USAID Program Cycle Mechanism

EI leads the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Program Cycle Mechanism (PCM) contract in partnership with Bixal, Deloitte, Social Solutions International, and Training Resources Group (TRG).

The Program Cycle is USAID’s operational model for planning, delivering, assessing, and adapting development programs. PCM supports the efforts of PPL to cohesively implement the Program Cycle and encourage adaptive management across the Agency and its programs. Through PCM, PPL offers technical and advisory assistance to develop capacity in implementing the Program Cycle in areas such as strategy development; project and activity design; monitoring; evaluation; and collaborating, learning, and adapting (CLA).

EI and our four PCM partner organizations have extensive experience providing technical support services around the Program Cycle by providing capacity-building support, developing specialized tools, designing and facilitating training and events, providing knowledge management services, and managing information technology platforms.

PCM builds on a decade of USAID progress to strengthen its capacity to do development better. PCM can help USAID offices through short- and long-term technical support to put the Program Cycle into practice; develop analytics and dashboards; training, capacity building, and facilitation (both in-person and virtual); and using evidence-based and learning approaches to strengthen programming. Specific tasks include:

1. Supporting PPL to implement the Program Cycle as the Agency’s business model for evidence-based program design, implementation, learning, and adapting to operationalize Agency priorities and achieve development outcomes, including through “setting the standard” of effective Program Cycle implementation.
2. Providing support and capacity building for USAID operating units to implement the Program Cycle, including through buy-ins for both technical and staff support.
3. Providing technical and advisory services to:
   • Build capacity in and across each component of the Program Cycle to strengthen Agency technical expertise, including through training.
   • Facilitate and coordinate sharing of examples of Program Cycle implementation from the field and Washington operating units and, as appropriate, synthesize them to facilitate peer-to-peer learning.
   • Monitor, evaluate, and strategically learn from activities implemented under this mechanism.
   • Provide thought leadership on, and support for, the testing of innovative techniques related to the Program Cycle.
   • Manage and maintain internal and external web-based platforms to facilitate communications across operating units and support knowledge management.