Chapter Information
Chapter 1: Strategic Planning
Description: Strategic Planning
"If you don't know where you are going, how do you know how to get there?"
Producing an effective Strategic Plan is not rocket science. There are a wide range of available guides and information.
It is, however, one of those areas where the focus on output (a written Strategic Plan) can adversely overshadow the outcome (ongoing strategic thinking and success). There are 3 key areas in relation to strategic plans that are often forgotten:
- people deliver plans – the best-laid plans are ineffective unless there is common understanding and commitment from the people implementing it - therefore:
- strategic thinking needs to be embedded – i.e. business plans are only time-based documents, and it is the quality of the involvement, implementation and subsequent thinking by people that ensures the success of any plan – therefore:
- planning should be understood as a PROCESS, and requires an ongoing cycle of review and evaluation, with any agreed strategic or business plan being the key touchstone for management action, review and evaluation.
Free Online Resources: Strategic Planning
You may find it helpful to look at the following free web references either before you start or after you finish this section:
Tools for Strategic Planning: What works best:
http://www.ncvo-vol.org.uk/strategy-impact/learn/tools-and-techniques/tools-for-strategic-planning
Futurebuilders' guide to producing a Basic Business Plan:
http://www.futurebuilders-england.org.uk/howto-write-a-business-plan/
Improving Support UK – Performance:
http://www.improvingsupport.org.uk/resources_by_topic/performance.aspx
Chapter 2: Governance
Description: Governance
In simple terms, governance is the systems and processes concerned with ensuring the overall direction, supervision and accountability of an organisation.
In practice this means that Trustees should be:
- controlling the strategic direction of the organisation
- monitoring the organisation’s performance
- assessing and managing risk
- ensuring accountability to the beneficiaries
- meeting the organisation’s legal & statutory responsibilities
- safeguarding the organisation’s assets
Free Online Resources: Governance
You may find it helpful to look at the following free web references either before you start or after you finish this section:
Capacitybuilders National Support Service Workstream for Governance:
http://www.ncvo-vol.org.uk/governanceandleadership
Useful series of Governance Toolkits, Checklists & Wallcharts:
http://www.scvo.org.uk/governance/GovernanceHome/Resources.aspx
Good Governance: A Code for the Voluntary and Community Sector, and the Code Toolkit:
http://www.ncvo-vol.org.uk/advice-support/trustee-governance/publications
Trusteenet - a membership network for trustees with additional support information:
http://www.trusteenet.org.uk/
Chapter 3: Management & Leadership
Description: Management & Leadership
Successful organisations require effective governance, leadership and management.
- one way to describe a manager's role is to maximise the output and outcomes of the organisation through administrative implementation: i.e. organisation, planning, staffing, directing, controlling.
- one way to describe a leader's role is to develop and hold an organisation's mission, impel the organisation forward, and carry the management and staff with them.
- one view is that leadership is one important component of the management function, and should be developed and practised by all managers. Another view is that managers and leaders are essentially different people with different personalities: for example managers might think incrementally, whilst leaders might think radically; or that managers do things right, while leaders do the right thing.
This implies that managers do things by the book and follow organisational policy, while leaders follow their own intuition and innovations. Which of these may be of more benefit to an organisation is often the subject of discussion.
In reality most organisations cannot afford the luxury of having one or the other; and for better or worse, the expectation is usually that CEOs fulfil both roles!
Free Online Resources: Management & Leadership
You may find it helpful to look at the following free web references either before you start or after you finish this section:
See the Leadership Trust for developing leadership talent:
http://www.leadership.org.uk
See VolResource for thoughts and resources on management skills:
http://www.volresource.org.uk
See the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development for general management advice:
http://www.cipd.co.uk
Chapter 4: Funding & Income Generation
Description: Funding & Income Generation
Put simply, the purpose of fundraising is to raise money by asking for it, from individual donors, commercial businesses, grant funders, lottery funds and statutory agencies. Fundraising should complement a voluntary and community organisation's (“VCO”) primary objectives and, ideally, should combine raising funds with effective promotion of the organisation.
VCOs also need to ensure the ongoing integration of fundraising plans with wider organisational plans – so that money raised matches organisational need in terms of type, size, duration and appropriateness.
A key skill in fundraising is communication. Good fundraising requires being able to show donors how their gift will enable a VCO to meet the needs of its beneficiaries or, for grants, how project delivery will meet funder objectives.
Whatever the income source, everyone involved in fundraising needs to have an excellent understanding and be able to articulate their case and cause.
Funding sources have changed significantly over the last 25 years. With the growth of contracting and social enterprise, the chief executive's role is now to manage a pluralistic approach to income generation that requires many skills, and an ability to guide the organisation into the strategy that best suits its charitable objects and long-term strategic objectives.
Free Online Resources: Funding & Income Generation
You may find it helpful to look at the following free web references either before you start or after you finish this section:
Institute of Fundraising Website:
http://www.institute-of-fundraising.org.uk/
Capacitybuilders NSS Workstream for Income:
http://www.improvingsupport.org.uk/resources_by_topic/income_and_finance.aspx
The Funding Hub - the Funding and Finance Toolkit Series has been designed to provide a range of practical checklists, guides and templates:
http://www.financehub.org.uk/toolkit_for_funding_advisers.aspa
Chapter 5: Financial Management
Description: Financial Management
Effective financial management and control is the bedrock of any organisation. Financial management relies on access to robust financial information and a good understanding of a charity’s income and cost base as pre-requisites for any effective organisational decision-making.
Financial control relies on:
- good prediction (forecasting and budgeting)
- effective financial recording (book-keeping)
- effective financial reporting against budget
- clear financial policies and procedures
- clear financial understanding, thinking and decision-making
Free Online Resources: Financial Management
You may find it helpful to look at the following free web references either before you start or after you finish this section:
Capacitybuilders NSS Workstream for Income:
http://www.improvingsupport.org.uk/resources_by_topic/income_and_finance.aspx
Charity Finance Directors' Group:
http://www.cfdg.org.uk/
The Funding and Finance Toolkit Series has been designed to provide practical checklists and templates:
http://www.financehub.org.uk/?download=Finance.pdf
An easy to use financial management healthcheck for NGOs:
http://www.mango.org.uk/guide/resources/healthcheck.aspx
Chapter 6: Human Resources & Personnel
Description: Human Resources & Personnel
Whilst competitors may copy almost anything you have, including products or services, they can’t copy your people!
Human Resources is a term which covers a wide range of areas including:
- overall HR strategy and planning
- personnel and staffing policies and procedures
- personnel record-keeping and payroll
- staffing issues and industrial relations
- employee selection, retention and performance
- employee remuneration and motivation
But organisations are all about real people: those you employ, those you work with in partnership with, and those you serve. It is therefore important that your strategy, policies, procedures and actual practices are neither too light in touch so that you risk poor practice, nor so heavy and bureaucratic that the policies either live on the shelf, or your organisation works inflexibly in response to need.
This also applies to rewarding performance: an over-focus on regarding the work itself as its own reward can lead to sub-optimum performance.
Free Online Resources: Human Resources & Personnel
You may find it helpful to look at the following free web references either before you start or after you finish this section:
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development:
http://www.cipd.co.uk/default.cipd
ACAS - The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service:
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1461
LVSC's employment law and advice service:
http://www.lvsc.org.uk/Templates/information.asp?NodeID=90165
Investors In People:
http://www.investorsinpeople.co.uk/Pages/Home.aspx
The Workforce Hub – site still available as legacy information:
http://www.ukworkforcehub.org.uk/
Legal update for voluntary organisations: employment, equal ops, health & safety:
http://www.sandy-a.co.uk/employment.htm
Chapter 7: Information & Computer Technology
Description: Information & Computer Technology
Effective use of information and communications technology (ICT) not only allows voluntary and community sector (VCS) organisations to operate more efficiently in meeting their current beneficiaries’ immediate needs, but also increasingly enables the same organisations to provide improved, innovative and more tailored services and to reach groups they have not served in the past. It therefore underpins their long-term sustainability.
However to use ICT effectively, voluntary and community organisations need to be able to understand how to plan, cost and manage their ICT; whilst also being successful in securing commensurate funding.
ICT has revolutionised the way organisations work, but we are only just beginning to see the myriad ways that it can improve service delivery: regular expenditure on ICT is no longer ‘optional’. When managed well, ICT can help us manage our information, save money time and resources, communicate more effectively with each other, increase collaboration, build knowledge and awareness, and provide a greater range of services delivered in more innovative ways and reach new audiences.
Increasingly, the two strands of ICT – ‘doing things better’ and ‘doing better things’ – make the difference between an organisation that is able to achieve its aims and raise the money to carry on doing so, and one that is likely to be falling behind.
Free Online Resources: Information & Computer Technology
You may find it helpful to look at the following free web references either before you start or after you finish this section:
Comprehensive Guide to ICT Management & Strategy in the VCS:
http://www.icthub.org.uk/managing_ICT/index.html
How to Cost and Fund ICT:
http://www.icthub.org.uk/publications/
The knowledgebase is a comprehensive source of independent technical ICT information and advice:
http://www.ictknowledgebase.org.uk/
UK national IT volunteering programme:
http://www.it4communities.org.uk/it4c/home/index.jsp
The Worshipful Company of Information Technologists has a significant charitable and educational programme which uses the expertise, resources and networks of its members:
http://www.wcit.org.uk/members/anon/new.html?destination=%2Findex.html
Chapter 8: Facilities & Property Management
Description: Facilities & Property Management
In formal terms, facilities management is the integration of multi-disciplinary activities within the built environment, and the management of their impact upon people and the workplace.
"Facility" or "facilities" management is similar to property or premises management, but managing premises is more complex than just the bricks and mortar. The facilities and services provided often include areas such as:
- repairs
- power
- health and safety
- cleaning
- insurance
- refurbishment
- lighting
- security
It may also, depending on the way an organisation is structured, include responsibility for ICT, telephone and administration/reception.
This area may also be a significant contributor to your policies on accessibility and inclusion for your stakeholders and clients, in terms of, for example, signing, ramps, lifts etc.
Facilities costs can often be the second highest expenditure in an organisation after salaries: facilities therefore require robust management and a distinct strategy in their own right. Whilst properties may be owned, it is likely that the majority of your "facilities" will in fact be provided by a wide range of external suppliers or contractors on a renewable basis, and this has significant ramifications for your overall expenditure and purchasing strategy.
Free Online Resources: Facilities & Property Management
You may find it helpful to look at the following free web references either before you start or after you finish this section:
The Charities Facilities Management Group:
http://www.upkeep.org.uk/cfmg/index.htm
The British Institute of Facilities Management has a Knowledge and Resources section:
http://www.bifm.org.uk/bifm/about/facilities
Department of Health resources for Estate Management:
http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Managingyourorganisation/Estatesandfacilitiesmanagement/DH_302
Chapter 9: Communications, PR & Marketing
Description: Communications, PR & Marketing
Communications, public relations (PR) and marketing fulfil a range of functions, and support both direct service delivery, such as influencing-for-change activity and communicating with stakeholders, and perform an essential infrastructure function in terms of enabling effective mass and individual communication.
Communications links closely with information and computer technology. At best, effective communications can provide both your internal and your external stakeholders with a seamless view of your vision, mission strategy and activities.
Public relations, a subset of communications, is generally regarded as the practice of managing the flow of information between an organisation and its stakeholders.
Marketing, another subset of communications, can be defined as the activity and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings (products, services) that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. Marketing creates the conditions for selling, and is often an area that is neglected in the voluntary and community sector.
Free Online Resources: Communications, PR & Marketing
You may find it helpful to look at the following free web references either before you start or after you finish this section:
Capacitybuilders NSS workstream for Communications:
http://www.improvingsupport.org.uk/resources_by_topic/marketing_and_communications.aspx
The Media Trust works in partnership with the media industry to build effective communications for the charity and voluntary sectors:
http://www.mediatrust.org/
The Chartered Institute of Marketing:
http://www.cim.co.uk/home.aspx
Chapter 10: Staff Training, Learning & Development
Description: Staff Training, Learning & Development
Staff training, learning and development is a key element of a successful and sustainable organisation.
For continual improvement and competitive advantage it is vital that organisations and their staff learn from their own and others' experiences. This learning can take many forms; what is particularly important is an organisational commitment to ongoing investment in learning, and a flexibility of approach that identifies different learning needs and encourages different learning styles.
In the long term this is where innovation comes from.
This function links closely with Human Resources Strategy, and is therefore a key constituent in ensuring a skilled, experienced and motivated workforce.
Free Online Resources: Staff Training, Learning & Development
You may find it helpful to look at the following free web references either before you start or after you finish this section:
Directory of Social Change:
http://www.dsc.org.uk/Home
National Association for Voluntary and Community Action:
http://www.navca.org.uk/
Investors In People:
http://www.investorsinpeople.co.uk/Pages/Home.aspx