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HACT40150

Academic Year 2024/2025

Management in HA (HACT40150)

Subject:
Humanitarian Action
College:
Health & Agricultural Sciences
School:
Agriculture & Food Science
Level:
4 (Masters)
Credits:
5
Module Coordinator:
Assoc Professor Pat Gibbons
Trimester:
Autumn
Mode of Delivery:
On Campus
Internship Module:
No
How will I be graded?
Letter grades

Curricular information is subject to change.

This module is a core component of the NOHA Joint Master’s Degree in International Humanitarian Action (D061) and UCD Master’s Degree in International Humanitarian Action (D062) to be completed during the first semester. It forms a recognised part of the curriculum and is a requirement for obtaining either the NOHA Master’s degree or the UCD Master’s degree.

The overall objective of the Management Module is to equip students with the competences to manage humanitarian operations, programmes and projects. The humanitarian principles will be examined from the perspective of humanitarian managers, and students will analyse the challenges for disparate aid organisations (private, public and third sectors) to deliver humanitarian action in a principled manner. Students will be introduced to strategic management and the importance of programming and projects for the professional delivery of humanitarian aid. They will assess the challenges to professionally deliver humanitarian projects by employing best practice across a range of management support functions, including: financial management, logistics, security and human resource management.

All of the above will be presented from both academic and practical perspectives while emphasising the issues and challenges within the humanitarian context.

About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

On the successful completion of the module students should be able to:
• Apply the principles of humanitarian action to a humanitarian intervention;
• Appraise the humanitarian context;
• Describe and critically analyse the humanitarian enterprise, its key stakeholders, management principles and governance structures;
• Critically analyse HA organisational principles and practice;
• Design a strategy for a HA organisation that combine key issues of intervention;
• Present a detailed description of the project cycle;
• Critique the logical framework approach to project design and management;
• Develop a security and logistics plan for a humanitarian NGO;
• Prepare a financial accounting system for a humanitarian intervention; and
• Develop and evaluate the personnel management system for a humanitarian intervention.

Indicative Module Content:

Introduction
Management In Humanitarian Action
Humanitarian system/ concepts/ management and governance/ Leadership
Strategic Management - Issues of Intervention
Strategic Planning
Programmes and projects/ issues of intervention
Programme and Project Analysis
Project planning
Project design
Project Monitoring and Evaluation
Project implementation
Monitoring and evaluation
Personnel Management
Financial Management
Budgeting/ budgetary management
Security Management
Logistics

Student Effort Hours:
Student Effort Type Hours
Lectures

15
Small Group

24
Seminar (or Webinar)

8
Autonomous Student Learning

70
Online Learning

8
Total

125

Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
PowerPoint presentations with voiceover will be prepared in advance for each lecture and shared with the students using the online Brightspace system. Core reading material is available online and essential reading will be highlighted to the students during each lecture.

This year the management module will be in-person. In the event that any student/students cannot attend for any reasons, lectures will be in video on Brightspace. If students need any support, this will be provided by way of tutorial upon request.

Daily lecture materials will be made visible on Brightspace at 9.00am to all students on the morning of the scheduled lectures together with essential readings associated with each lecture. The section titled ‘programme and training activities’ below provides details of topics, dates and times and the lecturer responsible for each session.

All students are expected to attend all sessions. Whenever possible, students who cannot attend should notify the Programme Coordinator, Dr. Desire Mpanje in advance (desire.mpanje@ucd.ie).

Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 

Assessment Strategy  
Description Timing Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade In Module Component Repeat Offered
Exam (In-person): This is an in-class exam. It is designed to assess students knowledge of programme and project management as they align with humanitarian action. It accounts for 20% of the marks in this module. Week 2 Alternative linear conversion grade scale 40% No

20

 No
Individual Project: Students are required to develop management strategies to operationalise their proposals. Students will work on one of the following areas: HR, Logistics, Finance, Security or Monitoring & Evaluation Week 3 Alternative linear conversion grade scale 40% No

40

 No
Group Work Assignment: Students will work in groups to design a project proposal for a humanitarian intervention. The proposals will be presented in class and include logical frameworks and projected timelines. Week 3 Alternative linear conversion grade scale 40% No

40

 No

Carry forward of passed components
Yes
 

Remediation Type Remediation Timing
In-Module Resit Prior to relevant Programme Exam Board
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment
• Online automated feedback
• Peer review activities

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Feedback on the class exams is based on automated online feedback. The group assignment combines elements of peer review activities and group/class feedback post-assessment. Students are provided with a report on their individual assignment with the option for a feedback session if requested.

Name Role
Dr Desire Mpanje Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Professor Patrick Wall Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Cyril Otieku-Boadu Tutor
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