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Learn how to assess and improve the management and governance practices of non-profit organizations. Explore significant issues, such as financial management, board role, compliance, and transparency. Discover self-assessment tools and resources for effective evaluation.
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Do It Yourself(DIY):Self Assessing Management & Governance of Non Profit Organisations Albert Kuruvila Lecturer & PhD Candidate University of Waikato New Zealand albert@waikato.ac.nz Better Board Conference-July 28,2012
Significant Issues challenging the Non profit sector • Financial management-funding, fundraising, balancing income & expenditure • Relationship with government • Retaining and motivating staff & volunteers • The role of the board & governance issues • Compliance with financial reporting standards • Impact of IT/Internet environment-website management , social netwoking and maintenance issues
Significant Issues contd… • Risk management & recovery plans-disasters and economic crisis • Demand for the services • Fraud activities • Compromising organisational vision/mission with contractual obligations • Legal responsibilities & awareness • Quality of service delivery • Transparency & accountability demands from public, government and other donors
Why we should assess our practices? • To ensure EFFICIENCY-How are we doing things- minimum input, maximum out put?-Process • To ensure EFFECTIVENESS-Are we really making changes- Results • Accountability and Transparency obligations • Good governance and proper management are the key for efficiency and effectiveness
What we should assess???? • Governance & Leadership- Board, CEO, Policies & procedures • Strategic planning & management-Vision, Mission, Objectives, Values, Culture • Service delivery & Quality assurance-Programme planning, implementation and evaluation- Project management • Legal responsibilities & awareness • Human resource development & management-paid staff, volunteers-recruitment, development and retention • Systems, asset & office management- IT, procedures • Financial management-planning ,budgeting, fund raising, accounting, reporting, auditing, controlling ,investments and compliance • Stakeholder/relationship/partnership management
How to assess???-A Health Check-up? • Defining standards and success for NPOs is difficult • No uniform successful practices • Needs, circumstances and aspirations of individual organisations are different • They are not only varying from industry to industry, but also within same industry • But the key aspects of good practice are the same for most organisations • Self assessment tools are based on these good practices • Different organisations have developed different tools and should be used differently as these may reflect regional/national circumstances( Eg; financial reporting, charity commission etc)
How to do a health check-up • Health check-up is about measuring how well our organisations are doing and also assessing the risk level • The good practices are identified as statement of best practices defined in a five –point scale or with 3-4 options for the organisations to rate their performance • The statements can also be rated on its prominence as Essential, Recommended & Additional • Scale Score- 0-Never, 1- Rarely, 2- Sometimes, 3-Most of the time, 4- Always (% - 0, 25,50,75,100)
Some available tools • Checklist of Non Profit Organisational indicators edited by Carter McNamara published by Greater Twin Cities United Way, USA • Self Assessment Tool for organisations edited by Fay Freeman and Sandy Thompson under SCOPE project, New Zealand,2005 • Financial health checklist published by Mango,UK,2009 • A Handbook of NGO Governance by Marilyn Wyatt published by the European Centre for Not-for-Profit Law,Hungary,2004 • Organisational management checklists published by NGO management association,Switzerland
RESOURCES • http://www.ecnl.org/dindocuments/18_Governance%20Handbook.pdf – Good Governance checklist Management checklists • http://ngomanager.org/resources-2/library/ • http://www.mango.org.uk/Guide/HealthCheck • http://www.tindall.org.nz/scope-capacity-building-pilot-project/ • http://managementhelp.org/organizationalperformance/nonprofits/index.htm • www.tindall.org.nz/assets/Resources/.../Legacydocumentfinal.doc • http://www.grantthornton.co.nz/Assets/documents/home/NFP-report-2011-2012.pdf • www.intrac.org- NGO training centre • Research on NGO sector- http://ccss.jhu.edu/