The Four Perspectives

The Balanced Scorecard enables us to consider ‘success’ from four different perspectives which encompass the key stakeholders for a peer program: Funders, Members, Build and Learning. Let us now consider each perspective in a little more detail. Remember that the focus we are taking here is simply to put a clear framework around decisions relating to what evidence we need to gather to know where our peer support program is relative to where we want it to be.

1. Funders: Grant Providers, Sponsors & Donors

This perspective asks: to achieve our vision of success, how should we appear to our funders, both current and potential? What is it that they require from us in order to gain their support now and in the future? For peer organisations this includes the NDIA but they would also include any other sources of peer support program funding, such as sponsors, donors (financial or in-kind) and other small grants or government grant schemes.

As for the peer organisations that were selected for the NDIA’s DSO Project (and its extensions, running from 2015-2018), all organisations selected for ILC Grant funding will be provided with set reporting and evaluation requirements from the NDIA as part of their grant agreements. Our focus here is not to duplicate such reporting requirements nor place additional onerous requirements on the peer support team. All peer organisations will want to ensure that their peer support programs are delivered in a way that builds individual capacity and are designed to achieve ILC Outcomes. If we consider these key components for our success, and of key importance to our funders, then gathering evidence about these outcomes is essential. Assessing your peer organisation’s success from the funders perspective will therefore include gathering evidence on whether our members have increased capacity. Specifically, we want to know if participants (members):

• Have the skills and confidence to participate and contribute to the community and protect their rights;
• Are connected and have the information they need to make decisions and choices; and,
• Actively contribute to leading, shaping and influencing their community.

A range of other factors may also be considered important to our funders and may be objectives we need to gather evidence on to know if our funders consider us successful in delivery peer programs:

• Do we submit grant reports/outcomes on time and completed professionally?
• Are grant funds financially managed accurately and reports completed on time?
• Are Financial Reports and reconciliations for the program completed as requested and on time?
• Is the program’s cash flow managed well, with investment earnings from excess funds sought?
• Are there objectives set by specific funders that need to be considered?
• Is there are certain number of groups we need to be delivering? If so, are we achieving that?
• If your peer groups deliver information and topics, are you developing relevant new topics regularly?
• Does your peer organisation meet any core requirements relating to Quality frameworks or standards?
• Are all essential policies in place and communicated widely?

This perspective asks: to achieve our vision of success, how should we appear to our funders (including the NDIA) and what do we believe is most important to them? Once we identify answers we will be then able to determine the specific evidence we need to gather and make plans to do so. This evidence will ensure our success according to our funders now and into the future, and can be fundamental to the success of grant applications in the future.

The ILC recently announced a new approach to funding ILC programs. Read about the new approach at: https://www.ndis.gov.au/communities/ilc-home/ilc-investment-strategy.html and the Strategy PDF is here.

2. Members: People with Disability and your Team (staff, volunteers)

This perspective asks: to be successful, how should we appear to our members (participants/attendees) and our team (including staff and any volunteers)? Members usually refer to both current peer support program attendees as well as potential attendees that the program is targeted at. Peer organisations want to know if their program(s) meet the needs of members (attendees/participants) and if they are satisfied with the support provided to them. This is likely to also correlate with the outcomes desired by our funders in terms of building the individual capacity of people living with disability.

To meet the needs of your members and achieve ongoing success, it is also likely that your peer organisation needs to consider the ongoing need to build and retain its team members. A peer support good practice requirement is being user-led and delivered based on the lived experience of peer facilitators and team members. Ensuring team members are retained, recruited and that there is a focus on building their capacity also, is likely to be essential components in the ongoing success of the peer support program (see, for example, the video on running and building peer groups at: https://teamup.org.au/resources/).

Assessing your success from the members perspective will include gathering evidence on whether members’ and our team’s needs are being met by the peer support program. The sorts of things that members are likely to want from their peer support program include:

• High quality, relevant programs which are easily accessible due to no waiting lists or fees to join;
• Information, education and upskilling via our topics, website and other resources;
• Referrals that are accurate and timely;
• Longevity of the network ensuring members can count on us in the longer term;
• A sense of belonging fostered via friendly and welcoming team members; and,

Feedback from members is sought, considered and utilised in program planning.

3. Build: Resources, Expertise and Systems

This perspective asks: to be successful, what systems, processes, expertise and resources do we need to develop and build? Many peer organisations are user-led initiatives built creatively out of need for information, advocacy, advice and a strong right based shared philosophy. Operating in a highly complex and changing disability sector, with limited and at times nonexistent funding opportunities to continue to do their good work, it is likely that they will struggle to gather the resources and explore their processes and systems while pushing forward at the coalface. Yet such a focus is needed to be sustainable and to most effectively and efficiently use the limited funding available to deliver and grow successful programs.

Community groups struggling with limited resources may in fact be even more in need of a ‘build’ focus than larger for-profit organisations. They need to plan to be able to grow expertise and have ways of capturing organisational knowledge over time (see for example  https://www.peerconnect.org.au/setting-and-running-peer-networks/keeping-network-engaged/what-do-when-key-organising-member-no-longer-part-network/ on succession issues). The peer organisation may also rely on volunteers, and so volunteer management and support methods need to be carefully considered and developed over time. More efficient approaches that do not negatively impact upon member outcomes will need to be innovatively designed over time.

Thus, the build perspective is focused on not only internal resources and processes. It also focuses on how things are done so as to continue to best meet the needs of members (participants/attendees) whilst simultaneously managing the efficiency and sustainability demands of their funders. Not all processes and systems will be important – but some will be critical to success. Each peer organisation will likely select unique build objectives that are considered most important within their specific program offering, and then select the ways they can gather evidence to monitor ‘where they are at’ in that area.

At the most fundamental level, this perspective asks ‘what must our peer support program excel at’ to meet our stakeholders’ needs? Some of the options to consider may be:

• Is an enquiry management system for all peer network enquiries, emails and phone calls required?
• Is our IT infrastructure in need of further development (eg should we be using a new cloud server)?
• Do we need to undertake organisational system development membership management?
• Do we have an up to date and relevant Policy and Practice Manual (and is this shared routinely)?
• Should we consider more strategic financial planning to develop sponsorships and new revenue streams?

Do we need to develop our programs more consistently, such as updating facilitator support materials and training opportunities for them?

4. Learning: Resources, Expertise and Systems

Rather than only looking back, the BSC enables the peer organisation to consider its ability to learn and improve today and in approaching timeframes. This perspective asks: to be successful now and into the future, what does the peer support program and its team need to learn and improve? Considering your own peer organisation, what is it that you need to be great at to ensure your longevity and success within the changing disability sector? Organisations operating in the competitive NDIS marketplace don’t always know what is ahead. Being good ‘scouts’ and ‘prepared for anything’ is what we are aiming for here. For example, in December 2018 the NDIA ILC team announced a new investment strategy (see: https://www.ndis.gov.au/communities/ilc-home/ilc-investment-strategy.html). Are there ways you’re your peer organisation could have prepared for this market shift?

This perspective asks: to achieve what success means to us, what should we be investing in to ensure we continue to learn as an organization and be prepared for future environmental changes. Considerations could include:

• Does our peer program develop leading edge materials with new topics developed regularly?
• Do we have sufficient record keeping to ensure we retain knowledge when key staff depart?
• Do we have a national profile in this space?
• Are we applying for new program grants on a regular basis?
• Do we explore organisational collaborations and links on a regular basis?
• Do we provide our team with regular, tailored training opportunities enabling them to grow and develop?
• Are we constantly exploring new peer group opportunities, locations and assessing member need?

In the fast changing NDIS disability marketplace, with changing member expectations, team investments are needed as staff and volunteers may be asked to take on dramatically new responsibilities, and may require skills, capabilities and technologies that were not even available previously. With an adequately skilled and motivated team who are supplied with accurate and timely information, your peer organisation will be able to continue to improve and create value.