1. 11111
uOttawa
Lrversit d’Ottawa
r3ltédes sciences sociales
Centre détudes en
gouvernance
University of Ottawa
Faculty of Social Sciences
Centre On Governance
/
t 613-62-5800 (2755)
6i35625350
120, Université / University (5043)
Ottawa ON KiN 6N5 Canada
• www.uOttawaca
January 20, 2017
Letter of reference for Mr. Csoban Somodi
To whom it may concern,
I first met Ivir. Somodi in Mali while I was leading various assistance initiatives during
the 2009-20 12 period. Although I did not work directly with him, we were on different
mandates associated to different consulting firms, I was nevertheless able to observe
Csoban’s excellent interpersonal skills. Furthermore, some of my clients were using
management tools developed by him and were expressing high levels ofsatisfaction.
In 2015, in the context of a multi-year mandate in the Department of Finance of the
Democratic Republic of Congo, I observed needs similar to those tackled by Mali. To
alleviate local capabilities issues, I contacted Malian authorities to discuss their
progress;and was informed that the management tools developed by Mr. Somocli were
still in use in Mali, and their users still satisfied. Based on this, and on
recommendations from other consultants who knew Csoban, I approached him to
develop management tools specific to the Congolese needs.
In 2016, Csoban conducted two field mission for us, in addition to remote work to
develop the required management tools and provide user assistance. Csoban easily
integrated into our team and showed a high level ofprofessionalism, delivering quality
work in a timely fashion. He also demonstrated very good abilities as a trainer. Clients
of the management information made available by the tools he developed expressed
high levels of satisfaction, even expanding those tools to cover other organisational
units. Csoban has excellent interpersonal skills and always available to assist
colleagues as well as clients. Furthermore, Mr. Somodi demonstrates a high level of
interest in professional development, always open to seizing opportunities to expand
his expertise.
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Pierre Martineau
Senior fellow
Centre on Governance