Actual Engagement Phase

Scanning the HH environment

The environmental scanning consists of analyzing both the external and internal environments of the HH.  The process starts with analyzing the external environment to determine opportunities and threats. 

This is then followed by internal scanning to get a clearer and deeper understanding of the situation of the household.

The process of the internal scanning shall start with the laying of ground rules and explaining to the HH what will transpire in this activity.  Separate workshops shall be conducted for parents and children.  Processing of workshop results shall include validation of data and identifying trends, factors affecting, lessons learned and recommendations.

The main tools used for internal scanning are the following:

• Household Balance Sheet – A “process where families see and analyze the daily contribution of every member of the family. The output leads to the formulation of their daily budget which lists the expected income and their priority expenses.”
• Household Management and Gender Analysis Tool –An analysis “of the distribution and involvement of household members in household chores, productive work and decision making. Emphasis on cooperation and complementation is discussed here.”
• Human Resource Inventory Tool – “assesses the existing skills and capacities of each member and the related trainings that they need to further maximize their abilities and contribute to the household economy.”

The process must culminate with a problem analysis (use problem tree) to determine the network and connection of the issues.

Household visioning

A more forward-looking step follows the problem identification process. The HH visioning shall start with the objective tree.  The family then formulates its vision, mission, objectives and goals.  The HH plan shall include details on how the vision will be attained, what resources to use, and how work will be distributed among members of the family.

Developing strategic options

With the over-all direction set from the visioning process, strategic options for the household is determined using different lenses.  These lenses are based on the scanning tools used and the visioning process, namely:

• Household Economy
• Household Management and Gender Development
• Household Spirituality and Peace Building
• Health and Human Resource Development
• Social and Community Involvement

For agricultural households, Farm Planning is done with each household. The farm plans determine the proposed crops that would be planted and the lay-out of these crops in the land tilled by the household.

Monitoring

Monitoring is based on the HH plan drafted by the family.  Assessment is conducted regularly through household visits of the assigned Community Organizer.  Monitoring schedules are noted in the HH plan.