RATWOE

RATWOE

RATWOE stands for:

  • Recipient(s): the beneficiaries of the research and impact activities
  • Actor(s): that perform the impact or research activity
  • Transformation: the process that creates change or transmits something from researcher to recipient, or recipient to researcher
  • World view: the underlying set of values, beliefs and priorities that explain the existence of the transformation
  • Owner: the individual or group with the authority to change significantly the transformation activities taking place
  • Environment: the rules and constraints that cannot be changed within the environment surrounding the business system.

The most important component of this management tool, is the World View, or underlying justification for the impact or research activity. For help with this have a look at the VMOST tool. A key strength of this tool is that it enables you to consider the transformations alongside the actors and recipients engaged with them (see also Stakeholder Mapping).

Like many of the acronymous tools listed on this site, RATWOE is a means of synthesising or structuring one’s thought processes and/or the results of a group brainstorm activity. By systematically grouping the focus or results of these ideation activities into the respective RATWOE categories, you can quickly produce a comprehensive description and high-level overview of the aims and processes of your research or impact activity, or conversely, quickly identify weaknesses in particular ideas.

Undertaking this analysis and considering the actors and transformations occurring as part of impact activity can be very effective in helping to cost, and evidence, impact activity throughout the research process.