Governance in Action – Keeping Connected Interactive Presentations

The CRC is committed and dedicated to achieving and delivering on the highest standards of corporate governance. Achieving these standards requires constant focus and attention in order to create a questioning and probing organisation which demonstrates a commitment to transparency, good communication and governance practice and ensures allegiance with the CRC’s Strategic Plan.

In addition to policies, procedures, audit and internal controls, good governance requires a connection to the business and to the work of the charity to ensure the Board appreciate, understand and really ‘get to know’ the organisation.

The governance issue addressed:

The CRC mission statement is as follows: ‘Working together to make a positive difference to the lives of people with disabilities, their families, and carers.’

The challenge / issue identified was how to increase stakeholder engagement and involvement with the Board, service users and the organisation as a whole and how to ensure the Board was working in line with the mission statement of the organisation and working together with the organisation to make a real difference.

The Board of the CRC engage in numerous governance activities, including their regular Board and Committee meetings, annual internal reviews and evaluations and an independent, external Board Evaluation every three years. The Board engages with the Senior Management Team (‘SMT’) on a regular basis and attends functions and events throughout the year which enables them to meet with staff and clients directly.

The Board identified that stakeholder engagement was key to ensuring good governance within the CRC. They set out to identify opportunities to get greater impact from Board engagement with the key stakeholders. The Board introduced a new initiative as an agenda item and standing order for all Board meetings called ‘Keeping Connected’. The ‘Keeping Connected’ agenda item is an interactive presentation which enables clients and staff to meet and connect with the Board and to communicate in a forum that is welcoming, direct, challenging and responsive. It gives a voice to all corners of the organisation to its highest level and is a great opportunity for real partnership.

The session lasts for approximately 20 minutes and allows for a presentation and a Q&A.
The presentation has brought the organisation and its services right into the heart of the Boardroom and has enabled the Board to really understand and appreciate what the CRC does, the challenges it’s faced with, the impact and the outcomes achieved and the overall great work carried out by the CRC.

The Keeping Connected interactive presentations align directly with Principle 3 of the Code of Practice for Good Governance of Community, Voluntary and Charitable Organisations in Ireland.

Being transparent and accountable:

• Identifying those who have a legitimate interest in the work of our organisation (stakeholders) and making sure there is regular and effective communication with them about the organisation.
• Responding to stakeholders’ questions or views about the work of our organisation and how we run it;

Impact on organisation:

• Promotes more effective communication and interaction between Board members, Clients/Service Users and SMT,
• Provides a greater opportunity to ‘live’ CRC’s mission and values,
• Gives clients and services users a forum for discussion, questions and challenges,
• Encourages greater engagement by Board with key stakeholders,
• Gives SMT an opportunity to meet the Board and showcase their areas, highlight challenges and seek guidance from Board.

The list below gives an appreciation of the Keeping Connected presentations to date:

2017 Presentations	CRC Service Area	Details
February	School Age Disability Team	CRC multi-disciplinary team providing therapy services to children aged 5-12
April	Adult Training Services	Update on training services to adults funded by City of Dublin Education Training Board
June	Adult Services Council	Client based forum for adult users
September	Feeding, Eating Drinking and Swallowing Services	Service specialising in the management of complex clinical presentations
October	CRC School	School providing education services to preschool, primary and post primary children aged between 3-19
December	Gait Lab	Service specialising in analysis of Gait and upper and lower limb mobility
2018 Presentations	CRC Service Area	Details
March	European Seating Symposium	International seating conference hosted by CRC
May	Assistive Technology & Specialist Seating	Service focussed on specialist seating and technology devices
June	Social Work Services: Parent & Toddler Group	Supportive forum for Parents of Toddlers attending CRC services
September	CRC Waterford	Offsite Day for Board visit, site tour and meet and greet staff/clients of CRC Waterford