(STRLDi Operating Discipline in Practice)
Task Assignment: Reabetswe Koosenye
1. THE POINT OF DEPARTURE
When work begins to move, the instinct is often to expand — to reach out, to formalise, to build visibility. In practice, this is where most efforts begin to weaken, not strengthen, because movement is mistaken for readiness. What is required instead is structure — not as constraint, but as the condition that allows the work to hold, to land, and to grow without fragmentation.
This note sets out three things that must now be established deliberately: the 12-month development arc for coordination and delivery, the minimum infrastructure required to support the work, and the regional pathways through which the work may begin to circulate. These are not parallel tracks, but interdependent layers that must move in sequence.
2. A 12-MONTH DEVELOPMENT ARC
(From Coordination to Capability)
The role being developed is not administrative. It is a pathway into the work itself — beginning with visibility, moving through participation, and gradually building into capability. Each phase must be completed through practice, not assumption.
PHASE 1 (MONTH 1–3): STABILISING FLOW
Focus: Seeing the system as it moves
To Do:
▪️ Track all engagements (who, where, next step)
▪️ Coordinate meetings and follow-ups
▪️ Sit in on discussions and observe carefully
▪️ Maintain a clear record of movement
Not to Do:
▪️ Initiate institutional outreach
▪️ Over-structure conversations
▪️ Assume readiness where there is only interest
Output:
▪️ A clean engagement tracker
▪️ Weekly clarity on what is active, dormant, or emerging
PHASE 2 (MONTH 4–6): SHAPING ENTRY THROUGH SESSIONS
Focus: Allowing the work to land
To Do:
▪️ Identify and organise small, paid sharing sessions (5–15 participants)
▪️ Coordinate invitations and confirmations
▪️ Observe participant responses and patterns
▪️ Begin light support during exercises
Not to Do:
▪️ Scale sessions prematurely
▪️ Formalise institutional relationships
▪️ Rush conversion into programmes
Output:
▪️ 2–3 well-held sessions
▪️ Clear understanding of where the work resonates
PHASE 3 (MONTH 7–9): SUPPORTING DELIVERY
Focus: Holding the work in practice
To Do:
▪️ Coordinate session flow end-to-end
▪️ Work closely with ground operations
▪️ Support participant exercises and group work
▪️ Maintain continuity between sessions
Not to Do:
▪️ Take on full facilitation prematurely
▪️ Lose sight of participant experience
▪️ Fragment delivery across too many groups
Output:
▪️ Stable delivery support
▪️ Consistent participant engagement
PHASE 4 (MONTH 10–12): BUILDING CAPABILITY
Focus: Beginning to carry parts of the work
To Do:
▪️ Facilitate selected segments (exercises, reflections)
▪️ Support early-stage institutional coordination
▪️ Observe and participate in structured engagements
▪️ Continue strengthening delivery discipline
Not to Do:
▪️ Represent the work independently too early
▪️ Overextend into multiple directions
▪️ Lose grounding in the sessions themselves
Output:
▪️ Emerging facilitation capability
▪️ Readiness to support structured engagements
3. WHAT MUST BE SET UP TO WORK PROPERLY
(Minimum Viable Infrastructure)
The work will not hold on intent alone. It requires a basic structure that allows visibility, continuity, and discipline without slowing movement.
A. FINANCIAL BASE — SPONSORSHIP SUPPORT
The work must be stabilised financially to avoid distortion through urgency.
To Do:
▪️ Secure 1–2 anchor supporters (3–6 month commitment)
▪️ Position support as institutional development, not donation
▪️ Run small paid sessions in parallel
Not to Do:
▪️ Depend entirely on ad hoc payments
▪️ Expand delivery without financial clarity
▪️ Undervalue the work to gain access
B. SHARED WORKING PLATFORM
A simple, centralised system must exist.
Recommended (initial):
▪️ Shared drive (Google or M365 — minimal structure)
▪️ Engagement tracker (single source of truth)
To Do:
▪️ Maintain one central repository
▪️ Keep notes, sessions, and engagements visible
Not to Do:
▪️ Over-engineer systems
▪️ Split information across platforms
▪️ Build complexity before rhythm exists
C. ENGAGEMENT TRACKING DISCIPLINE
Every interaction must move.
To Do:
▪️ Record organisation, contact, and next step
▪️ Update consistently
▪️ Review weekly
Not to Do:
▪️ Allow “floating” conversations
▪️ Track activity without direction
▪️ Lose visibility of movement
D. WEEKLY ALIGNMENT
A fixed rhythm must hold the work.
To Do:
▪️ 30–45 minute weekly review
▪️ Clarify what is moving, stuck, next
Not to Do:
▪️ Over-meet
▪️ Allow drift between engagements
4. REGIONAL REACH — WHERE TO BEGIN
(Central, East, and Southern Africa)
The work does not expand through blanket outreach. It moves through pathways where alignment is possible, and where trust can be established through presence.
PRIMARY REGIONAL ENTRY: SADC
Countries to prioritise:
▪️ Botswana (core)
▪️ South Africa
▪️ Namibia
▪️ Zambia
▪️ Zimbabwe
▪️ Mozambique
EXTENDED EASTERN CORRIDOR
▪️ Tanzania
▪️ Kenya
▪️ Rwanda
▪️ Uganda
STRATEGIC ENGAGEMENT LAYER
▪️ African Union (AU)
▪️ SADC Secretariat
▪️ Regional economic and corridor bodies
APPROACH (CRITICAL)
To Do:
▪️ Begin with small, local sessions
▪️ Work through known contacts
▪️ Allow the work to circulate
Not to Do:
▪️ Approach presidency-level or central authority directly
▪️ Send formal proposals prematurely
▪️ Scale across countries without grounding
5. OUTREACH SEQUENCING BY COUNTRY
| STAGE | ACTION |
|---|---|
| 1 | Identify trusted local contacts |
| 2 | Run small sharing sessions |
| 3 | Observe response and resonance |
| 4 | Build local continuity |
| 5 | Allow institutional pathways to emerge |
6. OPERATING PRINCIPLE
The work does not move through pressure. It moves through recognition.
It is not introduced upward. It is built outward until it cannot be ignored.
7. MUST-READ CONTEXT (FOUNDATIONAL)
For those engaging with this work, the following provide essential grounding:
- STRLDi Overview
- Working with STRLDi (study this carefully)
- Teaching The Fifth Discipline
- STRLDi Training Services
FINAL LINE
The question is no longer whether the work can move.
It is whether it is being built in a way that allows it to arrive — and hold — when it does.
Systems Thinking Research & Leadership Development Institute (STRLDi) 