Starting conditions - summary

We developed an operational model built on four key starting conditions: open communications, self-employed contracts, fixed pay rates, and open finance. These approaches created flexibility and transparency where we were primarily motivated because we believed in the mission. While the systems weren't perfect—communication platforms caused issues for some, the pay rates created complexity, and financial transparency was challenging to implement—the overall framework allowed us to adapt organically and bring in diverse talents as needed. The combination of employed roles with flexible self employment proved effective, and the evolution of financial management systems ultimately created greater transparency and accountability.

More detail can be seen in the other posts on starting conditions. Search 'starting conditions'.

Some of the observable impacts of the starting conditions are the way the money flowed through the programme. It can clearly be seen that the programme used and increasing amount of funds throughout the time it was working. I think this shows how by working in a way that responds to questions, learning and discovery as you go it will naturally develop and widen. This is in comparison to more traditional programme management approaches which would have seen a much more horizontal spend throughout delivery. In terms of the impact of a diverse team - we simply would not have had the type of programme that developed if we did not have that diversity nor might we have had the capacity.

I think the impact of the open finance system is perhaps more symbolic than practical in the end. I think that the trust that people might have when finances are transparent is increased whilst the ambition of having a more distributed finance management control wars slightly further off than the programme managed to achieve in its time.

Whilst the actual impacts of the starting conditions is very hard to draw any hard and fast conclusions from I think it would be fair to say that choosing different starting conditions would have resulted in something very different, whatever that difference might have been!