Making governance work in your organisation
First up, we know that governance isn’t the most glamorous topic to get stuck into. In fact, if we’re honest, we are sure that many frontline staff would probably place governance frameworks near the bottom of any list of documents they need to do their job well.
However, in the rapidly evolving environments that non-profit organisations play in (from organisational expansion to corporate partnerships) understanding ‘good governance’ is now more important than ever.
Recently, we were fortunate enough to undertake a clinical governance framework refresh with one of our client partners and we learnt a few things that we think are worth sharing, to help your organisation in continuing to do the important work you do.
Why might your current governance framework be failing your organisation?
Too abstract—many governance frameworks talk in abstract concepts and ‘fluffy’ terms without clearly outlining the practical stuff
Too complicated—technical jargon takes the place of plain English, as governance frameworks are typically designed and written by experts, then expected to be used by staff without the same level of expertise
Limited support—without leadership, the time and effort needed to reflect on how work is done and how it could be better isn’t made available.
So what does good governance look like for your organisation?
At its most simple, a governance framework (or a governance document of any kind), should outline what the organisation is committed to doing, why that’s important and who is responsible for doing it.
Going even simpler, it should define what governance is. For example, clinical governance is the mechanisms and activities an organisation puts in place to ensure the programs and services they deliver are 1) high quality, 2) safe for clients and staff, and 3) effective.
If you’re in a clinical organisation looking for a place to start or to review your current framework against leading practice, the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care has produced a National Model Clinical Governance Framework.
While the model framework is designed for health care providers who are required to meet the National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards, many of the elements it includes should provide food for thought for any organisation who provides human services about the types of activities that might help improve the quality, safety and effectiveness of their services.
When governance is done well, it should:
Ensure accountability rests with appropriate bodies within the organisation (e.g. Board, sub-committees, line managers), or create new mechanisms or roles if better suited
Apply to all roles and all levels of an organisation—not just those who have a specific qualification
Promote transparency and learning from what doesn’t work so well
Create mechanisms of communicating relevant information to relevant people—up, down, inside and outside the organisation
Provide clarity in roles and allocate who is responsible for what
Identify opportunities to build the skills, experience and abilities of staff
Proactively prevent or manage situations or environments that might place people at risk.
Rather than just being a nice, shiny document used for external purposes, the process of developing or reviewing a governance framework should aim to take everyone—Board members, managers, clinical leaders and frontline staff— ‘on the journey’ as it is developed. This will help to ensure it is practical, meaningful and most of all, likely to guide practice now and into the future.
Coming back to that recent project with our client partner as an example, we identified several activities early on that would be new for the organisation. These consisted of a mix of ‘right away’ things such as nominating staff as clinical leads at a team-level, along with some more aspirational and longer term activities like building up opportunities for reflective practice and clinical supervision.
We sat down with senior leaders and tested their level of comfort in committing to the changes, and explored how they might work in practice. At the end of the conversation, there was even a hint of excitement about what the changes will bring to the services the organisation provides—at least as exciting as any conversation about governance can really be.
If your organisation is going to continue to mature and make a meaningful impact, you should consider how governance works within your organisation.