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Working with organizations to achieve greater impact
We combine direct experience of top-level management with analytical insight and sophisticated communication to improve organisational performance. We work with top management and with staff at all levels whether we are helping to improve performance management, re-engineer processes, deliver training, or gather and deliver feedback from users and clients sensitively and effectively. Our knowledge of organisational culture and its relationship to leadership is based on academic investigation as well as hands on practice both in the UK and internationally.
We work with clients to translate strategy and business plans into concrete projects using our own direct experience of project and contract management, due diligence, legal process, and monitoring and evaluation. We pride ourselves on our creativity and our ability to see solutions to apparently intractable problems. But we are equally sensitive to the political, technical and organizational constraints that face our clients. We strive to ensure buy-in. Where needed we will leave you with a clearly drafted, operational manual.
featured PROJECT
Project
External Review of ICIMOD
In August 2025, OpenCities together with Agulhas and partners PEI (Nepal) and Athena Infonomics (India) were selected to undertake a strategic assessment of ICIMOD (the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development). Established in 1983 and headquartered in Kathmandu, with eight Regional Member Countries (RMCs) (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal and Pakistan), ICIMOD serves as a convener and catalyst of sustainable mountain development and community resilience, combining rigorous knowledge generation and thought leadership with a strong focus on actionable impact. The Review focused on ICIMOD's progress implementing its 2023-26 Medium Term Action Plan Strategic Plan and helped shape the next strategy due to start in 2027.
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Strategic positioning and organizational health check
A Mid Term Review: progress towards national and global efforts to transform food systems
In collaboration with Adam Smith International
Mid Term Review on behalf of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs
A strategic review (2021)
A Review on behalf of the Independent Commission for Aid Impact (2020/21)
Working with the IMO to strengthen maritime shipping capacity around the world
OpenCities carried out a document review to help refine the objectives of the evaluation as well as design survey and interview questions. A survey with a mix of open and close ended questions was then sent out to 150 IMO-GMAs and other permanent representatives. Responses were analysed and charts created to show the trends and distributions of answers and allow comparisons between IMO-GMA responses and non-ambassador responses.
PPAs are agreements between DFID and civil society organisations. They provide unrestricted funding to CSOs with global reach and expertise, and they achieve real results in terms of poverty reduction and provide good value for money (demonstrated through competitive selection). The assignment focused on CARE’s work in three areas: Women’s Economic Empowerment, Resilience to Climate Change and Local Governance and Accountability. It addressed 4 questions that are potentially relevant to the planned Partnership Facilitation Unit: How effective was strategic funding in supporting innovation, learning and capacity building? What evidence is there that PPA funding offers value for money and why? How and why are innovative pilot practices funded by PPA adopted and scaled up by third parties to multiply impact? How and when are CARE country offices able to optimise the use of unrestricted funding?
The South Asia region manages large trust funds such as the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund as well as a multiplicity of funds in 8 countries in the region including India and Pakistan. OpenCities carried out an in-depth analysis of the number and type of trust funds managed by the South Asia region and demonstrated that the South Asia portfolio of trust fund financed grant was relatively fragmented which in turn was increasing the administrative burden on staff responsible for the portfolio even though the dollar value of the trust funds was lower than some other regions in the Bank.