Refreshing the strategy for a learned society in the Middle East
Council for British Research in the Levant
Ruins of the Qasr Bshir Roman fort in south-west Jordan, 2022, photo: Firas Bqa’in as part of the CBRL-supported APAAME (Aerial Photographic Archive for Archeology in the Middle East) project which monitors and interprets changing landscapes and records the conditions of archeological sites © APAAME.
Council for British Research in the Levant (CBRL) exists to advance knowledge and understanding of the peoples and cultures of Jordan, Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Syria and Cyprus. The organisation achieves this by funding and supporting research.
We worked with its senior management and trustees to develop a four-year strategy and business plan.
Our discovery process involved reviewing a wide range of existing strategy and planning documents, as well as best practice amongst learned societies. We organised an online survey of CBRL stakeholders and conducted one-to-one interviews with trustees, staff, funders and external 'critical friends'.
In addition to exploring familiar strategy questions – about what success looks like, challenges and opportunities, evolving contextual factors etc. – we explored in some depth a number of current issues affecting the research community. These included how CBRL might improve articulation of research impact, respond to the 'open access' movement, and facilitate greater 'knowledge exchange'.
We then shared our findings with CBRL's governing body and facilitated a conversation about what the organisation's strategic priorities should be for the coming years.
Temple of Baalshamin, Palmyra, Syria; Palestinian women in Jerusalem protest against the British Mandate, 1930 (Creative Commons); child refugees at a temporary school in northern Lebanon set up by UNICEF and NGO Beyond Association (Creative Commons).
Alongside building consensus about strategic priorities, we helped CBRL update its vision, mission and values. Work then began with senior leadership and staff on developing detailed plans to advance each of the priorities over the coming years including consideration of timings, funding, accountability and measures of success.
Following completion of CBRL's strategic and business plans, we were contracted to provide ongoing monthly strategic counsel for a further year, working with the director and trustees as they began to implement the strategy and tackled issues regarding governance, staffing structure and recruitment of new roles.