BAARA Consulting provides services that span across the entire leadership, management and partnership value chain from inception to operation.

The service offering includes:

• Leadership Development >>

  Leadership Development

  1. The Leader:

  • Leadership and ethic
  • Leadership strengths
  • Leadership and results
  • Leadership and intelligence

  2. The Team:

  • Leading and motivating
  • Keeping teams on target
  • Managing multicultural team
  • Managing a difficult interaction

  3. Leadership Work:

  • Capitalizing on Change
  • Focusing on your customer
  • Implementing innovation
  • Implementing strategy
  • Making decision
  • Managing crises

  close
  
  
• Finance Development >>

  Financial Development

  • Development need assessment
  • Program design
  • Editing financial management procedures
  • Financial management software (advice, procurement, installation and training)
    

  close
  
  
• Financial Management >>

  Financial Management

  1. Bookkeeping and cashiering:

  • Basic cash handling procedures (including petty cash)
  • Maintain accounts records (receipts etc.)
  • Use payment and receipt vouchers
  • Pay suppliers and staff salaries (in line with controls)
  • Manage floats
  • Manage bank accounts
  • Maintain cashbooks
  • Analyse cashbooks
  • Close the books at month end

  2. Implementing financial controls:

  • Cash handling procedures
  • Authorisation procedures
  • Accounting controls (including reconciliations)
  • Segregation of duties
  • Develop financial systems/procedures
  • Develop financial roles and responsibilities
  • Audit financial controls and systems

  3. Project/programme accounting:

  • Cash flow management
  • Bank account management
  • Monitor accruals (committed expenditure)
  • Manage suppliers and credit arrangements
  • Asset management
  • Produce management reports
  • Familiar with double entry book-keeping
  • Produce month end submissions to head office
  • Close the books at year end
  • Multi-currency transactions
  • Manage grants made to implementing partners
  • Manage audit process
  • Multi-project financial management
  • Develop systems/procedures (inc. spreadsheets & roles/responsibilities)

  4. Budgeting and budget monitoring:

  • Prepare project budgets (with project staff)
  • Monitor expenditure against budget
  • Interpret budget monitoring reports for managers, and identify appropriate actions
  • Set up accounts structures
  • Flex and review budgets
  • Manage multi-site budgeting process

  5. Managing donor funding (financial aspects only):

  • Prepare budgets in donor formats
  • Monitor actual expenditure versus donor budgets
  • Produce financial reports for donors
  • Line by line monitoring of funding situation
  • Set up systems for financial reporting to donors
  • Manage multiple donor funding
  • Liaise with donors’ financial staff
  • Ensure that external funding meets organisational requirements

  
  close

• Computer & IT competencies >>

  Computer & IT competencies

  The ability to use computers and information technology (IT) is almost indispensable for financial managers in the field. At times, knowledge of specific accounting packages is also required. Computer and IT skills are grouped into four areas of competency, as follows:

  • Word-processing
  • Spreadsheet skills
  • Accounting software
  • Other IT skills such as programming abilities and IT support.

  close
  
  
• General Management Competencies >>

  General Management Competencies

  1. Supervising and leading teams:

  • Provide on-going direction and support to staff
  • Take initiative to provide direction
  • Communicate direction to staff
  • Monitor performance of staff
  • Motivate staff
  • Staff succession planning
  • Ensure organisation’s standards are met (e.g. implementing head office procedures)

  2. Recruiting and releasing staff:

  • Prepare job descriptions and person specifications
  • Participate in selection interviews
  • Identify individuals’ training needs
  • Implement disciplinary and grievance procedures
  • Ensure legal obligations are met (e.g. staff have appropriate contracts)
  • Develop staff contracts
  • Develop salary scales and remuneration packages
  • Develop personnel management procedures
  • Ensure staff resources meet organisational need

  3. Training and developing people:

  • Deliver training to junior non-financial staff
  • Deliver training to senior non-financial staff
  • Identify training needs
  • Support personal development
  • Develop training materials & methodology
  • Train financial staff

  4. Managing projects / programmes:

  • Prepare detailed operational plans
  • Manage financial and human resources
  • Monitor overall performance against objectives
  • Write reports, project proposals and amendments
  • Understand external funding environment and negotiate with donors
  • Develop project / program strategy
    close
    
    
• Public Private Partnership (PPP) development >>

  Public Private Partnership (PPP) development

  • Preparing a business plan
  • Finance Essentials
  • Marketing Essentials
  • Communication skills
  • Making a presentation
  • Negotiation
  • Persuading others
  • Running a meeting
  • Negotiation skills

  close
  
  
• Other competencies >>

  Other Relevant Competencies

  1. Office administration:

  • Implement office support systems (inc. filing, insurance, stationery, staff accommodation)
  • Source office space & staff accommodation
  • Implement and develop health and safety procedures
  • Handle organisation’s relationship with government
  • Develop office support systems
  • Manage office support staff
  • Ensure office support resources meet organisational needs

  2. Business advice:

  • Provide business advice to small enterprises
  • Provide business advice to medium size and large enterprises
  • Design and implement a business advice programme
  • Set up small enterprises
  • Set up medium to large enterprises

  3. Organisational development:

  • Understand organisational issues in other cultures
  • Understand principles of organisational development
  • Develop organisational systems/structures
  • Develop vision and strategy
  • Manage organisational change to resolve specific issues
  • Establish and develop an organisation

  4. Stock control:

  • Manage storage (warehouse)
  • Manage associated paperwork (purchase orders, delivery notes, etc.)
  • Develop logistics and storage systems
  • Manage logistics/warehouse staff

  5. Other logistics:

  • Source goods and services locally
  • Arrange transport of goods
  • Source and transport goods and services internationally
  • Vehicle maintenance
  • Manage customs procedures
  • Negotiate improvements in supplier performance
  • Ensure that logistics/storage resources meet organisational needs

  6. Working approach:

  • Attention to detail: Concentration on all aspects of a task, commitment to achieving high quality results
  • Initiative: Can develop new solutions to problems as they arise
  • Flexibility: Flexible in working arrangements and adaptable to new (sometimes unstructured) working environments
  • Ability to work in a team: Can work with others in order to reach common objectives
  • Ability to manage oneself: Can define priorities in an unstructured environment, with many competing demands made on one’s time
    

  close