Introduction
One of SMC’s main responsibilities is quality assurance of Sida-funded interventions. As a part of this, we make organisational assessments of all member organisations with funding through SMC. We have developed a system for these assessments, focusing on four key aspects of the organisation:
- The organisation’s capacity to be
- The organisation’s capacity to organise
- The organisation’s capacity to do
- The organisation’s capacity to relate
The first time we make an organisational assessment, we start by guiding the member organisation through a self-assessment. After this, we review the organization's documents, such as policies, vision papers, statutes, and by-laws. Additionally, we conduct interviews with relevant staff and board members In connection with this process, we often accompany the organization on-site to observe their operations and interactions with partners. The gathered information is recorded in our system, enabling us to pinpoint areas for improvement.
As a complement to the organisational assessment, SMC also uses consultants to do system-based audits of the member organisation. Following the assessment, the member organization formulates a capacity-building plan, that they share with SMC and that we follow up on regularly together.
After a few years, SMC reviews the organisational assessment, or selected parts of it. The goal is for each member organisation to grow and become a stronger actor for change.
