. # Fundraising Self Assessment Tool - Instructions This part of the report will provide you with areas that you are required to or may reflect on to change the current state of your fundraising operation. This section also drives you to take necessary and possible action to improve upon your fundraising. The section provides you with multiple bullet points as a cure to reflect or act upon. Use these bullet points as a guide to find, what solutions best fits your organisation. This fundraising self-assessment tool has been developed by Freedom Fund (FF) exclusively for assisting its Partners in improving their fundraising operations. This exercise is solely an attempt to promote good fundraising practices amongst FF Partners. This exercise does not and shall not have any relation with any FF grant relationships with its Partners. While a Partner uses this tool, the result of this self-assessment exercise shall remain confidential and exclusive only to the specific Partners that uses the tool. The results of this self-assessment shall not have any implication on existing or future funding relationships between FF and its Partners. ## Self-assessment section (step 1) ##### Instructions for use: Each of the 3 factors (People, Practice, Process) of fundraising function are divided into sixteen subsequent elements. #### People: A group of individuals with a common interest in an organisation. They are capable of generating ideas, solving problems, making decisions, and generating learning that improve the organization. - Staffing - Skill - Experience - Leadership Involvement #### Practice: The usual or expected way of doing something in a particular organisation or situation. It is like a habit or a custom. - Revenue - Cash flow - Diversity - Goals - Visibility - Market Intelligence - Tech #### Process: A series of interdependent tasks/actions that you do/take to attain a particular purpose. - Scoping - Policies & Guidelines - Culture & Values - Fund Development Strategy - Fundraising Method For each of the sixteen elements, there are 4 multiple choice questions (refer Image 1). These multiple choice questions are possible various state of a fundraising function.  *(Image 1)* You are required to deliberate on these multiple choice questions as a small team of 3 to 4 people (core fundraising team- key personnel who are central to day to day fundraising work now), and opt for the choice that is most similar to your current state. ------------ ##### How much time you should spend on each of the sixteen elements, while conducting self-assessment? There is no such formula or method to this. Usually, experienced fundraising units will read the statements carefully, internalise it and build group unanimity on the understanding, and spontaneously answer each questions. They will review the final submission once as a group well. Generally, while discussing an element that is not backed by data (numbers, evidences, reliable anecdotes), it is advisable that you spend greater amount of time in all such elements. For e.g., in staffing- it might be easier for you to determine your current state, as you would know about the people who are working or not working in fundraising unit. However, more strategic elements like culture, fund development, cash-flow, fundraising method choices etc., may require higher degree of deliberations within the group. In all, the overall self-assessment should be very well done, of a group spend around sixty to ninety minutes in answering all the sixty four multiple choice questions. ## Reflection and action section (step 2 and 3) ##### Instructions for use: As you complete the self-assessment part, you would be required to think over and find a solution to improve your current state. For each of the sixteen elements the tool shall provide you with roughly eighty various cues (bullet points/issues/areas of intervention etc.) for you to determine, where or what you should be reflecting upon to change the current state. If none of these options look useful to you, then you can write your own reflection points (others section). Such discussions are at optimal best when moderated well by any leadership forces. At the end of this step, you are likely to know what is best for you in improving the current state of your fundraising function. This section will require you to work as a group again, in a structured manner, and is likely to take roughly sixty to ninety minutes, to complete the section well. ## Action section ##### Instructions for use: If you reflect upon your current state well, this will not take much time and can be completed in thirty minutes or less. This section will provide you with roughly eighty possible actions that you could take, to initiate change in your current state. You may opt for any of these actions that may serve your purpose. If none of these are useful, you also have choice of drafting your own actions (others part). # How To Read The Report The report provides graphical representation (first part of the report) of the state of fundraising operation at your organisation. It shows an overall score of all factors under assessment, along with specific scores on each of the areas that were under self-assessment (refer Image 2). Based on your self-assessment scoring, the report will provide your fundraising operation with a title as follows. The scoring for each question is divided as 25% for red, 50% for orange, 75% for yellow and 100% for red option. The Grading currently is at 5 Levels from Curious to Led.  *(Image 2)* ##### The meaning of each of the titles are narrated below: **Curious:** Your fundraising operation is at an infancy stage and you are willing to learn and grow. **Informed:** Your fundraising operation covers basic needs and you are keen to improve. **Guided:** Your fundraising operation is moderately developed and you are ready to improve efforts. **Driven:** Your fundraising operation is very well organised and well performing. **Led:** Your fundraising operation is highly advanced and is setting benchmarks for others to follow. If the self-assessment selections are done thoughtfully, that describes the actual current state of your fundraising operation, this graphical section of the report can actually be highly useful as a starting diagnostic tool. Use this section of the report to be aware of where you are doing well, and what requires improvement - immediate or long-term. On top right corner of your graphical report, you can use a link of your self-assessment, to share a copy of your report. The descriptive part of the report (second part of the report) is the most important section of the report. Your ability to use this section and the extent of its use will be crucial to make the best out of this self-assessment tool. This part of the report will provide you with written description of the self-assessment decisions and choices you made. Against each choices you made, the report will provide a traffic lighted point (red/green/yellow etc.) - which is a colour coded indication of your current state (refer Image 3). As it goes with traffic light logic, red means stop as it is risky to keep moving ahead; yellow means watch carefully and keep moving; and green means you are free to keep moving ahead.  *(Image 3)* ##### In your fundraising self-assessment context, the colours will mean: **Green -** You are either very good or fairly well **Yellow -** It’s okay but improvement is required or desirable **Orange -** it’s underdeveloped and improvement is required **Red -** Something you should take a note of urgently This colour code is provided for you to easily refer to areas which may require immediate attention, and for easy reference to next actions. If you press on a certain colour coded button, it will open the next part (third part of the report) of the report - which is a reflector and action part. Refer Image 4.  *(Image 4)* This part of the report will provide you with areas that you are required to or may reflect on to change the current state of your fundraising operation. This section also drives you to take necessary and possible action to improve upon your fundraising. The section provides you with multiple bullet points as a cure to reflect or act upon. Use these bullet points as a guide to find, what solutions best fits your organisation. ------------ ###### *Important Note:* *This fundraising self-assessment tool has been developed by Freedom Fund (FF) exclusively for assisting its Partners in improving their fundraising operations. This exercise is solely an attempt to promote good fundraising practices amongst FF Partners. This exercise does not and shall not have any relation with any FF grant relationships with its Partners. While a Partner uses this tool, the result of this self-assessment exercise shall remain confidential and exclusive only to the specific Partners that uses the tool. The results of this self-assessment shall not have any implication on existing or future funding relationships between FF and its Partners.*