ONESM Award IV Criteria
While there are no major revisions to the content of the ONE Award IV Criteria, modifications were made to clarify and simplify both the language of the application and the examination process.
A significant change in Criteria structure (not content) is the realignment of the Results items into their associated Category. For example, the Results (presented in Category 4) that relate to the People Category have been moved to the end of the People Category. The same realignment has taken place for the Performance Results related to the Principles and Process Categories.
This realignment is intended to assist both the Applicant in responding fully to the Criteria, and the Examiner in assessing how the system used by the Applicant to address each of the Criteria requirements helps achieve the desired results. Applicants are expected to describe the process they use to address each requirement in the Criteria, the extent to which they have deployed that process, and what data they have collected to reflect the performance generated by and through that process.
Text changes to the ONE Award Organizational Profile and Award Criteria are noted in italics below.
Organizational Profile
The Organizational Profile provides a fundamental understanding of your organization and serves as the context for assessing your organization’s effectiveness using the award criteria. It is critical that the information requested in the profile criteria be conveyed in a clear, concise and focused fashion. The complete response to the Organizational Profile is limited to four pages (8.5”x 11” Word document format in 12 pt. font). Applicants are urged to consult the ONE Glossary of Terms as a team resource in preparing their Application.
Organizational Profile
1. Please detail the key characteristics of your organization, including the following information:
- The main programs/products/services that you provide and how you deliver them to your customers.
- Your stated Purpose, Vision, Mission and Values.
- Your key Organizational Performance Indicators that are used to assess your overall organizationalsuccess.
- Your key customer (users and potential users of your products/programs/services) and stakeholder groups.
- Your key market segments/constituencies.
- Your overall Workforce profile as well as key groups/segments within your Workforce and the key requirements and expectations for each (overall and by group/segment)
- The regulatory environment in which your organization operates, including the key health andsafety regulations with which you must comply.
- Your applicable accreditation, certification or registration requirements.
- Any key “industry standards” (industry-wide codes of conduct, policy guidance, etc.) that apply to your organization.
- Your organizational governance system, including the key reporting relationships among your Board, senior leaders, and parent organization, as appropriate.
- Your key relationships with major agency or foundation funding sources.
2. Please detail your competitive environment as well as the key organizational and strategic challenges that you face, including the following information:
- The numbers and types of key competitors of your organization and the key factors that determine your success relative to those competitors.
- The key sources of competitive and comparative data in your field/sector (this may be defined as charitable organizations, professional associations, for-profit providers, etc.)
- Any limitations that exist with respect to your ability to obtain competitive and comparative data in your field/sector.
- Your organization’s key strategic/business Advantages and Challenges (factors related to your main mission area or enterprise activity) and your Core Competencies (your organization’s area ofgreatest capability and/or expertise).
- Your key operational challenges (challenges that relate to your ability to operate your organization successfully on a day-to-day basis).
- Your key human resource challenges.
ONE Award Criteria
Please respond to the criteria questions in bold below, and in doing so, make sure that you include responses to the numbered questions under each item (1.1, 1.2, etc.) in your overall response to each of the categories – People, Principles, Process and Performance. The overall page limit for the responses to these four categories is 12 pages, not including the Organizational Profile. It is suggested that you use a compact format to maximize the amount of information shared. You are encouraged to use flowcharts, tables and bullet points to present information concisely. Results responses can be reported using graphs and tables accompanied by explanations of the results presented. Label the graphs and tables in order to assist the reader in interpreting the results information provided. In your response, please make sure that you address the bullets under each question.
Category 1 – People (150 points)
1.1 How do your senior leaders lead?
- How do leaders set the organization’s vision, mission and values, and deploy these to all employees, volunteers, customers and stakeholders?
- How do leaders encourage frank two-way communication throughout the organization?
- How do senior leaders communicate key decisions?
- How do your leaders promote an environment that fosters legal and ethical behavior through their actions and activities in leading the organization?
- How do your leaders work to create a sustainable organization? How do leaders emphasize organizational learning and improvement as well as achievement of the organization’s mission and goals in pursuit of organizational sustainability?
1.2 How do you enable employees/volunteers to accomplish the work of the organization?
- How do your ensure effective communication and skill sharing across your organization?
- How does your feedback (both formal and informal) to your employee/volunteers support and encourage high quality work and performance improvement?
- How does your compensation system support focus on customers and high performance?
- How do you identify characteristics and skills needed by potential employees/volunteers?
- How do you recruit and retain new employees and volunteers?
1.3 How do you contribute to employee/volunteer learning and motivate employees/volunteers?
- How do you orient new employees and volunteers?
- How do you transfer knowledge from departing or retiring employees and volunteers?
- How do you evaluate training needs, and select and deliver training opportunities?
- How do you motivate employees and volunteers to develop and utilize their full potential?
1.4 How do you contribute to employee/volunteer well-being and grow employee/volunteer satisfaction?
- How do you ensure and improve workplace health and safety?
- How do you determine the key factors/requirements that are important to employees and volunteers that lead to employee/volunteer satisfaction? What methods do you use to determine employee/volunteer satisfaction and motivation?
- How do you support employees and volunteers via services, benefits and policies?
- How do you use assessment findings (in #2 above) to make improvements?
Category 4 – Performance Results for the People Category (100 points)
4.1 What are your human resource results?
- What are your current levels and trends in measures or indicators of workforce well-being, satisfaction and dissatisfaction?
- What are your current levels and trends in measures or indicators of workforce learning and development?
Category 2 – Principles (200 points)
2.1 How do you develop and use customer and market knowledge?
- How do you use the voice of the customer to determine your customer’s key needs and changing expectations?
- How do you use voice of the customer information as well as complaint data to improve programs/projects/services?
- How do you review and improve your methods for listening to customers and learning from them to make sure you are getting the information you need to understand changing needs and expectations?
2.2 How do your build relationships with customers?
- How do you build relationships with customers to meet and exceed their expectations and gain positive referrals?
- What are your key mechanisms for customers to create access with your organization to do business with you or seek information from your organization? How do you use customer input to determine what type of access methods your customers prefer? How do you make sure that your access methods are meeting your customers’ needs?
- How do you handle complaints from customers? How do you ensure prompt resolution and minimize customer dissatisfaction?
2.3 How do you strengthen customer satisfaction and loyalty?
- How do you assess customer satisfaction, dissatisfaction and loyalty? How do you make sure that you are capturing actionable data for use in making improvements?
- How do you use the actionable data collected to make and sustain needed improvements?
2.4 How do you govern the organization?
- How does your organization address the following in your governance system - management accountability, fiscal accountability, independence in audits, good stewardship of public funds, transparency in operations,internal controls on governance processes, and selection/disclosure policies for board members?
- How do you evaluate and improve your governance system? How do you evaluate the collective and individual performance of your senior leaders and the members of your governance board?
2.5 How do you address your organization’s social responsibility?
- What are your key compliance processes and goals for achieving and surpassing overall regulatory and legal requirements?
- How do you address legal and regulatory requirements and standards that govern fundraising and lobbying activities?
- How does your organization promote and ensure ethical behavior in all activities?
Category 4 – Performance Results for the Principles Category (200 points)
4.2 What are your product/service performance results?
- What are your current levels and trends in key measures of product/service performance that are important to your customers?
- What are your current levels and trends in key measures of product/service performance that are important to your funding sources?
- How do these results compare with performance of your competitors and other organizations providing similar products and services?
4.3 What are your customer-focused performance results?
- What are your current levels and trends in measures or indicators of customer satisfaction? How do these results compare with performance of your competitors and other organizations offering similar products and services?
- What are your current levels and trends in measures and indicators of customer perception of value received, including customer loyalty, positive referral and other aspects of relationship building?
4.4 What are your governance results?
- What are your results for measures or indicators of ethical behavior or stakeholder trust in your leaders and the governance of your organization?
- What are your current findings and trends in measures of fiscal accountability, both internal and external?
- What are your results for key measures of legal and regulatory compliance?
4.5 What are your key social responsibility results?
- What are your results for measures of organizational citizenship, community impact and societal impact?
Category 3 – Process (200 points)
3.1 How do you develop your strategy?
- How does your organization conduct its strategic planning? Who are the key participants?
- How do you collect and analyze data pertaining to the following as part of your strategic planning process – strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats; shifts in technologies, markets, competition or regulatory requirements; long-term organizational stability and continuity in emergencies; and your ability to execute the plan?
- What are your key strategic objectives and goals and your timetable to accomplish them?
- How do your strategic objectives address the Strategic Challenges and Advantages identified in the Organizational Profile?
3.2 How do you deploy your strategy?
- How do you develop and deploy action plans to execute your strategic plan and achieve strategic objectives?
- What are your key shorter and longer term action plans? What are the goals and targets for those action plans? How do you track progress toward meeting these goals and targets?
- What are your specific human resource plans based upon your strategic objectives and action plans?
3.3 How do you accomplish operational planning?
- How do you determine the organizational resources (both non-financial and financial) necessary to execute your action plans?
- How does your organization ensure that required financial resources are available to support operations?
- How do you ensure that your workplace and workforce are prepared to respond to disasters and emergencies, and to ensure continuity of operations and recovery?
3.4 How do you measure, analyze and review organizational performance?
- How do you collect and monitor data to track daily operations, ongoing organizational performance, and progress relative to action plans and strategic objectives?
- How do you use the information collected and reviewed in 1 above to support organizational decision making? How do you use this information to drive organizational and process level improvements? How do you engage your entire workforce in this process?
3.5 How do you manage organizational information and knowledge?
- How do make needed data available to employees, volunteers, customers, etc.?
- How do you make sure that your data are reliable, accurate, timely and secure/confidential?
- How do you ensure the identification, sharing and implementation of best practices?
3.6 How do you identify and manage your key work processes?
- How does your organization determine its Core Competencies? How do the Core Competencies support the creation of value for your customers?
- What are your key processes for creating value for customers? How do these work processes contribute to organizational success and sustainability?
- What are your key processes that support the value creation processes identified in 2 above?
- How do you measure the performance of your processes identified in 2 & 3 above?
Category 4 – Performance Results for the Process Category (150 points)
4.6 What are your financial and market results?
- What are your current levels and trends in measures or indicators of financial return, economic value or budgetary performance?
- What are your current levels and trends in measures or indicators of marketplace performance including market share, growth, new markets entered, etc.?
4.7 What are your key organizational effectiveness results?
- What are your current levels and trends in measures or indicators of performance of your key work processes (both those processes that create value for customers and those processes that provide support to the creation of value to customers)?
- What are your results for measures or indicators of accomplishment of your strategy and successful completion of your action plans?