ABSTRACT
With hindsight, one can evaluate many decisions one made when serving in a non-governmental organization (NGO) leadership position related to humanitarian response programs. My reflections will focus on the approaches in which relationships were built between community members, staff, government counterparts, and other NGOs in the humanitarian setting. These reflections also allow for setting a strategy for the response and amending that strategy as conditions change. Additional reflections will focus on interpersonal experiences for development and various aspects of a humanitarian response plan. To achieve efficiency and greater impact, I will offer recommendations within the following: seeking partnerships and working with governments and NGO partners, response strategies, short-term deployments, and procurement of distribution items. These recommendations will be shared on what I would do differently in similar circumstances.
