Human rights organisations are often uncomfortable with the notion of results-based management (RBM), a management strategy that uses feedback loops to achieve its goals. RBM helps organisations map out processes and services to show how they contribute to outcomes, but rarely is this implemented effectively in the human rights world. As a senior manager of an international human rights organisation recently told me, “I am told of performance, assessments and results-based management, but these words have no meaning at all to me.”
Indeed, that is the crux of the issue: many human rights professional don’t even know what RBM is or why they should use it. Lawyers and other legal professionals make up a large portion of human rights organisations, and while they often do a good job of litigation and legal analysis, they are less comfortable when asked to methodically measure performance. Without proper training and guidance, which most lack, they are at a loss when asked to design management strategies that target specific results.
While RBM requires effort and new skills, it doesn’t have to be a burden. And when done right, it can help human rights actors do a better job.
