This is a five-step management process that:

• Takes a system-driven approach and recognises the relationships and connections of the social systems around a development issue;
• Keeps the focus on the development goal;
• Identifies key leverage points to prioritise investments and interventions based on the demands of the commodity/value chain;
• Fosters early participation of a diverse group of stakeholders along the commodity/value chain (national and local government, farmers, industry leaders, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), input markets, media, and private sector representatives), leading them through a "whole-system-in-the-room" (WSR) planning workshop;
• Supports stakeholder groups to find common interests, builds coalitions, and engages in self-sustaining collaborative actions;
• Pursues common objectives that are achievable and compatible with local abilities, resources, and cultural practices;
• Integrates the application of multiple social change methodologies for greater impact;
• Ensures that stakeholders' short- and long-term action plans drive the implementation schedule; and
• Empowers local capacity to design, implement, manage, and monitor new enterprises and activities that emerge from the process.

The SCALE Five-Step Management Process

1. Map the Context
2. Catalyse Coalitions and Partnerships;
3. Create Collaborative, Sustainable Solutions;
4. Act; and
5. Value

Map the Context:
SCALE begins with a thorough understanding of the context within which the issue sits. This would include governance, economic, civil society, and environmental contexts.

Catalyse Coalitions and Partnerships:
SCALE initiates system-wide collaborative action from the outset by bringing representatives from all sectors of the global and national enabling environments into one room to find common ground and develop shared goals. These WSR planning sessions are critical because they accelerate the process of starting at scale by broadening the base of people creating solutions for the specific issue.

Create Collaborative, Sustainable Solutions:
SCALE strengthens coalitions and partnerships established during WSR planning workshops in applying information gathered and analysed during the previous steps to:

• Generate options that address policy, structural, technological, economic, and social aspects of the issue;
• Generate and analyse a variety of options and their implications;
• Negotiate and prioritise collaborative solutions;
• Identify specific opportunities to work toward together; and
• Define objectives and indicators of success.

Act:
SCALE uses multiple social change methodologies to support local individuals, organisations, institutions, and communities as they develop and strengthen necessary policies, technologies, input supplies, infrastructure, export markets, farmer associations, and community groups to increase farm production and income growth. As activities generate change, SCALE helps stakeholders assess where they are in the process and supports them in moving toward their objectives. SCALE continuously seeks to maintain a balance between the "task" - achieving objectives - and the "process" - strengthening stakeholders' capacity for informed decision making and sustainable, collaborative action.

Value (Monitoring and Evaluation):
This step's title was intentionally chosen for its multiple meanings. The SCALE process helps stakeholders place a higher value on the resources on which they all depend. It also helps stakeholders value other stakeholders' perspectives, roles, and contributions. Finally, this is the moment in the process to value what is working and what can be improved - as well as to evaluate impact. Because rural growth, environmental enhancement, and poverty reduction require a system-wide approach that takes into consideration governance, economic, social, and environmental interests, SCALE monitoring and evaluation helps stakeholders assess the impact of their activities in each of these areas. SCALE encourages the use of participatory monitoring and evaluation as a means to foster collaborative problem solving.

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"SCALE: A Tool for Transformational Development - Agriculture Partnerships for Productivity and Prosperity (AP3)", Academy for Educational Development, 2006; and "Going to SCALE: System-wide Collaborative Action for Livelihoods and the Environment" [PDF], Academy for Educational Development, 2004.