Helping The Wave Project improve operations through options analysis

 

The Approach

The problem was addressed through a series of consultative meetings with the CEO and Head of Operations (HoO), initially understanding and analysing the ‘as-is position’, including mapping out organisational purpose, capabilities, process journey, and the current organisation structure. Then with the CEO and HoO, a set of design principles and long list future organisational options were developed with a single slide view of each option outlined.

These options were explored during an online workshop including trustees. The workshop utilised Mentimeter for attendees to rank the design principles individually to develop a clearer list of what matters most to the whole group. This helped clarify which options the group found most favourable. The attendees were then invited to rank the options to develop a short list. Useful input was gained from this workshop, including trustees' clarity of knowledge around which options were financially viable based on current budgets.

Therefore, following the workshop, specific pros and cons were collected from workshop attendees, and a workforce and financial model was developed with the HoO to explore the viability of options. This then led to further meetings between the volunteer consultant, HoO and CEO to shortlist the options.

Finally, a recommendation and timeline for implementation were agreed between the CEO and HoO and presented to the trustees for ratification.

"It has been great working with the volunteer, and the involvement from ProBono OR was light touch and appreciated. Often charities have to spend a lot of time filling in forms etc to justify the support, and this was not the case at all. That is important to us. Huge thanks for the support of our charity!”

The Client

The Wave Project has been supporting children and young people to improve their mental health and wellbeing through Surf Therapy for the last 15 years. They support c2,600 children and young people annually, making profound and tangible impacts to their lives.

The Client's Problem

The Wave Project's therapeutic work is seasonal and across many coastal locations, which creates a challenging operational environment. The existing internal structure of the organisation frequently leads to operational bottlenecks and significant time pressure on personnel who have multiple focuses. In addition, financial sustainability is a constant challenge for the charity, needing to cover costs while maximising capacity and support to their beneficiaries

The Solution

The volunteer utilised problem structuring methods, workshop facilitation, data analysis and financial modelling within Excel to support the options analysis and recommendations.

The Wave Project received a recommendation of a hybrid future organisation model, backed by logical and financial analysis, and an agreed set of next steps to plan implementation of changes.

The Benefits

  • From this project, the client had developed further clarity and logic to address some of the challenges with their organisation.
  • The client now has permission to progress their organisation structure in a direction which is aligned to senior and trustee views.
  • This will enable them to support more beneficiaries, be more financially sustainable, and release capacity within certain roles to focus on more proactive and strategic activities.

 

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