Operational support

Curriculum design

Training delivery

Conference design / Facilitation

Distance coaching / Mentoring

Compliance assistance

Operational Support

Allegro supplies operational support to USAID and other clients by supplying skilled experts at senior, mid, and junior levels in the functional areas of financial management; budget development and control; strategic planning; project/activity design; acquisition and assistance planning, evaluation, award, and administration; human resources; information technology; travel management; organizational development and change management; and a full array of technical sector support. Our experienced network of international development and functional area experts are available for long-term and short-term assignments.

For over ten years, Allegro has supplied experts to over 14 USAID Missions and Offices. This has been through combination of direct awards with USAID and as a major subcontractor. Missions and offices supported include India, Tanzania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Ghana, Mozambique, Georgia, Haiti, Senegal, Armenia, Malawi, South Africa, and Sri Lanka, Bureau for Global Health, and Office of Acquisition and Assistance, Bureau for Management (M/OAA). Allegro has provided this operational support both on-site and virtually and has supported over 4 project designs, and 30 plus A&A Global Acquisition and Assistance System (GLAAS) packages from planning to evaluation and award. Our system for virtual support is well structured and organized to efficiently move work forward, with management tools that provide continual visibility and transparency to our clients.

Allegro’s approach to curriculum design creates a continuum of mutually-reinforcing professional development opportunities – from classroom or virtual Instructor Led Trainings (vILT) that serve as foundational courses to just-in-time supportive webinars, games, micro-learnings, videos, infographics, and other tools. Our tailored solutions come in all sizes with a particular focus on clients in the international development arena and FAC-C and FAC-COR training. Allegro uses various methodologies in designing training, basing our approach on skills and knowledge gap assessments, desired learning goals, subject area, time, materials, human factors, and client needs.

Allegro has designed over 150 unique training opportunities for USAID and other clients. In addition to FAC-COR and FAC-C certification courses, Allegro has designed over 40 courses, workshops, and conferences for the USAID education sector, Food for Peace Office, Budget office and many other sector specific trainings.

We have:

• developed infographics, games, and interactive on-line trainings to support standard processes and new policies, procedures, and initiatives.
• created mentorship programs for targeted skill building – programs characterized by both on-site and off-site mentoring and coaching of USAID staff.
• managed study tours for Partner Government Staff to third countries.
• hosted virtual conferences with over 90 panel and guest speakers and 200 participants worldwide.
• Won awards for our on-line micro-learnings and other virtual products.

Curriculum Design

Training Delivery

Allegro delivers training courses worldwide for USAID and other clients with a deep and experienced bench of trainers who train in all countries, including non-permissive environments. In recognition of COVID-19 travel restrictions, Allegro has flipped all existing classroom trainings to virtual instructor led trainings (vILT). We can do the same for your classroom trainings. Available training delivery services for in-country training includes the full range of training logistics tasks and customized participant management.

Allegro’s team delivers over fifty trainings per year around the world – both on-site and virtual. We supply Subject Matter Experts (SMES) primarily in the A&A field but also in Financial Management, Evaluation, Project/Activity Design, Program Cycle, Budget, etc. as well as Course Facilitators, and Adobe Moderators/Producers (for vILT offerings). In our thirteen years of operation, Allegro has never turned down a course offering; we are often called upon to training other organization’s staff (under prime awards); and we often supply last-minute substitutes to prime projects where the prime’s own consultants or other subcontractor staff have dropped out.

Allegro supports conferences and workshop events of any size and in any location, on-site and virtual. From large international conferences to small office retreats, we offer a full range of supportive services including well-managed and proactive “event management” to efficiently track all facets of the event. In collaboration with our client, we find speakers/panelists/instructors, set agendas with clear and realistic goals, secure venues, and accommodations, arrange ground transportation and cultural events, and create event websites as “one-stop” preparation service point for participants. Allegro conducts monitoring and evaluation for mid-event adjustments, and post course learning.

In August 2020, Allegro (in its role as major subcontractor to ZemiTek) was pleased to respond to USAID’s Center for Faith and Opportunities Initiative (CFOI) for support to their last minute need to convert USAID’s first Evidence Summit on Strategic Religious Engagement (SRE) from in-person to virtual. The conference welcomed over 180 participants, and 90 plus live-video presentations/panel discussions involving a wide range of academics and research institutions around the world. Allegro managed all aspects of the virtual conference space, including procurement and design of the conference hosting spaces, training presenters and panel members on the virtual platform, running the virtual platform for the duration of the course, sending messages to participants and presenters to engage them and maximize their participation in the virtual conference, developing interactive tools for participants, and facilitating the conference.

Conference Design / Facilitation

Distance Coaching / Mentoring

Allegro supplies tailored coaching and mentoring opportunities in all areas of our operational support services as well as for general employee soft-skill growth. Coaching can be standalone through discrete coaching/mentoring agreements or can follow training courses to help participants apply newly gained knowledge and skills to their active work activities. We offer group or individual coaching, in person or virtually, and in worldwide locations. Our coaches and mentors are experienced trainers and experts in the area(s) in which they coach.

As a major subcontractor and Project Manager for Team ZemiTek under the M/OAA BPA, Allegro has managed and provided USAID/Ghana with customized training and follow-on coaching to six technical offices within the Mission, covering Project Design and A&A pre-GLAAS document development. Originally designed to be conducted on-site in Ghana, Allegro flipped the work to virtual a week prior to delivery (due to COVID 19). Based on the overwhelming success of this effort (completion of the Education Office Flagship Project Design, completion of 4 A&A GLAAS packages for Economic Growth Office and 1 for the Food Security Office), Allegro will lead the follow-on three year, $2.3M effort for the same services for USAID/Ghana. Allegro has provided this type “product-driven” coaching and mentoring to USAID Missions and Bureaus (e.g., Global Health) under a variety of mechanisms. We have also provided general writing skills and supervisory skills coaching and mentoring to several USAID Missions.

Allegro works with private sector and public sector entities on matters related to compliance with USG, USAID, and other international donor awards. Our team are experts on compliance matters, some of have served as expert procurement witnesses, A&A ombudsman for USAID, and supported firms in successfully addressing audit findings or managing contract disputes and claims. We offer “pre-audit” compliance reviews for entities that are preparing for audit. Our compliance expertise spans all operational domains: ethics, human resources, procurement, business development, information technology, contract administration, setting up and managing local offices overseas, etc.) with a focus on the international development community.

Allegro has drafted entire suites of policy and procedure for NGOs working in the international development sector. These have ranged from large US NGOs to small host-country start-ups. Allegro’s President has served as an Expert Procurement Witness on two USAID cases, once for the Boston District Attorney’s office and once for a private firm representing a large USAID-funded NGO.

Compliance Assistance