by Paul van Essche, Umoja Director
30 December 2009

Dear colleagues,

I am delighted to report that 2009 has been a most productive and successful year. Despite a more modest level of financing than we had originally anticipated, we were able to make good use of our resources and make excellent progress. In particular, there have been a number of accomplishments in 2009 in terms of developing the Umoja infrastructure, improving processes, identifying opportunities for reform, and interacting with our many stakeholders. As we head into a new year, I would like to share some of these accomplishments with you:

• In February, the project was officially named Umoja, which means "unity" in Swahili. After a world-wide competition, the name submitted by Ms. Pauline Omondi-Ingabo of UNON, was selected. As Ms. Omondi-Ingabo says "Umoja is dear to my heart because there is strength in unity."
• Early in 2009, members of the Umoja project team went on mission to meet with colleagues at offices away from Headquarters (OAHs) and field missions. These sessions were pivotal in ensuring that the current business processes were completely documented.
• Building on the information gathered during the team's mission, high-level design sessions were held in New York. Staff from nine different geographic areas participated in workshops that were conducted over a three week period in June. 213 subject matter experts from across the Secretariat, including field missions, discussed potential improvements to selected business processes.
• From September to December, over 450 staff members representing 25 different duty stations, participated in more than 140 detailed design sessions. These experts assisted the Umoja team to develop processes that are responsive to current and future needs. Outputs from the sessions will be validated by senior management prior to becoming final designs for the Umoja solution.
• During the annual CFO conference, members of the Umoja team gave presentations on process design and change management. In addition to raising awareness and interest in the project, Umoja staff members built personal relationships with their future end users.
• A comprehensive business case was developed for the Umoja project and was the basis for the SG’s progress report submitted to the GA in October (A/64/380). The report, which was positively received by the ACABQ, detailed the funding required and anticipated benefits to be derived from Umoja’s implementation. This endorsement by the ACABQ demonstrates the commitment of the Member States to the SG’s vision for transforming the organization.
• A major accomplishment this year was the launching of the Umoja website and leveraging of the web to facilitate interaction with our subject matter experts. We encourage you to visit our website to learn more about Umoja.
• Finally, as a concrete recognition of Umoja's priority status, Ms. Kane, USG for Management, assigned the Management Support Service to the Umoja Change Management Team for the duration of the project. MSS staff possess organizational experience and knowledge that directly complements the existing skills and expertise of our Change Management Team.

I would like to thank you, on behalf of the entire [Umoja team], for all your hard work and dedication. We wish all of you a happy holiday season, a good start into 2010 and continued good cooperation in the coming year!