Letter of Thanks & What’s Next, from Natasha Asbury

Dear enke family, friends, and supporters,

I am writing to let you know that I will be resigning from my position as enke’s Chief Programs Officer (CPO). Having officially submitted my resignation letter to Rufaro and the enke Board, I will be leaving enke at the end of August. Whilst this has been a difficult decision to make, I am incredibly proud of the work I’ve been able to contribute to within the organisation, and I am excited to help find the person who will continue building and scaling our programs and impact.

I started working at enke in 2013 as the Monitoring and Evaluation Manager with a mandate of creating a holistic programmatic measurement system within six months. What was meant to be a six-month contract turned into a five-year learning and creativity filled adventure with an organisation and team that has become a deeply cherished home for me.

In my CPO welcome blog three years ago, I ended my post with the following sentence “My vision is simple. I want to ensure that we scale our programs and our impact so that thousands of young people are connected, equipped and inspired to go into their communities and create change on their terms, in their way, on the issues that they live and breathe, with an indescribable passion that we too often forget as we get older.” In making my decision to leave enke, I have reflected back on that sentence many, many times, and realised that the vision and goals I set out to accomplish have been achieved.

My time at enke has been a non-stop rollercoaster of wide and wild innovation. Through my time here I have had an incredible opportunity to work with the best and brightest people to create scalable measurement systems and programs which tackle the most urgent youth development challenges – with a particular focus on young people’s ability to become effective leaders who can identify, access and retain further education, employment, and training opportunities to achieve success in their chosen paths. Whilst we still have a long way to go in addressing these development challenges, it has been my greatest privilege to contribute towards building a foundation for more meaningful change to occur from.

Upon reflecting on everything that we have achieved over the last few years, it also made me realise how often poorly thought out/implemented policies end up being the reason organisations end up hamstrung, and unable to create sustainable impact. It made me realise that whilst my vision for enke was scaled impact, the last three years have equally shaped my desire to scale my personal impact as well. This realisation is my “what’s next”. I want my work to contribute to a larger and more complex set of systems, and ultimately to shape policies which will capacitate organisations and help them to drive and scale their impact at a grassroots level.

In terms of what’s next for enke, we have started the search for a new Head of Programs and hope that you will help us spread the word so that we can find the right person to build on the foundations laid over these last few years.

Whilst experiencing the bitter sweetness of my decision, I leave with absolute pride and confidence in the work that enke does under Rufaro’s impeccable leadership. I also leave with an overwhelming feeling of gratitude toward the organisation and the people who make our work possible; all of whom have irrevocably made their mark on me and helped me to become the best version of myself for the next stage of my career.

To each and every person I’ve met through our shared home away from home, from the bottom of my heart, thank you. Thank you for all that you are, and all that you’ve given me. I leave with a full heart knowing that enke and the amazing people who are a part of it will always be a part of my family, and a place for me to call home.

To the enke Team, thank you for entrusting such an incredible role to me, and allowing me to make my mark on the beautiful work we do. It has been an honour and a privilege to work with each and every one of you. The memories we’ve made are my favourite ones, and as I close this chapter, it is these memories that I carry with me into my next passion-driven adventure.

With all my thanks,

Natasha