About the survey
The survey is a free Board Health Check provided by Tanarra Social Purpose and was completed by the Board of Sample Charity in November 2022. The survey is designed to be simple and quick, with 44 multiple choice questions, 5 commentary questions, and is designed to be largely automated. The online survey content covers 5 key performance areas:
- Board Effectiveness
- Individual Conduct of Board members
- Board Meetings
- Board Structure
- Financial and Regulatory Compliance
About Tanarra Social Purpose
Tanarra Social Purpose is a for purpose enterprise providing pro bono independent advice to strengthen the efficiencies and effectiveness of Australia’s charity sector.
www.tanarraphilanthropic.org
About this report
This report is designed to provide a quick snapshot of your organisation’s strengths and opportunities for improvement, focusing on the top areas with notable scores.
Score Scale
To help your organisation interpret the indicator numbers associated with each question please see below:
Strongly Disagree | Disagree | Undecided | Agree | Strongly Agree | N/A Not applicable |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Not counted |
Summary of Results
Response rate
3 out of 3 members of the board (100%) responded to the survey.
Respondents' time serving on the Board
- Between 2.0 and 5.0 years with an average of 3.7 years served
Summary of Key Perfomance Areas
Your Board Strengths
1 - In between Board meetings, Board Members actively contribute to advance the purpose of the organisation (Score: 5.0)
2 - Board Members know our leadership team and actively engage with them outside of formal Board meetings (Score: 5.0)
3 - I am proud of the behaviours displayed by the Board (Score: 5.0)
4 - I am satisfied with the quality of reports and briefing papers provided to the Board (Score: 5.0)
5 - The Board sets clear boundaries within which our organisation is to be managed (Score: 5.0)
6 - The leadership team is given a clear written delegation of authority that empowers them to complete the tasks required for their work (Score: 4.3)
7 - The Board regularly asks itself "Is our organisation getting the desired change in the most effective way?" (Score: 4.0)
8 - The revenue generation efforts of the organisation are successful (Score: 4.0)
9 - The Board regularly monitors the progress of its strategic plan (Score: 4.0)
10 - Board Members have been appointed in accordance with the Constitution (Score: 4.0)
Areas for Improvement
Director Responses to Strategic Questions
If the organisation had a 20% increase in unconstrained income tomorrow, where would you spend it and why?
- Income Increase
- we would spend a lot of it on staff. If we had more operational staff, we could create huge improvements in our procedures and increase efficiency massively. I would spend it on our staffing, our volunteering management and on a small scale IT system to handle the administration of both volunteers and our system.
- We would increase our budget allocation towards shared administrative resources, such as data analytics & dedicated support staff for recruiting, hiring, training and running volunteers.
What do you regard as the 2 most significant strategic achievements of your organisation in the past 3 years?
- Achievements
- Our inability to guarantee volunteers to our events. When we organised the fun run and had only 3 people show up, we were absolutely screwed!! We had to delay the beginning of it and I had to call some friends to show up to help us set up the course!! This was not only embarrassing, but we also had some potential (and previous) donators in the crowd, and having them see this failure most likely reduced our fundraising efforts.
- Increased Volunteers and bigger turnout at IRL events
If you could change one thing about the organisation what would it be?
- Change
- I would change our current staffing and volunteer management procedures. This is because they are currently very slow / ineffective. If we had a faster method of getting volunteers, and guaranteeing that the minimum amount show up for our events, it would increase our effectiveness massively.
- I would increase communication between our Field Managers out at the events / workspaces and the Budget Approval Team.
What do you regard as the most significant strategic failure of your organisation in the past 3 years?
- Failure
- refining how we run our events, and our board restructuring. (ofcourse, also our charity fundraising efforts which have successfully increased our budget for the coming years).
- Our incapability of capitalising on growth in the new geographic areas that have high potential.
Do you have any other feedback that could help improve the effectiveness of your board?
- Feedback to own board
- We really need to ensure we get the MINIMUM staff needed for our events, whether we pay some volunteers or not. Even if we paid them half wages, we just need to get them in!
- Consult more with those who have boots on the ground, to ensure a unified strategy.
Full Responses
You can see the complete list of questions and the aggregated responses below. Responses with the highest variance (marked with ) may indicate poor communication, polarised views or inconsistent awareness of issues between directors. It may also indicate areas of over exuberance or frustration on the part of some individuals.
Symbol | Meaning |
---|---|
Question has a large range of answers | |
Question rated in your Top 10 Strengths | |
Question rated in your 10 Areas for Improvement |
Column | Meaning |
---|---|
Low | The lowest value submitted |
Avg. | The average of the submissions |
High | The highest value submitted |
Range | The difference between the lowest and highest |
Responses | How many respondents provided a value for this question |
N/A | How many respondents answered N/A for this question |
Board Effectiveness
Question | Low | Avg. | High | Range | Responses | N/A |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Our organisation has a vision and mission statement that clearly and succinctly describes why it exists and what it seeks to achieve. | 1 | 1.5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
The Board regularly asks itself "Is our organisation getting the desired change in the most effective way?" | 2 | 4.0 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
Our organisation actively seeks feedback from those it seeks to benefit | 3 | 3.3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
We review and act on the feedback from those we seek to benefit, even if uncomfortable | 3 | 3.7 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
We have a high functioning Board that rolls its sleeves up and gets involved as required | 2 | 3.5 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
The Board is clear about its role in fundraising for the organisation | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
Our fundraising effort is adequately balanced between board members and management (staff) | 2 | 3.3 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
The fundraising efforts of the organisation are successful | 3 | 4.0 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
The Board has a strategic plan outlining what it expects our organisation to achieve over the next few years | 1 | 2.7 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
The Board regularly monitors the progress of its strategic plan | 2 | 4.0 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
The Board has a proven record of achieving what it sets out to achieve in its strategic plan | 1 | 2.0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
We know who our main competitors are and discuss what we most admire about them | 2 | 3.5 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Board members know and act when they are not being effective and step down accordingly | 3 | 3.3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
Our chair is competent, respectful, can influence without dominating, delegates appropriately, runs effective meetings, and has a strong rapport with the CEO or leadership | 3 | 3.7 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
Our organisation embraces and invests in new or emerging technology to improve effectiveness | 2 | 3.0 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
At least once a year our board connects with our sponsors and supporters and seeks constructive feedback from them about our work and approach | 1 | 3.0 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 1 |
Board Meetings
Question | Low | Avg. | High | Range | Responses | N/A |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
I am proud of the behaviours displayed by the Board | 5 | 5.0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
The Board manages its time effectively in meetings | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
I am satisfied with the quality of reports and briefing papers provided to the Board | 5 | 5.0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
Agendas, minutes and board papers are prepared and circulated sufficiently in advance of and after meetings of the Board | 2 | 3.3 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
Board members are held accountable for agreed actions as a result of meetings | 3 | 3.7 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
There is good communication between the Board and Management | 2 | 2.3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
Board Structure
Question | Low | Avg. | High | Range | Responses | N/A |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
We have a good Board orientation and induction process for new members | 1 | 2.0 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
The Board is of an appropriate size | 1 | 2.0 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
Board members possess an appropriate range and balance of skills to perform their duties and advance the organisation | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
The Board reviews the effectiveness of its operations at least once a year | 3 | 3.0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
The leadership team is given a clear written delegation of authority that empowers them to complete the tasks required for their work | 4 | 4.3 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
The Board sets clear boundaries within which our organisation is to be managed | 5 | 5.0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
Individual Conduct of Board members
Question | Low | Avg. | High | Range | Responses | N/A |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The expectations of Board Members are regularly reviewed | 1 | 2.3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 0 |
Board Members make a concerted effort to inform themselves about our activities, so that in the event that someone asks, "What does your organisation do?", they can comfortably give tangible real time examples of our impact | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
Board Members have a strong understanding of the issues affecting the organisation. | 3 | 3.3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
Board Members ideas are listened to in a way that is constructive and respectful | 1 | 3.0 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
In between Board meetings, Board Members actively contribute to advance the purpose of the organisation | 5 | 5.0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
Board Members are consistently well-prepared for the meetings they attend | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
Board Members know our leadership team and actively engage with them outside of formal Board meetings | 5 | 5.0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
Financial and Regulatory Compliance
Question | Low | Avg. | High | Range | Responses | N/A |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Board annually receives and discusses a comprehensive compliance report, covering all relevant legislation, standards, and funding requirements. | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
I am confident in the ability of our organisation to manage its income and expenditures within agreed budgets | 1 | 1.5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
Conflicts of interest do not affect the integrity of the Board | 2 | 3.7 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
Board Members have been appointed in accordance with the Constitution | 3 | 4.0 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
The serving time limits for Members of the Board, prescribed in our Constitution, are appropriate | 3 | 3.3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
The responsibilities of Members of the Board are regularly reviewed | 2 | 3.7 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
The Board has taken swift and considered action against any negative surprises in relation to the organisation | 1 | 2.5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |