communities they work with) has been truly inspiring. Imago’s passion and dedication to making a positive impact that is driven by grassroots organizations and focus on agency has been truly transformative and a mindset that I’m taking away from this experience. Finally, Imago embodies a culture of open collaboration and co-creation — a notion that innovations already exist within grassroots organizations and communities is transformative, and bottom-up solutions that are co-created with and within the communities are essential vehicles to drive socio-economic and environmental impact."