Business of Development

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Juris Doctor

This course focuses on practical skills relevant to the roles and job responsibilities of most development professionals - whether they work for multilateral organizations, government agencies, private sector firms, or NGOs. The course is designed to build knowledge and skills that match the complex, interdisciplinary reality of development management. Successful development practice depends on the capacity of program and project managers to integrate different disciplines and interact effectively with numerous stakeholders, both inside and outside their own organization. This capacity is likely to become more important, and more highly valued, as the global development ecosystem continues to evolve and the concept of “Development 2.0” moves from rhetoric to reality. The course blends training in core skills and practices with exposure to the functions and characteristics of key actors in the ecosystem. The course is divided into three modules featuring exercises and presentations by student teams, and concludes with an individual project assignment that integrates material learned during the course. Module 1 will begin with an overview of the global development ecosystem, focusing on the major donor agencies and newer, nontraditional actors who are introducing important changes to the way that development projects are designed, financed, and implemented. Module 2 will examine the different types of organizations in the private and NGO sectors that implement development projects on behalf of project sponsors and funding agencies. Module 3 will focus on the skills and tools necessary to launch and implement a project, once a contract or grant agreement has been negotiated with the donor agency. The course will close with an individual written assignment. Students will respond to a case with a scenario describing a development problem in need of resolution, and will be asked to prepare a plan of action in response to this case.