Osborne Group principals work closely with our clients’ leaders to develop customized and effective governance strategies and processes, enhancing their ability to achieve their vision, mission, and strategic objectives. Whether you’re embarking on a new strategic direction or seeking to refresh a nonprofit board with greater representation and a broader skill set, we have in-depth experience supporting effective board governance. Our principals have expertise based on their perspectives from senior executive careers, leading boards of directors and consulting to a broad variety of nonprofit organizations.
Our principals have a broad range of skills and are highly experienced in all aspects of nonprofit management with a strong focus on strategic development, organizational design, and board governance.
There are many approaches to strategic planning, all of which should be tailored to an organization’s specific needs. Our principals are experienced facilitators and leadership coaches using methods and techniques such as Scenario Planning, Appreciative Inquiry, Theory U, and Technology of Participation (“ToP”). We engage our clients in meaningful, progressive conversations where all participants are heard and able to freely contribute to a shared vision.
Our approach to strategic planning is grounded in developing a thorough understanding of an organization’s current reality. This often includes feedback from interviews with key community stakeholders to fully reveal the nonprofit’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. We also review comparable organizations that may have faced similar challenges. Our experience tells us this is an excellent approach for organizations in any sector: health, social and community services, associations, or arts and cultural organizations.
Following our initial review, we typically facilitate a session with the board of directors and others that may include senior managers to develop the building blocks for a strategic plan. Relying on a wide spectrum of information from internal and external stakeholders and our own experience with similar organizations, we develop the draft strategic plan and recommendations for implementation, review, and approval.
Contact the Osborne Group to discuss how we can help with your strategic planning and governance.
Nonprofit boards have the responsibility to ensure their organization is well-positioned to face all the challenges that arise, some foreseeable and others not. We help boards meet this responsibility several ways:
Organizational renewal and transformation:
- We will help your organization respond to changes in government policies, client needs, the economic environment, funder requirements and other external circumstances.
- Review of Board structure, representation, and skills:
- We help boards assess their diversity and inclusivity relative to the communities they serve and assist in making appropriate adjustments.
Risk Management:
- We will help assess organizational and environmental risks when you need strategic insights and guidance to implement difficult changes.
Best Practices:
- We advise the board of directors on best governance and accountability practices and assist in the review and enhancement of governance policies to help achieve the strategic plan.
A Case of Osborne led Board Development
A newly formed Nurse Practitioner Led Clinic (NPLC) needed a business plan to secure a mandate and funding from the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. Two Osborne Group principals worked closely with the board to write the business plan and, once funding was secured, we set up operational parameters for the clinic and helped the board recruit and hire their first administrative leader. We provided a comprehensive Operations Manual covering governance, risk management, and clinical administrative and human resource policies and practices.
Whether your agency is newly formed or has been operating for many years, you can call on the Osborne Group to help with board governance concerns.
We have extensive experience working with nonprofit agencies to ensure they operate effectively with sound policies and practices.
We have developed policy manuals for numerous community and public health organizations across the province incorporating up-to-date legislative requirements and governance, risk management, clinical, administrative, and human resource policies and practices. Our hands-on experience with boards, large and small, and their operational guidelines allows us to quickly assess existing policies and practices in other organizations.
Contact us to discuss your needs for policy review and development.