Strengthening Innovation Capacities across SOS Children’s Villages consultancy

Strengthening Innovation Capacities across SOS Children’s VillagesReview of the SOS Children’s Villages Innovation Playbook, development and delivery of a global innovation training programme, and design of a 2027 innovation challenge.1. BackgroundSOS Children’s Villages is a global federation working to ensure that children and young people, who have lost or are at risk of losing parental care, can grow with the relationships, support and opportunities they need to thrive. Across the federation, Member Associations respond to diverse and evolving programme challenges, requiring approaches that are locally relevant, evidence-informed and increasingly able to make use of new methods, partnerships and technologies.In 2026, SOS Children’s Villages International launched the Innovation, Evidence & Scale (IES) Unit to support SOS Children’s Villages Member Associations and partners in moving more effectively through the IES Scalability Pathway from priority challenges to designed and tested solutions and ultimately to greater impact and scale. IES acts as a catalyst: supporting teams to identify and frame challenges, co-create and test solutions, generate evidence, capture learning and help promising approaches travel across contexts. An important part of this role is strengthening capacities across the federation so that Member Associations are equipped to apply innovation approaches within their own programme development and programme change processes.Innovation within this context is not understood as technology alone or as the development of entirely new solutions. It involves starting from the challenges and the needs of children, young people, families and communities, engaging relevant stakeholders in the design process, testing assumptions and potential solutions, learning through experimentation and considering how appropriate technologies and emerging tools can strengthen programme responses. This reflects the wider IES approach of supporting locally led solutions through co-creation, safe experimentation, evidence and learning.SOS Children’s Villages’ Innovation Playbook, developed in 2020, provides an existing framework, methodology and set of practical tools for innovation across the federation. Building on this foundation, IES now aims to update and translate these resources into a practical capacity-building offer for SOS Children’s Villages partner Member Associations. This ToR describes a consultancy that will be responsible for: Reviewing and, where needed, adapting the existing Innovation Playbook and related resources to design an Innovation capacity-building programme, including its training curriculum and materials. Facilitating the Innovation capacity-building programme for SOS Children’s Villages partner MAs, combining conceptual framing, practical methodologies, interactive learning and peer exchange. Developing the concept for a potential Programme Innovation Challenge in 2027, including the proposed approach, key steps, process and templates. SOS Children’s Villages International is seeking external expertise to complement internal capacities and bring current innovation practice, methodologies and perspectives into the organisation. The consultancy should build on existing SOS Children’s Villages resources while strengthening them with relevant external expertise and practical experience2. Objectives2.1. General To design and deliver a global virtual innovation capacity-building programme for approximately 20–60 programme colleagues from 15–20 SOS Children’s Villages Member Associations, accommodating different experience levels and time zones, while laying the foundation for a potential programme innovation challenge in 2027.2.2. Specific Review the existing SOS Children’s Villages Innovation Playbook, the IES Scalability Pathway and related resources to identify relevant updates/gaps and adapt it to a global virtual innovation capacity-building programme, including training curriculum, methodology and supporting materials. Facilitate a highly interactive virtual innovation capacity-building programme, combining practical innovation methods and tools with exercises, peer exchange and group work focused on programme-related challenges. Develop a practical concept for a potential Programme Innovation Challenge in 2027, including the proposed process, phases, templates and other resources required for implementation. 3. Scope and methodological approachThe consultancy should build on the existing SOS Children’s Villages Innovation Playbook while allowing for targeted adaptation and supplementation where relevant. The intention is not to redesign the existing innovation framework from scratch, but to review its continued relevance, identify gaps or opportunities for improvement and translate it into a practical virtual learning experience for SOS Children’s Villages partner Member Associations.The proposed approach should be guided by the following principles: Practi