ME&A Learning Workshops

ME&A is pleased to offer a selection of 10 learning workshops in support of human and institutional capacity development.  The workshops are available in English, Spanish, French and Arabic and can be tailored to our client’s needs. Ten of these workshops are listed below with in depth descriptions available as well.  These workshops have been offered successfully in the past to local, state and federal governments, both domestically and internationally, as well as to commercial clients at corporations and non-governmental organizations. An exhaustive Bibliography of training source material can be found here. If you are interested in learning more about our workshops as well as ME&A’s capabilities in learning design and delivery, please contact Patrick Sullivan or by email at

2. The Fundamentals of Project Management                   
The rapid rate of change in both technology and the marketplace has created enormous strains on existing organizational forms.  The traditional structure is highly bureaucratic, and experience has shown that it cannot respond rapidly enough to a changing environment.  Thus, the traditional structure must be replaced by project management, or other temporary management structures, which are highly organic, and can respond very rapidly as situations develop inside and outside the organization. More...

3. Partnered Program Evaluation (PPE)                   
Evaluation can be viewed as a structured process, which creates and synthesizes information intended to reduce the level of uncertainty for decision reachers and stakeholders, about a given program or policy.  It is usually intended to answer questions or test hypotheses, the results of which, are then incorporated into the information bases used by those who have a stake in the program or policy.  Evaluations can also discover unintended effects of programs and policies, which can affect overall assessments of programs and policies. More...

4. Strategic Inclusive Teamwork                           
Developing co-workers is one of a leader’s main responsibilities.  It starts with selecting great people to begin with.  Then by getting to know each of them as team members really well, and staying engaged with them on an ongoing basis, we come to know where each co-worker can benefit from learning, mentoring, and team building.  This creates co-worker potential, and leaders in the organizations of the future will look for that potential, nurture it carefully, and help their co-workers grow. More...         

5. Negotiating for Securing Win-Win Outcomes               
Negotiation itself is a careful exploration of one’s position and the other person’s position, with the goal of finding a mutually acceptable compromise, which gives us both as much of what we want as possible.  People’s positions are rarely as fundamentally opposed as they may initially appear – the other person may have very different goals from the ones we expect!  In an ideal situation, we will find that the other person wants what we are prepared to trade, and that we are prepared to give what the other person wants.  If this is not the case and one person must give way, then it is fair for this person to try to negotiate some form of compensation for doing so.  Ultimately, both sides should feel comfortable with the final solution, if the agreement is to be considered win-win. More...    

6. “Menching”: The Art and Science of Building and Sustaining Productive Relationships       
Today’s “Mench” (Mentor/Coach) is a facilitative partner in an evolving learning relationship, focused on meeting co-worker learning and performance goals and objectives.  The role of the Mench is to facilitate learning in such a way, that the knowledge and capabilities connect to action in the present, and possibilities in the future.  In order to optimize that relationship, Menches must grow and develop.  Facilitating a learning relationship starts with self-learning.  Without a Mench’s commitment to personal learning, the potential effectiveness of the learning relationship is greatly reduced. More...             

7. Embracing Diversity: A Global Imperative                   
The concept of diversity encompasses acceptance and respect.   It means understanding that each individual is unique, and recognizing our individual differences.  These can be along  the dimensions of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs,  political beliefs, or other ideologies.  It is the exploration  of these differences in a safe, positive, and nurturing environment.   It is about understanding each other and moving beyond simple tolerance, in order to embrace and celebrate the rich dimensions of diversity contained within each individual.  Look around and we will see that our society is very diverse.  Diversity enriches our lives.  By learning to recognize our similarities and appreciate our differences, together we can overcome prejudice and intolerance, and work towards a more peaceful and productive world.  Embracing diversity allows us to value our individual heritages and beliefs, while respecting those of others. More...

8. Strategic Thinking: Its Purposes, Principles, Practices, and Promises
Mintzberg, the champion of strategic thinking's argument is as follows: strategic planning is about analysis (i.e., breaking down a goal into steps, designing how the steps may be implemented, and estimating the anticipated consequences of each step).  Strategic thinking is about synthesis, about using intuition and creativity to formulate an integrated perspective, a vision, of where the organization should be heading.  When managers comprehend the difference between planning and strategic thinking, it is possible to return to what the strategy-making process should be: capturing what the manager learns from all sources (both the soft insights from his or her personal experiences and the experiences of others throughout the organization, and the hard data from market research and the like), and then synthesizing that learning into a vision of the direction that the business should pursue. More...

9. Practices of Accountable Management                       
There is a global search for answers to some of life’s most important questions, such as “why am I here?”, and “what is my purpose?  It is to take seriously the counsel of Socrates to examine one’s life, for, as he maintained, “the unexamined life is not worth living.  Thus, enter the liberal art of management.  At its heart, management deals with questions of the human condition.  It involves the study of disciplines which deal with human behaviour, creativity, emotions, decision reaching, and moral values.  Management necessarily involves organizing people for productive purposes, and thus it requires an understanding of what it means to become human. More...

10. Change Leadership–Navigating a Path to Organizational Transformation
Modern leadership is a balancing act.  We need leaders who can accept the challenge of navigating between opposites. The most prevalent type of change in organizations today is transformation.  Leaders must create in their co-workers the capabilities, infrastructure, mindsets, and behaviours they require.  Transformation demands shifts in leadership and co-worker mindset, culture, ways of relating, and the ability to course correct.  Being able to lead change more optimally than our competitors, is a key strategic advantage in the 21st century.  We, therefore, aspire to develop creative and inspiring leaders who will create success, rather than bureaucratic managers who cannot adapt to the brave new world of globalization and the networked society. More...

Learning Workshops Bibliography
These workshops are the result of more than three decades experience in teaching and consulting internationally. Additional background material is available in our workshop bibliography. Here...