Strategies & Objectives

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There are 3 key strategies with which EMU will achieve the objectives of the QUALITY PROJECT MANAGEMENT success, namely:

  1. The focus on a data-driven (evidence based) decision-making process when analysing the challenges in education in order to formulate a clear business case.  As stated in his, presentations, Dr Gallie reminds educationists – “without data, you are just another person with an opinion”.  This approach links strongly with the School Functionality Index (SFI) questionnaire that was developed by Dr Gallie within his Doctoral Thesis (for more information on this instrument, please e-mail edutrax@eduquest.co.za).  This approach also includes the development of ‘scenario planning’ and its related beneficial construction of the ‘preferred future’.
  2. Adopting a systemic thinking approach when analysing the challenges in education.  “Systemic thinking is a simple thinking technique for gaining systemic insight into complex situations and problems”. (Bartlett 2001)  This approach is certainly different from the often misperception of “systems thinking” and “systematic thinking”.  The fundamental assumption in this approach is that everything interacts within the things around it, and therefore if we want different outcomes from a situation, we have to change the system that underpins the situation in such a way that it delivers different outputs and ultimately impacts.
  3. The utilisation of ‘helicopter’, ‘big picture’ Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the education system such as GIS and cellular technology.  In places where ‘standard operating procedures’ through paper-based processes don’t exist, it will be difficult to implement ICT tools immediately.  Organisations have to be sensitised and convinced about the importance of stable and reliable procedures and processes, before they are take to higher levels of efficiency and effectiveness.  We therefore argue that functionality has to precede performance, and these two approaches will necessarily require different tools and systems.