Assessing Your Organization : Gauging Your Land Trust’s Progress

1. Assessing Your Organization:Gauging Your Land Trust’s Progress Maryland Land Conservation Conference 2009 Sylvia Bates, Land Trust Alliance Beki Howey, Maryland Environment Trust

2. Why should a land trust evaluate its performance?

3. Assessment of performance allows land trust leaders to… • Reflect on individual responsibilities • Clarify expectations • Identify issues and concerns that need attention, including training needs • Recognize and reward good performance • Set goals for the future • Use the results as a springboard for performance improvement

4. Assessing Your Organization

5. Land Trust Standards and Practices (revised 2004)

6. Definition • Land Trust Standards and Practices are the ethical and technical guidelines for the responsible operation of a land trust

7. Land Trust Standards and Practices and your Land Trust • Land Trust Alliance members must adopt the 2004 Standards and Practices revisions • All land trusts are encouraged to implement Standards and Practices at a pace appropriate for their organizations

8. What does it mean to “adopt”? • Adoption indicates that a land trust has… • Reviewed • Accepted • Made a commitment

9. What is Accreditation? • Voluntary • Independent verification of standards • Based on 37 indicator practices from Land Trust Standards and Practices

10. Introduction to AYO • Background • How AYO has been used • Strategic planning • Organizational challenges • Expanding staff or programs • Mentoring • Grant-making requirement • Membership in statewide land trust council • Land trust accreditation

11. AYO Levels • Self-assessment done by land trust without outside help • Paper-based guided assessment with phone support from Alliance staff or consultant • “Standard” guided assessment with Alliance staff or consultant • High-level AYO with document review

12. Choosing the Assessment Method • Guided assessments – the recommended approach • Self-assessments – two alternative approaches • Decision-making guide

13. General Steps in the Guided AYO Process • Land trust is engaged in the process • An assessment meeting is scheduled • Land trust completes the workbook and submits background materials to the assessor • Assessment meeting is held • Written recommendations are prepared and delivered to the land trust • The assessment process is evaluated • Additional follow up

14. Initiating the Process • Identifying an assessor to help • Targeted invitation to pre-identified land trust • General announcement • Brief informational form • Memorandum of understanding

15. Guided Assessments • All-volunteer land trusts • Entire board completes workbook OR • Standards assigned to committees • Land trusts with small staffs • Entire board and staff leadership team OR • Standards assigned to committees and key staff • Large, staffed organizations • Standards assigned to staff person or board committees AND • Entire board reviews workbook OR summary prior to the assessment meeting

16. Self-Assessments • Assessor plays more limited role • Receives workbooks • Collects background materials • Reviews and evaluates information • Makes preliminary recommendations • Presents results • Finalizes written recommendations • No involvement by outside assessor

17. Self-Assessments • All-volunteer land trusts • All board members individually complete workbook OR • Standards assigned to committees OR • Board completes workbook together • Land trusts with small staffs • All board members and staff leadership individually complete workbook OR • Standards assigned to committees and key staff OR • Board and staff leadership complete workbook together

18. Self-Assessments (cont.) • Large, staffed organizations • Standards assigned to staff person or board committees OR • Board and staff leadership complete workbook together

19. Before the Assessment Meeting • Schedule the meeting • Distribute workbook • Participants may complete questionnaire • Sample A • Sample B • Sample documents, background materials submitted to assessor • Sample A • Sample B • Pre-meeting phone conference

20. At the Assessment Meeting • Introduction and background • Review and discussion of each practice • Reach general consensus concerning ranking • Identify priorities for improvement for Parts 1 and 2 • Wrap-up, summary and next steps

21. Components of the Written Report • Brief summary of the meeting • Summary of findings • Recommendations • Priorities • Reference materials and resources

22. Sample Reports • Sample A • Sample B • Sample C

23. Delivering the Final Report • By mail • With cover letter • Phone conference • Face-to-face meeting • Board planning agenda

24. After the Assessment • Evaluation forms • For the land trust to complete • For the assessor to complete • Six-month progress report • Additional follow-up (examples) • Additional coaching • Technical assistance plan • Individual follow-up

25. Other Tools • Many different organizational assessment tools available • BoardSource • Institute for Conservation Leadership • Others • Land Trust Alliance • Assessing Your Organization • Conservation Easement Program Assessment

26. Standards and Practices Curriculum • 15 courses on indicator practices • Prepares land trusts for accreditation • Not required for accreditation • No guarantee of accreditation • Not just for accreditation!

27. The Learning Center • Free to Alliance members anytime, anywhere • Same content as the books/instructors • Access and more information: http://learningcenter.lta.org • Accessible to members with dial-up