This is a love song
to the one who knows that wisdom
is in the way we ask questions,
and who wields questions
like a sword beaten
into a plow, planting seeds
that will grow into millet
and mangoes and magnolias,
sustaining earth & her children
generations of grain & flowers
—Zahara Heckscher

 

Demand-driven Learning, Research and Results Measurement

Many organizations experience the process of  learning, research and results measurement in the way one experiences taxes or annual check-ups – necessary to attend to but not an endeavor that thrills. In part, this is because research and results measurement, and the learning that accompanies them, are often driven by compliance to donor imperatives. This creates a reactive, rather than proactive stance to the inquiry process.

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Ignited Word specializes in demand-driven learning,  research, results measurement that is built from the curiosity to answer questions that could shift the course of the organization's work. Sometimes this involves unlearning prior expectations and assumptions around how and why to measure and what to research. In their place, staff choose and create questions, methods and metrics that can fuel more relevant and longer-lasting results.  Drawing from recent trends, such as trust-based philanthropy, we also support organizations to negotiate different  reporting and learning relationships with donors.