Governance

The organisation’s governance was branch-based in the 1980s and governing Council members were highly interactive with staff. The organisation was largely driven by the Executive Director and Chairperson for a time, something that was aided by the representation model of governance and the ability of branches to send different delegates to each Council meeting. Governance changes followed initial efforts at strategic planning which was led by the organisation’s

management in the late 1980s. The first governance training, in the early 1990s, promoted development of strategic and policy-based governance. Strategic planning was refined over subsequent years and is now a collaborative effort between governance and management, and includes branches.

During the 1990s the Council addressed Treaty of Waitangi issues by appointing a Kaumatua (Māori elder) and making a position on Council for a Māori

appointment. This representative approach was extended to New Zealand residents with ethnic links to the continents in which the organisation worked, with a view to harnessing a perspective from their country of origin. This approach

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was abandoned in the 2000s. Branches, which when combined, did not cover the whole country, were in decline and governance shifted to an individual member- based model in which any member could nominate and all could vote. This model has since evolved into a skill-based one. Council outlines the skills sought in Council Members and candidates self-identify the skills they possess in the material which accompanies the voting slip. Provision has also been made for appointment of independent members to address skills deficits on the Council although by 2010 no appointments had been made. The Council has become less directly involved in management matters.

The role of branches has not changed greatly over the research period. As well as having input into the organisation’s strategic planning, branches still undertake fundraising, local publicity for the organisation’s work and support for the organisation’s fieldwork. However, some of these roles, particularly where they link to national events, are being increasingly undertaken by professional staff. Most branches are struggling to survive. The organisation is seeking new ways to engage people with an interest in the organisation’s work and there is a new emphasis on building a central list of supporters who may have participated in the organisation’s activity in the past, and in direct fundraising which is centrally organised. At the same time some of the organisation’s leadership have discussed replacing the membership-based incorporated society model with a Trust-based model of appointed members, a move that would leave no role for branches.

8.2.2 Funding

Figure 8.4 shows the steady rise in the total funding of the organisation between 1996 and 2010 (see also Appendix 10). The organisation’s income has risen by 151

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percent or 85 percent when adjusted for present value18_{. There is a very strong}

link between the total funding of the organisation and its government funding which has been its principal source of income. The organisation has attempted to identify independent funding throughout much of the last twenty five years and these efforts have intensified recently.

Figure 8.4: Organisation B: Total income 1996-2010

Source: Organisation B Annual Reports 1996-2010.19

However Figure 8.5 shows that branch, member and business-based fundraising has remained a small part of the organisation’s income. While government funding has risen by 145 percent since 1996, investment funding has fallen by 47 percent and independent funding has shown only a modest rise of 17 percent.

18 _{The percentage increase is calculated on the beginning and end dates and does not focus on highest}

and lowest points during those periods.

19 _{The accounting year changed in 2000. I have left a gap because there was no information on which}

to calculate an annual figure for that year. It is not necessary for the years before and after that date to be commensurate, i.e July 1st _{to June 30}th _{or January 1}st _{to December 31}st_{, as the focus is on the incomes for each}

single year. - 1,000,000 2,000,000 3,000,000 4,000,000 5,000,000 6,000,000 7,000,000 8,000,000 9,000,000 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 Actual income Present value

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Figure 8.5. Organisation B: Income by source 1996 – 2010

Source: Organisation B Annual Reports

The dependence of Organisation B on government funding is very high. Figure 8.6 shows that over 90 percent of the organisation’s income has come from

government since 1996. Although organisation B has maintained a strong relationship with its funding Ministry throughout the research period, this

relationship has, however, become increasingly formal and directive on the part of government. The relationship with government can be divided into three distinct phases. In the first phase, prior to the early 1990s, there was a strong grant-based relationship between Organisation B and its funding Ministry. A level of trust had developed which allowed the organisation autonomy of action within agreed parameters20_.

20 _{A 2003-2007 Review says “ [Organisation B] has been, and remains, free to pursue its own agenda}

in countries of its choice” and that “the current Funding Arrangement “is a permissive document to the extent that it permits a range of possibilities and does not limit.”

- 1,000,000 2,000,000 3,000,000 4,000,000 5,000,000 6,000,000 7,000,000 8,000,000 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 Govt Invest Independent

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Figure 8.6. Organisation B: Source of funding as a percentage of total income 1996- 2010

Source: Organisation B Annual report 1996-2010.

The second phase occurred when government funding policy changed in the early 1990s and the organisation shifted to a contract in which the Ministry purchased the organisation’s services. The CEO at the time said that the organisation was very unprepared for this change, which induced an air of crisis, particularly as targets, which had previously been very flexible, became more rigid and could result in funding penalties. With strong support from its funding Ministry, the organisation adapted to the new approaches and was able to maintain its focus. This stability extended through a period of major restructuring of the funder during which the funding arm became a semi-autonomous unit within the Ministry.

The third phase in the relationship came during the two years prior to the end of the research period, when Government adopted a stronger economic focus in its international development programmes and accompanied this with a significant narrowing of its geographic focus. Whereas, in the past, change in government policy was worked through with the organisation, this time, the organisation was

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 Govt Invest Independent

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provided with notice of change and left to make its own decisions about how to accommodate them. The organisation had insufficient independent funding to continue two thirds of its programmes which lay outside of the new policy arrangements. The overall funding from government was maintained, however, and used to expand programmes within the government’s designated programme area. The existing programme mix was changed to meet government’s new

business oriented approach. The current Minister has also raised the prospect of opening this funding to competition from other organisations.

8.2.3 Management

Professionalisation of the organisation’s staff has progressed since the 1980s when most of the staff were generalists who were expected to turn their hand to a

number of roles. Staffing roles have become more specialised and current programme staff are required to either have an academic qualification in

development or be working towards one. Over time, the organisation has upgraded ‘accounts administration’ to ‘financial management’ and then to ‘corporate

services’. The organisation has, in the past, had difficulty in identifying adequate funding to employ fundraising and marketing specialists, however a marketing manager was employed towards the end of the research period. Since the 1980s the organisation shifted the title of the senior staff member from Executive Director to the more corporate Chief Executive Officer, at the same time shifting from a focus on employment of people with administrative and field experience to a combination of experience in development and management. None of the CEOs has, however, had specific management qualifications.

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8.2.4 Programmes

Programmes are developed largely at the discretion of the organisation with input and support from the funding organisation. Review of the organisation’s work was conducted by the funder with the input and collaboration of the organisation. The outcomes formed the basis of ongoing funding negotiations particularly where issues of staff deployment in the field were concerned. In the period between 2000 and 2010 the organisation began to conduct its own country programme

evaluations and embarked on a more internally evaluative approach to its work. There has been ongoing debate within the organisation about the nature of its work, particularly its contribution to good development practice. A review in 2007 sought to determine the answer to this question. The review identified some challenges for the organisation, indicating a need for a greater partner-focused approach to its work. This review also indicated that a partnership agreement between the organisation and its funder allowed the organisation too much

autonomy in programme direction and needed greater alignment with the funder’s priorities. Since the change in government in 2008, Organisation B is attempting to maintain its development focus and many of its longer term partnerships while shifting its programme focus to economic development and shorter term projects.