Achill ManagementAchill Management

Effective Consortium Working

Achill Management consultants have spent much of the last 18 months working with a wide range of clients supporting the development of consortia. Some of the core aspects that make an effective consortium include:

• Trust and good communication. Without these no consortia will survive
• A clear, structured framework for consortium working, supported by a Memorandum of Understanding
• Clearly defined roles and responsibilities – reviewed at regular intervals
• A small, engaged steering group or working group to drive the process forward, including trustees, non executives and executive team members
• Quick wins – a programme of action which delivers results quickly so all members feel the benefit of the consortium

We are able to provide a wide range of support services to emerging consortia including legal, HR, organisational, structural, operational, risk management, public procurement strategy, tendering and bidding advice.

Visit our clients and recent projects page for more information on consortium working

Mergers: navigating through the maze

The road to merger is fraught with hazards and difficulties and often fails despite the best intentions of all concerned. At Achill Management we understand the difficulties of merger working and have successfully navigated our clients through this complicated process: providing support on such crucial issues as merger feasibility studies and staff engagement reviews, TUPE, legal structure and liability, risk management, organisational restructuring and job roles, joint board of trustee working, branding and marketing.

The SMART Programme

Achill Management has joined forces with Red Ochre, the UK’s leading social enterprise consultancy, to develop a new programme for third sector and not for profit organisations who want to become more enterprise focused, able to generate income independently and adapt to the new ways of working required in a commissioning and contracting environment.

It is a tailored 4-5 day consultancy intervention with a range of modules that interlink and enable Trustee Boards, executive staff and volunteers to work differently and more effectively.

THE SMART PROGRAMME

Who is it for?

Charities, not for profit organisations and social enterprises who wish to develop and enhance their entrepreneurial skills and adopt a new approach to income generation. The SMART programme can also be adapted for an existing consortium or a group of ogranisations who wish to develop new working partnerships.

Who should take part?

Trustee Boards and Boards of Directors, Chief Executive and Senior Managers, Fundraising and finance teams and Volunteers

How does it work?

Spread over 4-5  consultancy days the SMART Programme is modular with each module building on the others to provide a comprehensive approach to reconfiguring and redesigning your organisation’s approach to income generation. The Modules combine best practice learning and sharing with bespoke consultancy to address the specific needs of individual organsiations.

What does it cost?

Dependent on the number of modules and the amount of bespoke consultancy required the programme fee is between £2,200-£2,60

THE MODULES

Module One: Thinking like a Social Enterprise

An introduction to social enterprise, how to be more entrepreneurial, understanding what it means, developing skills.
Topics include:

• What is a social enterprise?
• What is the difference between income generation and fundraising?
• Budgeting and financial management for entrepreneurship
• Identifying skills and skills gaps
• Capacity building in your organistion

Module Two: Strategic Planning for Board and Senior Managers

How to reconfigure and refocus your strategy for income generation – a bespoke module that tackles the specific issues for each individual organsiation.

Topics include:

• Is our strategy and business planning fit for purpose?
• Do the Board and SMT share the vision of entrepreneurship – can we work together more effectively?
• Developing new Business Plan targets and outcomes
• Bespoke consultancy to support the client organisation to reconfigure its Business Plan

Module Three: Understanding Commissioning and Tendering

Understanding the new climate and learning to adapt to Commissioning

Topics Include:

• What is Commissioning? How will it work?
• Commissioning and the Big Society Agenda
• How is it different and how do we need to change
• Public procurement bidding strategy
• Risk Management
• Writing tenders and winning bids
• Financial planning for commissioning and contracting
• TUPE and personnel issues
• Delivery of contracts, monitoring and assessment

Module Four: Partnership / joint working for Commissioning and Contracting

How to develop partnerships or joint working with others to win larger bids and contracts.

Topics include:

• Partnership, joint working, Consortia or merger – which is the best route
• New legal entities for delivery
• Setting up effective partnerships – choosing partners, developing MOU and frameworks
• Understanding sub contracting
• Legal implications of shared working

Module Five: Developing an entrepreneurial culture in the organisation

Topics include

• How to change our culture – grant dependence to entrepreneurship
• Relationship between staff and volunteers
• Developing an entrepreneurial board
• Re-structuring the organsiation – new roles and responsibilities

HOW IS THE SMART PROGRAMME DELIVERED?

The SMART Programme is a joint consultancy programme run by Achill Management Ltd and Red Ochre and it uses the expertise and experience of these two leading not for profit consultancies to share best practice and learning with the participant organisations.

The SMART Programme is a practical, outcome-focused intervention. It combines active learning with opportunities for participant organisations to develop specific strategies and plans. Delivered by the experienced consultants at Achill Management and Red Ochre the programme offers a unique mix of best practice teaching with bespoke consultancy support.