Confessions from the Social Sector

On a quest to work at an intersection with the government, Sreya Mozumdar realised her personal mission-ambition traversing The/Nudge Institute’s Economic Inclusion Program (EIP). After spending over 15 years in the social sector, transitioning to work with the government presented her with a whole new learning curve.

“I remember telling John during the interview that he was taking a risk in hiring someone who had not worked with the government directly before - that this was a challenge clearly out of my comfort zone in working with development sector organisations and communities all my life.”?

In taking her personal mission further, Sreya began by building a case for inclusion and financing for ‘graduation’ components for the most excluded rural communities, systematically within the ministry mandates. Economic inclusion program approaches like cash-plus-care or graduation approach provide a ‘big push’ and intense ‘hand-holding’ to the most excluded households.?

“The rigour of developing white papers and policy briefs on economic inclusion, engaging with states on special project deliberations, presenting research and evidence to substantiate the case for additional strategies/ investments for the constituency and, most importantly, seeing them materialise in the form of considered and espoused positions at the Ministry, has been an exciting journey.”

As she opens up about her journey, here are her reflections from over a decade in the social sector:

• Shifting goalposts is a reality. When working with multiple stakeholders, especially the government, one can easily get sidetracked with the multitude of tasks. Keeping yourself, your team, and the key stakeholders focused on the longer needle-moving game needs consistent effort and prioritisation. And yes, your North Star may change and evolve as well.?

• Navigating the insider-outsider location as program management units (PMU) in the government requires lived knowledge of when to lean in, when to remain on the fringes, and how to collaborate closely without co-option.

• Keeping the self and team incentivised, motivated and hungry in PMU roles requires concerted effort and energy. Holding oneself and the team to the highest standards of work, consistently, can be challenging when working in environments with diverse sets of colleagues, who work at specific intersections and have varying priorities along with different entry and exit points.

• When tried and tested routes do not yield results, identifying allied/ adjacent areas of work at the Ministry can be interesting entry points to your own ‘North Star’. I have gained immense value from creating allies in the most unusual of spaces and leveraging their experiences/ insights to create new pathways.

While there was no prior blueprint of how to build national program management units in government-facing roles at The/Nudge, Sreya’s ability to create her work streams on her own accord has also helped inform how nonprofit organisations like The/Nudge Institute can support government-facing teams and measure metrics for impact in such roles. Aside from policy, strategy, and program management, Sreya plays the role of an ecosystem convener in building strategic alliances on the issue of economic inclusion.

Stay tuned for more perspectives and stories from Nudgesters in the thick of taking on new challenges, innovating, and solving for a ‘poverty-free India, within our lifetime’.