Organizational Sustainability Project
An organizational sustainability project (OSP) plays a critical role in the overall realization of organizational vision and mission and the achievement of both short-term and long-term goals. The main factor to success in any OPS is the stakeholders’ level of commitment to the sustainability plan. One of the most critical areas of sustainability that determines success in the organization is the financial sustainability project. According to Abt Associates Inc (n.d), the sustainability of the organization is gauged by its financial strength.
Summary of the financial sustainability
Every organization, whether for-profit or not-for –profit, aims at achieving institutional financial sustainability. For many organizations, especially the not-for-profit firms, achieving a financial sustainability helps them achieve their mission through covering the administrative costs and avoiding frequent negotiations with donors. Establishing an effective model for financial sustainability promotes the success of the OSP. The model works under four key pillars of financial sustainability namely, financial and strategic planning, income diversification, sound administration and finance, and own income generation (Leon, 2001). Moreover, Leon highlighted six key requirements to achieving financial sustainability in the organization. The six requirements are the long-term commitment of stakeholders, effective leadership, investing in time and money, proper business planning, the presence of an effective management team, and teamwork (Leon, 2001).
On the other hand, an organization may experience challenges gathering enough funds to cater for different costs. Poor management leads to misuse of funds that has a long-term financial impact on the organization. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (n.d) argued that organizations should implement strategies that aim at achieving diversity and maintaining sustainable sources of funding. The organization may come up with a fundraising program aimed at increasing funds to cater for various operations. Additionally, the staff should be taken through a training program to equip them with proper skills on how to manage company resources and teach them new methods of obtaining funds to increase the company's financial sustainability.
References
Abt Associates Inc. (n.d). Fundamentals of NGO financial sustainability. Pathfinder
International. Retrieved Jan 14, 2017, from http://www2.pathfinder.org/site/DocServer/Fundamentals_of_NGO_Financial_Sustainability.pdf
Leon, P. (2001). Four pillars of financial sustainability. Resources for Success, 1(2), 1-29.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (n.d). Developing a sustainable financial plan.
Watershed Academy Web. Retrieved Jan 14, 2017, from https://cfpub.epa.gov/watertrain/pdf/modules/sustainablefinance.pdf
