Its the festive season and we are taking a break for a couple of weeks. We are shutting up shop, leaving the laptop in the office and putting the phones on message bank while we spend time with friends and family and recharge the batteries. To all those that chose to follow this blog through 2008 we thank you and we feel humble you should choose to share the journey with us. We hope you all enjoy the festive season, however you celebrate, or otherwise, and we look forward to traveling with you in 2009.
John Coxon
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
How does your nfp fare in these economic times?
Glastonbury Child and Family Services was recently reported in local media.Glastonbury is reported to be experiencing financial difficulties due to the economic downturn. Many programs are funded from Glastonbury's reserves, according to CEO Judy Wookey; these programs are under threat and may result in workers being deployed.
How is your organisation faring in these difficult times? Have you invested reserves in non-bank organisations? Are those funds accessible or frozen?
It is to be expected non-profits will have in place a policy and framework to guide the board and management on investment decisions. Afterall we are trustees of those funds we hold. The problems can begin when economies go into freefall. Decisions made in the past, when stability reigned, can be inadequate in these changing times. Of course, the economic decline has been in place for a while and many organisations have felt the impact - yet there is likely to be more pain before stability returns. If your board hasn't looked at its policies and applied a risk management analysis to its funding and reserves then now might be the time to do so. Better late than never.
An investment policy should contain clear guidelines on objectives such as investment types, timeframes and even levels of return on investment, details on who is responsible for investment decisions and reporting processes and even costs. While it is clear the management team must take responsibility for any losses incurred, equally so must the board or committee. It is a responsibility of the governance team to have in place risk management process, which should include an analysis of risks associated with financial investments.
Government funding bodies have a responsibility to ensure adequate funding of programs delivered by social service agencies on behalf of the government. In the case of programs funded through non-government means the responsibility for fiscal conservatism falls squarely on the shoulders of the board and management team.
It is rare for financial calamity to occur overnight. When it does occur, hindsight, wonderful as it is, will almost always show that a series of 'key events' occured, which if they had been monitored and given appropriage analysis would have served as a flag to management that whatever was being done wasn't working and that it was time to do something new. Every non profit has the opportunity to avoid financial disaster. Does your organisation have the experience and skills amongst board members and managers to spot the trends, to analyse the data and to make proactive decision?
Let The Journey Continue
John Coxon
Taking You From Frontline Manager to CEO
Email john@johncoxon.com.au
Skype: john_coxon
Blog: http://healthsector.blogspot.com
Blog: http://nfp-management.blogspot.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/johncoxon
Follow john_coxon on Twitter
Join John Coxon on Facebook
How is your organisation faring in these difficult times? Have you invested reserves in non-bank organisations? Are those funds accessible or frozen?
It is to be expected non-profits will have in place a policy and framework to guide the board and management on investment decisions. Afterall we are trustees of those funds we hold. The problems can begin when economies go into freefall. Decisions made in the past, when stability reigned, can be inadequate in these changing times. Of course, the economic decline has been in place for a while and many organisations have felt the impact - yet there is likely to be more pain before stability returns. If your board hasn't looked at its policies and applied a risk management analysis to its funding and reserves then now might be the time to do so. Better late than never.
An investment policy should contain clear guidelines on objectives such as investment types, timeframes and even levels of return on investment, details on who is responsible for investment decisions and reporting processes and even costs. While it is clear the management team must take responsibility for any losses incurred, equally so must the board or committee. It is a responsibility of the governance team to have in place risk management process, which should include an analysis of risks associated with financial investments.
Government funding bodies have a responsibility to ensure adequate funding of programs delivered by social service agencies on behalf of the government. In the case of programs funded through non-government means the responsibility for fiscal conservatism falls squarely on the shoulders of the board and management team.
It is rare for financial calamity to occur overnight. When it does occur, hindsight, wonderful as it is, will almost always show that a series of 'key events' occured, which if they had been monitored and given appropriage analysis would have served as a flag to management that whatever was being done wasn't working and that it was time to do something new. Every non profit has the opportunity to avoid financial disaster. Does your organisation have the experience and skills amongst board members and managers to spot the trends, to analyse the data and to make proactive decision?
Let The Journey Continue
John Coxon
Taking You From Frontline Manager to CEO
Email john@johncoxon.com.au
Skype: john_coxon
Blog: http://healthsector.blogspot.com
Blog: http://nfp-management.blogspot.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/johncoxon
Follow john_coxon on Twitter
Join John Coxon on Facebook
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
The environment is shifting
I am in one of my bold prediction moods. Actually I might not be that bold, it might just depend on your perspective on the future.
Noone likes change. Seth Godin once wrote, 'successful companies dont like change, people in successful jobs especially dont like change'.
David Kirk, ex-CEO, Fairfax Group, this week paid the price for an inability to adapt to a changing environment.
Interestingly, David Kirk, quoted one specific environmental factor contributing to the changing environment that Fairfax operates in. That factor is called the internet.
Now lets return momentarily to Seth Godin. He pointed out that the internet is not going to change the world (surprise, surprise). The internet enables the world to be connected in a way that could never have occured in the past. It is this connectivity that allows information to be accessed by everyone, allows information, both good and bad, to spread quickly throughout the world and enables decisions to be made quicker. The internet is the enabler.
David Kirk, along with the Board of Fairfax, did what every other company tries to do when under pressure. They looked to cut costs to maintain profitability. This is what is demanded of shareholders. The issue here, as I see it, is that changing environments demand different strategies, creative strategies, maybe even something different, rather than more of the same traditional strategies. Try telling that to shareholders (or stakeholders).
Will Fairfax survive? I don't know. It doesnt really matter, there will be someplace else for shareholders to move their investments into. The bigger question for you as a manager in the not for profit sector is to ask how the shifting environment might impact upon your organisation?
Do you believe your organisation could be replaced by a faster, more nimble, less expensive to operate alternative? If you are tempted to answer no to this question then I truely hope you are within a couple of years of retirement. At least then you will not have to pay the price for your short sightedness.
Informaton is no longer the sole domain of professionals. Look at how health information is becoming accessible to a wider group of people. When people become informed they become empowered to make their own decisions.
You might be aged 40+ and working with people aged 20+ at present. Those that will succeed you over the next 20 years are those from the ranks of Gen X and Gen Y. These people have been bought up in an online environment. As will many of those that will seek their help. They are not afraid of a changing environment, they will adapt and learn and continue to adapt. Their success will not be measured in terms of stability rather in terms of achievement.
So are you still thinking in the past or has your thinking shifted to the future? Do you plan to stay in the present and take whatever happens to you or do you plan to adapt, learn and continue to adapt? If you do not, others will, and you will be left behind sitting at your desk looking at a very antiquated desktop and wondering why there is noone there to talk to!
Let The Journey Continue
John Coxon
Taking You From Frontline Manager to CEO
Email john@johncoxon.com.au
Skype: john_coxon
Blog: http://healthsector.blogspot.com
Blog: http://nfp-management.blogspot.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/johncoxon
Follow john_coxon on Twitter
Join John Coxon on Facebook
Noone likes change. Seth Godin once wrote, 'successful companies dont like change, people in successful jobs especially dont like change'.
David Kirk, ex-CEO, Fairfax Group, this week paid the price for an inability to adapt to a changing environment.
Interestingly, David Kirk, quoted one specific environmental factor contributing to the changing environment that Fairfax operates in. That factor is called the internet.
Now lets return momentarily to Seth Godin. He pointed out that the internet is not going to change the world (surprise, surprise). The internet enables the world to be connected in a way that could never have occured in the past. It is this connectivity that allows information to be accessed by everyone, allows information, both good and bad, to spread quickly throughout the world and enables decisions to be made quicker. The internet is the enabler.
David Kirk, along with the Board of Fairfax, did what every other company tries to do when under pressure. They looked to cut costs to maintain profitability. This is what is demanded of shareholders. The issue here, as I see it, is that changing environments demand different strategies, creative strategies, maybe even something different, rather than more of the same traditional strategies. Try telling that to shareholders (or stakeholders).
Will Fairfax survive? I don't know. It doesnt really matter, there will be someplace else for shareholders to move their investments into. The bigger question for you as a manager in the not for profit sector is to ask how the shifting environment might impact upon your organisation?
Do you believe your organisation could be replaced by a faster, more nimble, less expensive to operate alternative? If you are tempted to answer no to this question then I truely hope you are within a couple of years of retirement. At least then you will not have to pay the price for your short sightedness.
Informaton is no longer the sole domain of professionals. Look at how health information is becoming accessible to a wider group of people. When people become informed they become empowered to make their own decisions.
You might be aged 40+ and working with people aged 20+ at present. Those that will succeed you over the next 20 years are those from the ranks of Gen X and Gen Y. These people have been bought up in an online environment. As will many of those that will seek their help. They are not afraid of a changing environment, they will adapt and learn and continue to adapt. Their success will not be measured in terms of stability rather in terms of achievement.
So are you still thinking in the past or has your thinking shifted to the future? Do you plan to stay in the present and take whatever happens to you or do you plan to adapt, learn and continue to adapt? If you do not, others will, and you will be left behind sitting at your desk looking at a very antiquated desktop and wondering why there is noone there to talk to!
Let The Journey Continue
John Coxon
Taking You From Frontline Manager to CEO
Email john@johncoxon.com.au
Skype: john_coxon
Blog: http://healthsector.blogspot.com
Blog: http://nfp-management.blogspot.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/johncoxon
Follow john_coxon on Twitter
Join John Coxon on Facebook
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Using Social Media
We are new to this stuff. Well kinda new. And in speaking up we run the risk of 'having a little bit of knowledge and appearing dangerous' so please take our comments in context and treat them as part of our learning experience as much as yours.
This whole social media stuff can appear daunting and even somewhat irrelevant to anyone aged 50+. Believe me I've given myself a headache over the past few weeks as I've worked my way through it. You know I'm reasonably tech savvy, have been online since 1994, designed my first website in 1997, started blogging in 2005, used IRC to connect remote peoples back in 1998 and can recall ICQ - does anyone use that anymore? But this social media stuff is something different.
What is my take on it so far? It's not about me. It's about creating something called community. Oh that is so easy isn't it? We can all do that, we are all community builders, aren't we? Not!
What do I mean by community? I mean it is about people you may not know, may not even be aware off, likely cannot see, may never meet, from anywhere in the world. Why are these people important? Cause they communicate with each other. They share ideas and information. Now there is a new concept - sharing ideas! That will take the world by storm.
Increasingly people, in particular those aged under 35 use the online world to seek referrals, reassurance, familiarity etc. They are so familiar with locating information online it is the first place they turn to. Back in the good ol days when I was at primary school I used to see my Mum and all the other Mum's in our street standing outside one of our houses, sharing information - that is community.
What are the implications for ourselves, for those in the non profit sector? Don't even get me started, it will take more than this blog and I am not really qualified yet to answer that. Click on the link under 'Stuff worth viewing' to read Laura Papworths blog - it is humerous, it is enlightening, its in your face and yes to many of us old f*#ts, some of it will be confronting.
Does it work? Buggared if I know. Havent worked out how to measure it all yet.
Do I believe it is worth it? Yes, so far.
What do you need to help make it work? Panadol and lots of spare time, and we all have plenty of that - the time I mean, don't go near the Panadol!
Do you have to learn this stuff? Yes you do. Why? Because if you do not, others will, and they will establish how to benefit from it and you will be left wallowing in the dark ages.
Now here is a suggestion for you. You have been wondering how to engage those 20-somethings that want to work for you or volunteer for you. Gather them all in a room, give them broadband access and a couple of laptops, tell them what you want to achieve from this social media bandwagon, leave them ample food and water, lock the door and dont let them out till they have finished.
Let The Journey Continue
John Coxon
Taking You From Frontline Manager to CEO
www.johncoxon.com.au
Email john@johncoxon.com.au
Skype: john_coxon
Blog: http://healthsector.blogspot.com
Blog: http://nfp-management.blogspot.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/johncoxon
Follow john_coxon on Twitter
Join John Coxon on Facebook
This whole social media stuff can appear daunting and even somewhat irrelevant to anyone aged 50+. Believe me I've given myself a headache over the past few weeks as I've worked my way through it. You know I'm reasonably tech savvy, have been online since 1994, designed my first website in 1997, started blogging in 2005, used IRC to connect remote peoples back in 1998 and can recall ICQ - does anyone use that anymore? But this social media stuff is something different.
What is my take on it so far? It's not about me. It's about creating something called community. Oh that is so easy isn't it? We can all do that, we are all community builders, aren't we? Not!
What do I mean by community? I mean it is about people you may not know, may not even be aware off, likely cannot see, may never meet, from anywhere in the world. Why are these people important? Cause they communicate with each other. They share ideas and information. Now there is a new concept - sharing ideas! That will take the world by storm.
Increasingly people, in particular those aged under 35 use the online world to seek referrals, reassurance, familiarity etc. They are so familiar with locating information online it is the first place they turn to. Back in the good ol days when I was at primary school I used to see my Mum and all the other Mum's in our street standing outside one of our houses, sharing information - that is community.
What are the implications for ourselves, for those in the non profit sector? Don't even get me started, it will take more than this blog and I am not really qualified yet to answer that. Click on the link under 'Stuff worth viewing' to read Laura Papworths blog - it is humerous, it is enlightening, its in your face and yes to many of us old f*#ts, some of it will be confronting.
Does it work? Buggared if I know. Havent worked out how to measure it all yet.
Do I believe it is worth it? Yes, so far.
What do you need to help make it work? Panadol and lots of spare time, and we all have plenty of that - the time I mean, don't go near the Panadol!
Do you have to learn this stuff? Yes you do. Why? Because if you do not, others will, and they will establish how to benefit from it and you will be left wallowing in the dark ages.
Now here is a suggestion for you. You have been wondering how to engage those 20-somethings that want to work for you or volunteer for you. Gather them all in a room, give them broadband access and a couple of laptops, tell them what you want to achieve from this social media bandwagon, leave them ample food and water, lock the door and dont let them out till they have finished.
Let The Journey Continue
John Coxon
Taking You From Frontline Manager to CEO
www.johncoxon.com.au
Email john@johncoxon.com.au
Skype: john_coxon
Blog: http://healthsector.blogspot.com
Blog: http://nfp-management.blogspot.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/johncoxon
Follow john_coxon on Twitter
Join John Coxon on Facebook
Are You Engaged In Your Workplace?
The Gallup Organisation created the following set of questions to determine the level of engagement of employees in their workplace. Through their survey they determined only 29% of people were engaged in their work. Authors Buckingham and Coffman, in their book First Break All The Rules discuss the significance of these questions.
Try answering the questions for yourself and then ask you own employees to answer them. What are the results for your organisation? View articles written by Renee Cormier on this issue.
1. Do I know what is expected of me at work?
2. Do I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right?
3. At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day?
4. In the last seven days, have I received recognition or praise for doing good work?
5. Does my supervisor or someone at work seem to care about me as a person?
6. Is there someone at work who encourages my development?
7. At work, do my opinions seem to count?
8. Does the mission/purpose of my company make me feel my job is important?
9. Are my co-workers committed to doing quality work?
10. Do I have a best friend at work?
11. In the last six months, has someone talked to me about my progress?
12. This last year, have I had opportunities at work to learn and grow?
If you find either you or your employees providing negative answers to more than half of these questions then it is time to call contact John Coxon & Associates, to discuss strategies to help improve employee engagement and reduce the cost of staff turnover.
Let The Journey Continue
John Coxon
Taking You From Frontline Manager to CEO
Email john@johncoxon.com.au
Skype: john_coxon
Blog: http://healthsector.blogspot.com
Blog: http://nfp-management.blogspot.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/johncoxon
Follow john_coxon on Twitter
Join John Coxon on Facebook
Try answering the questions for yourself and then ask you own employees to answer them. What are the results for your organisation? View articles written by Renee Cormier on this issue.
1. Do I know what is expected of me at work?
2. Do I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right?
3. At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day?
4. In the last seven days, have I received recognition or praise for doing good work?
5. Does my supervisor or someone at work seem to care about me as a person?
6. Is there someone at work who encourages my development?
7. At work, do my opinions seem to count?
8. Does the mission/purpose of my company make me feel my job is important?
9. Are my co-workers committed to doing quality work?
10. Do I have a best friend at work?
11. In the last six months, has someone talked to me about my progress?
12. This last year, have I had opportunities at work to learn and grow?
If you find either you or your employees providing negative answers to more than half of these questions then it is time to call contact John Coxon & Associates, to discuss strategies to help improve employee engagement and reduce the cost of staff turnover.
Let The Journey Continue
John Coxon
Taking You From Frontline Manager to CEO
Email john@johncoxon.com.au
Skype: john_coxon
Blog: http://healthsector.blogspot.com
Blog: http://nfp-management.blogspot.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/johncoxon
Follow john_coxon on Twitter
Join John Coxon on Facebook
Monday, December 1, 2008
Creative staffing solutions
Predicted labour shortages over the next two decades will challenge many non profit organisations, especially NGO's.
Non-government, not for profits will have to compete for qualified and experienced staff against the public sector and corporate sector. Both are more adequately funded to attract quality staff.
The key strategy for non profits for the future will be to focus not on recruiting people but on retaining their best people, while also developing the potential of those that are not delivering on their potential. A loss of key staff will impact on how services may be delivered and ultimately will impact on future funding. It is not an overstatement to suggest the very viability and sustainability of many non profits will be on the line over the next ten years or so.
What can your organisation do to combat this? There are a number of potential solutions. Some will require you, and your committee, to move outside of their comfort zone.
Look to other organsiations in your region. Form an alliance with them. Meet to discuss staffing issues, needs and wants. Identify ways in which you may all work together on common issues. It could be you create job sharing, or second workers from one org to another. You could share some back office functions for example to free up cash flow which can then be used to bolster salaries of key people in service delivery.
Move beyond clinical supervision and look to develop potential. Every employee has potential, most of it hidden, simply because noone puts in place a process to identify how they would like to contribute - and I am sorry to say that most supervision or appraisal processes are woefully inadequate and incapable of achieving this. Look at leadership and management development. Look for areas where people might take on additional responsibility. Look at how work and jobs are structured.
A key area for helping to retain key staff is workplace stress. Research shows the quickest way to lose a key player is to not address the core causes of workplace stress. When there is an alternative to workplace stress, when another organisation offers a less stressful environment then money is not even discussed. People do not need, nor do they deserve, to be placed in ongoing stressful environments at work. The key activity here is to focus not just on the individual but also on the organisation and to identify the root cause of stress - then try to remove the cause.
Stop taking employees for granted. Every day I hear this, 'people work in this sector because they have passion'. Granted, it is true, that is until the cost of petrol and groceries escalates due to increased cost of labour and then, man oh man, passion be damned - it will be show me the money.As an employer you need to work with each employee. You need to help them identify what it is they actually contribute to your organisation, the value of that contribution and how their work contributes directly to the strategic direction of the organisation. This creates pride in what they do.
Find a way to get rid of the deadwood NOW. It will be to late to do so when there is a labour shortage. Those that have no desire to develop their potential have no future. They will be the last people to leave voluntarily. Give them to someone else to worry about. You may well be running a charity - for the community that is - not for deadbeats who want to collect a paypacket without actually contributing to the organisations sustainability or to the community.
In summary, it is time to take an organisational-wide perspective on the entire issue of workforce development in your organisation. A bit of time and money spent now will place you in a good position for the future. Call John Coxon on +6135561 8882 or email to discuss how we are able to help you achieve this.
Let The Journey Continue
John Coxon
Taking You From Frontline Manager to CEO
Email john@johncoxon.com.au
Skype: john_coxon
Blog: http://healthsector.blogspot.com
Blog: http://nfp-management.blogspot.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/johncoxon
Follow john_coxon on Twitter
Join John Coxon on Facebook
Non-government, not for profits will have to compete for qualified and experienced staff against the public sector and corporate sector. Both are more adequately funded to attract quality staff.
The key strategy for non profits for the future will be to focus not on recruiting people but on retaining their best people, while also developing the potential of those that are not delivering on their potential. A loss of key staff will impact on how services may be delivered and ultimately will impact on future funding. It is not an overstatement to suggest the very viability and sustainability of many non profits will be on the line over the next ten years or so.
What can your organisation do to combat this? There are a number of potential solutions. Some will require you, and your committee, to move outside of their comfort zone.
Look to other organsiations in your region. Form an alliance with them. Meet to discuss staffing issues, needs and wants. Identify ways in which you may all work together on common issues. It could be you create job sharing, or second workers from one org to another. You could share some back office functions for example to free up cash flow which can then be used to bolster salaries of key people in service delivery.
Move beyond clinical supervision and look to develop potential. Every employee has potential, most of it hidden, simply because noone puts in place a process to identify how they would like to contribute - and I am sorry to say that most supervision or appraisal processes are woefully inadequate and incapable of achieving this. Look at leadership and management development. Look for areas where people might take on additional responsibility. Look at how work and jobs are structured.
A key area for helping to retain key staff is workplace stress. Research shows the quickest way to lose a key player is to not address the core causes of workplace stress. When there is an alternative to workplace stress, when another organisation offers a less stressful environment then money is not even discussed. People do not need, nor do they deserve, to be placed in ongoing stressful environments at work. The key activity here is to focus not just on the individual but also on the organisation and to identify the root cause of stress - then try to remove the cause.
Stop taking employees for granted. Every day I hear this, 'people work in this sector because they have passion'. Granted, it is true, that is until the cost of petrol and groceries escalates due to increased cost of labour and then, man oh man, passion be damned - it will be show me the money.As an employer you need to work with each employee. You need to help them identify what it is they actually contribute to your organisation, the value of that contribution and how their work contributes directly to the strategic direction of the organisation. This creates pride in what they do.
Find a way to get rid of the deadwood NOW. It will be to late to do so when there is a labour shortage. Those that have no desire to develop their potential have no future. They will be the last people to leave voluntarily. Give them to someone else to worry about. You may well be running a charity - for the community that is - not for deadbeats who want to collect a paypacket without actually contributing to the organisations sustainability or to the community.
In summary, it is time to take an organisational-wide perspective on the entire issue of workforce development in your organisation. A bit of time and money spent now will place you in a good position for the future. Call John Coxon on +6135561 8882 or email to discuss how we are able to help you achieve this.
Let The Journey Continue
John Coxon
Taking You From Frontline Manager to CEO
Email john@johncoxon.com.au
Skype: john_coxon
Blog: http://healthsector.blogspot.com
Blog: http://nfp-management.blogspot.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/johncoxon
Follow john_coxon on Twitter
Join John Coxon on Facebook
Sustainability
Many involved with the not for profit sector have an interest in sustainability, especially creating sustainable communities. How often do you give some thought to the sustainability of the organisation you work in?
Community organisations, whether they be schools, local government, hospitals or community organisations have a responsibility to build sustainability into their service delivery. They cannot help build community wellbeing if the organisation is unwell or missing in action.
For some sustainability is viewed in purely economic terms. Such a perspective can create its own barriers. Serving the community is not about doing something for the money, yet it is not about wasting community resources either. The money your organisations garners to enable it to deliver its services comes in part from funding bodies, philanthropic trusts and donations. Your organisation has been entrusted to utilise these funds and the resources they purchase in a responsible and sustainable manner.
This essentially means everyone in your organisation should focus on leaving the organisation in better shape that when they joined. It is a joint responsibility to ensure this. Can you truely say this about yourself? If so, how have you measured your contribution to the sustainability of the organisation. Are you guessing or have you some process of measurement in place?
Do you set personal goals for your contribution to building sustainability or do you simply do the job as described and go home at the end of the day? Do you review your progress on meeting those goals and make adjustments to your activities if your not on track or do you simply carry on as usual?
Building sustainability is not about sitting on apple crates in a dilapidated building someplace. People working in non profit orgs have as much right to beneficial workplace environment as any one working in the the corporate sector or the public sector.
Sustainability starts with taking an interest in areas beyond your role. It begins with have an understanding of the value of your contribution. It continues with building collaborative relationship in all directions. It builds momentum by ensuring everything you do in your work is aligned with achieving the goals you have commited to achieving. It gains strength by ensuring you as an individual are aligned with others in your team, and that your team is aligned with the wider function and that the function is aligned with the over strategic direction of the organisation.
Where might you start? Begin by reading the annual report and any other documents about your organisation. Many do not do this one simple thing. Dont gloss over it, especially the financial pages. Read, question, learn, develop and then contribute. That is the beginning of the process of building sustainability.
Let The Journey Continue
John Coxon
Taking You From Frontline Manager to CEO
Email john@johncoxon.com.au
Skype: john_coxon
Blog: http://healthsector.blogspot.com
Blog: http://nfp-management.blogspot.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/johncoxon
Follow john_coxon on Twitter
Join John Coxon on Facebook
Community organisations, whether they be schools, local government, hospitals or community organisations have a responsibility to build sustainability into their service delivery. They cannot help build community wellbeing if the organisation is unwell or missing in action.
For some sustainability is viewed in purely economic terms. Such a perspective can create its own barriers. Serving the community is not about doing something for the money, yet it is not about wasting community resources either. The money your organisations garners to enable it to deliver its services comes in part from funding bodies, philanthropic trusts and donations. Your organisation has been entrusted to utilise these funds and the resources they purchase in a responsible and sustainable manner.
This essentially means everyone in your organisation should focus on leaving the organisation in better shape that when they joined. It is a joint responsibility to ensure this. Can you truely say this about yourself? If so, how have you measured your contribution to the sustainability of the organisation. Are you guessing or have you some process of measurement in place?
Do you set personal goals for your contribution to building sustainability or do you simply do the job as described and go home at the end of the day? Do you review your progress on meeting those goals and make adjustments to your activities if your not on track or do you simply carry on as usual?
Building sustainability is not about sitting on apple crates in a dilapidated building someplace. People working in non profit orgs have as much right to beneficial workplace environment as any one working in the the corporate sector or the public sector.
Sustainability starts with taking an interest in areas beyond your role. It begins with have an understanding of the value of your contribution. It continues with building collaborative relationship in all directions. It builds momentum by ensuring everything you do in your work is aligned with achieving the goals you have commited to achieving. It gains strength by ensuring you as an individual are aligned with others in your team, and that your team is aligned with the wider function and that the function is aligned with the over strategic direction of the organisation.
Where might you start? Begin by reading the annual report and any other documents about your organisation. Many do not do this one simple thing. Dont gloss over it, especially the financial pages. Read, question, learn, develop and then contribute. That is the beginning of the process of building sustainability.
Let The Journey Continue
John Coxon
Taking You From Frontline Manager to CEO
Email john@johncoxon.com.au
Skype: john_coxon
Blog: http://healthsector.blogspot.com
Blog: http://nfp-management.blogspot.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/johncoxon
Follow john_coxon on Twitter
Join John Coxon on Facebook
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