Change Management In Non Profit Association.Final.March 20

Change
Management in
Non Profit
Associations-
Going from an Idea
to a Thriving
Organization
Aquatic Program

By

Lorraine Joynt

Lorraine Joynt, DWWAP, Prosci Global Conference, April 6, 2009, Orlando, Florida

week led by instructors certified with
WaterArt International, with the assistance of
a lifeguard. The instructors are all
participants of the program and have physical
challenges. The program costs are $40.00 for
a ten week session.
Executive Overview
Durham Region is located in Southern Ontario
and has a population of 561,258 with a heavy
concentration in the 40-59 age range. There
Not for profit organizations undergo changes is a potential for the growth of the program,
on a frequent basis. There are board member with a target market of 5000 people. (Durham
changes, different requirements for funding Region Planning Report-September 2007)
proposals, government regulations, and
participants’ satisfaction. Change The Board in 2002 was a small with relatively
management is a necessity to grow the little experience in the charitable sector. In
organization, but for a small non-profit it is 2006 a grant from the Ontario Trillium
extremely imperative for effective change. Foundation, (a provincial grant organization)
One wrong move could create a public was obtained to conduct a needs assessment.
relations or fundraising disaster. Added The Board was highly motivated and eager to
challenges are there is only limited funding grow. There were three setbacks. One was
and volunteers to implement the transitions. that the Board members were all part of the
Also in new or small non-profits, the Board program, and had various physical challenges.
during the growth period can be responsible The next was they were not sure what
not only for the overall functioning of the direction to go except that they wanted to
organization, but involved in the day to day meet the needs of the community. The final
operations. setback was the Chair was suffering from a
terminal illness and knew he could not take
How then does a group of dedicated people the organization any further. It was clearly a
with a great idea of benefit to a community time for change for DWWAP, but the question
expand to a dynamic organization able to gain was how to make the changes and insure the
recognition from community leaders and growth of the organization.
professionals? While some people would like
to think growth happens through the sheer The timeline for the initial part of the changes
force of will of the volunteers and staff, well was eighteen months; with the understanding
organized non for profits are more the result as a growing non-profit, change management
of proper planning of the change management would be an on-going process with the goals
process. and tasks being updated at strategic points.
Areas for change were governance and
Durham Warm Water Aquatic Program, strategic planning, networking, marketing
(DWWAP) is a warm water exercise program and board development.
for people with muscle-skeletal challenges
including arthritis, fibromyalgia, soft tissue
injuries, Parkinson’s, chronic pain, and joint
replacements. DWWAP was incorporated as a Awareness of the Need for Change
not for profit organization in November 2002.
The program is administered by a Volunteer
Working Board and has over 400 participants
weekly, which is the maximum capacity. The
hour long classes are held at the Whitby DWWAP was faced with the need for change
Mental Health Centre and Grandview on several fronts, including introduction of a
Children’s Centre, the only two warm water new chair, the need to acquire more board
pools in the area. There are nineteen classes a members from outside the program, to hire a


consultant to conduct a needs survey of the the need for transformation came forward as a
pools in the area, to implement all the person committed to change. She knew what
governance procedures, and to expand their she wanted, but was unsure of how to obtain
networking and marketing programs. What the goals. She proved to be an inspiration and
the organization had in its favour was a as she discussed her ambition for expanding
committed Board with a sincere desire to the program with the New Chair, it was clear
promote warm water aquatics to people the President would be the true champion of
requiring the program. The Board also the organization. The next step was how to
believed in a collaborative approach, where communicate this change to the Board.
everyone’s input was deemed valuable.

The first step for the Board and the Chair was
to find a new chairperson. A prospective new
chair with an administrative and social
services background to help make the
necessary changes was contacted. Little did
we know at the onset what changes would
happen and the need to manage the change
process. The biggest concern was to insure
the Board understood the need for changes in Increasing the Desire for Change
order to accomplish the goal of growth. The
key to process was transparency and
communication. The ADKAR change
management system was used as the model to The President was encouraged to share what
achieve the results DWWAP required. she envisioned for DWWAP. The Chair then
supported the need for growth and introduced
To overcome any resistance to the new Chair, the concepts of governance to the Board. This
an approach was taken where she did not was done by questioning what the Board
automatically assume the role. Several Board thought of DWWAP’s future.
meetings were held where the new chair
assisted and gradually began to assume the On the Board, some wanted to develop the
role, gaining the confidence of everyone. organization and others were more perplexed,
Initially there were some challenges, but as but everyone had a strong belief in the
the meetings continued and the new chair program. Everyone was aware they had little
continued to speak with the various directors experience in operating an effective Board,
and executive a connection began. The new how to effect the growth, and become a
chair was able to fulfill administrative tasks recognized organization in the community.
and answer questions about organizing non- The bonus was they were sincerely committed
profit organizations which also cemented to promoting how exercising in warm water
relationships. could help people with physical challenges. As
the Chair and President continued to process
As the New Chair assumed the official role, the need for change with the Board, the
the need for the organization to expand simultaneous step of hiring the consultant
became apparent. Upon reviewing the also emphasized why DWWAP required an
governance of the organization, the only improved management system.
documents available were the incorporation
documents and bylaws. The grant application
was gave the organization’s history. There
were not any policy and procedures, mission, Role of the Consultant
vision, and value statements. There had been
attempts to put the past protocols in place, but
this had fallen by the wayside. The President
having dreams for DWWAP, and recognizing


Obtaining a consultant for the Needs Usually Board members eyes tend to glaze
Assessment was a requirement of the Ontario over when the word governance is mentioned.
Foundation Trillium grant. As this was the With DWWAP, the Board was not really
first employee and a major change it was aware of the concepts but knew changes were
important to have the Board’s cooperation. required before any progress could begin. It
Input was gained from the Board during a became incumbent upon the Chair to
brain storming session about what experience introduce the procedure. The first step in the
the consultant would require, and how to go procedure was strategic planning. Over a few
about hiring a consultant. Steps were then meetings, the Chair talked about the process
taken to interview prospective candidates by and asked for input from the Board. It was
the President, Chair, and Past Chair. agreed it would be done outside a Board
Constant feedback was given to the Board meeting. The outcome of having the Strategic
about the hiring process, and their approval Planning meeting reinforced the need for the
was obtained at every step along the way. Board to become more proficient with
Extra care was taken that they had final governance and to have clear goals.
approval of the consultant including meeting Committees were established with the
with her. The Funder was informed of the President and Chair as ad hoc members for
hiring process and the consultant. the following areas:
Participants were updated by newsletter of
the development and the aims of the project. 1. Policy and Procedure Manuel
They were directed to contact the Chair 2. Instructor’s Manuel
regarding any questions. With the consultant 3. Mission and Vision Statements
in place, there was a marked difference in the 4. Goals and Tasks
attitude of the Board. They were beginning to 5. Marketing Concepts, including a
realize they were growing and would have to SWOT analysis
make changes in how they operated. During 6. Fundraising Concept
her eighteen month period with DWWAP, the 7. Increase the use of the Pool
consultant provided a Needs Assessment 8. Instructor’s Manuel
which related the requirement for more pools 9. Past Protocol Motions
in the area, and determining the target 10. Ensuring the Board communicated
population in the Durham area. She was also effectively.
responsible for evaluating the current
program, including surveying the participants, What resulted were the governance
instructors, lifeguards and Board. The requirements being fulfilled. Communication
consultant reported to the Chair and was a vital part of the process, with e-mail
Treasurer on a regular basis so the daily being the choice method, given everyone’s
operation of her work could continue. schedule. The President and the Chair
Monthly reports were provided to the Board, established a regular weekly telephone report
and quarterly the Consultant attended Board to keep each other updated. Another first was
meetings. Progress was related to the regular executive meetings, replacing the ad
participants by reports from the Consultant in hoc process to ensure the day-to day
the newsletter. Regular information was operations ran smoothly.
required by the Funder to continue the grant,
on a semi-annual basis.
While the Board realized having their own
pool would be the ultimate goal, the steps
along the way would be to align with different
groups to lobby the government and public
Introducing Governance Procedures and sector with the aim of opening more warm
Strategic Planning water pools in the Durham Region. In the
interim, the management of the Whitby
Mental Health Centre was contacted and
agreement was reached to use the pool on
Saturdays adding two more classes.


organization. To increase her public speaking
ability, the Chair encouraged her to speak at
Increasing Knowledge functions, for short periods of times. She
gradually built up her confidence, and now
does dynamic presentations. Along with the
Chair, she also attended a course on
governance procedures, where she gained
The Board needed to obtain information on
further knowledge of her role. Along with her
non-profit procedures. The Chair was
newly acquired knowledge and her amazing
instrumental in relaying information on what
people skills she shines as a leader.
governance procedures were required, but she
also emphasized education by outside sources
was valuable. The areas of focus were: As the Board members became more proficient
at their tasks, this began to reflect in their
practices. There was a noted change at the
1. Encouragement from the
Board meetings, with professionalism
President about the need for
becoming a trademark. There was more
learning
emphasis on wanting to promote the
2. The Chair providing direction for
development of the program and the
governance procedures including
realization of the need to incorporate a
strategic planning, policies and
business attitude towards the organization.
procedures and updating the by-
As the President so aptly put it “DWWAP is
laws
no longer a mom and pop organization.”
3. Obtaining courses for each Board
Member’s specialty
4. Acknowledging the success of With the new skills and optimistic attitude,
each person’s accomplishments the participants began to notice the change in
5. Having the Board members bring philosophy on the Board. There were regular
back what they had learnt to newsletters, contact information if there were
Board meetings concerns about the program, and regular
6. The Chair ensuring what the feedback. The new fundraising opportunity at
Board Members had learnt was a local dinner theatre allowed the participants
put into practice. and Board to meet and greet each other and
7. Advising the participants and the celebrate the successes of DWWAP.
Funder of the progress.
The funder also commented that DWWAP’s
There are two major examples with Board reports came in on time and with everything
members where this worked well. completed. A representative from the Trillium
Foundation was invited to attend the
fundraiser increasing awareness of the
The Board member in charge of fundraising,
progress.
at first glance was a shy women. She thought
she did not have the skills. What was
apparent that underneath was a dynamic
woman, who had the heart and personality for
the position. Starting at first with a small Promoting to the Public, Professionals and
project, she took some courses, and then went Community Organizations
out and found a way to have one major
fundraiser per year, thus eliminating the
usual t-shirt and water bottle sales that were
lackluster at best. As the Board gained more confidence in their
abilities, they wanted to share the information
The President knew she had to improve her about the program to others in the
competence. Her two areas for improvement community. The major form of
were public speaking and governance for the communication in the past had been dropping


off brochures to medical offices. This had the program. Methods of reaching the
some limited success but did not gain the audience were accomplished by aligning with
organization the deserved attention. seniors committees in the area, having a
community forum on fibromyalgia, (females
The steps taken to promote the organization over fifty are the most prevalent for this
were: condition) and having display booths at
tradeshows that aimed at the focus group,
1. To develop promotional materials (i.e., Active Living, Health and Wellbeing).
2. To target the audiences indicated by
the Needs Assessment A major benefit of the tradeshow was
3. To be involved in more community gathering information on other organizations,
networking opportunities with the aim of promoting DWWAP to their
4. To promote the organization by using clients that could gain from the program. As
the media DWWAP became better known, invitations to
5. To join professional organizations that attend networking events started to arrive. At
would benefit DWWAP one networking opportunity, an alliance was
6. To make contact with government made with an executive with fundraising
officials experience. He began to champion DWWAP
7. To explore any other options available. and offered assistance.
8. Promoting the need for networking
throughout the clients, so they could As the profile of the organization increased in
alert the Board to any opportunities. the community, so did the media attention.
Articles were written by the local media about
the program. Two of the Board members
developed their skills at writing press releases
These steps were in line with the governance and nurturing relationships with reporters.
model, and given the devotion of the Board,
these options were feasible. To raise awareness with Government officials,
meetings were arranged. At the meetings,
Before networking and promoting DWWAP to information was shared about the program,
the public, the Board collectively decided the and promotional material was left. These
time had come to upgrade the marketing contacts improved the recognition of the
materials. A marketing and SWOT, (strength, necessity for DWWAP and warm water pools,
weaknesses, opportunities and threats), and increased exposure. To reinforce the
analysis was completed. The original yellow connection the Chair fostered a relationship
brochure was replaced by one with pictures of with the office staff ensuring they had
the participants, and information directed at supplies of brochures and assisting with
the target audience . Two power points were questions about the value of the program for
produced, one for tradeshows, and one for their constituents
professional audiences. A table top display
was purchased providing the opportunity to For corporate recognition, a membership was
create an exhibit for tradeshows. If that were obtained with the local Chamber of
not enough a Presentation Binder was Commerce. Board members began attending
designed for potential funders, government the “Lunch and Learns,” to gain more
officials, and professionals in the community. corporate experience. The Chamber’s
Amazingly, this was all done by the dedicated networking events are advantageous for
volunteer Board members. promoting DWWAP to the professional
community.
Information gathered from the needs
assessment revealed the target audiences
were generally people over the age of fifty.
This is when people begin to noticeably have
the physical challenges that could benefit from


With this outreach and networking, two new When working with volunteer boards,
Board members were obtained. An compassion fatigue, and general burnout are
accountant offered her services as the always an issue. Board members have their
Treasurer, and a talented kenisiologist joined own work and personal issues. With the
as the Instructor Coordinator. DWWAP Board, a majority of the members
have health issues such as fibromyalgia
One of the best ways of informing our requiring extra considerations. Limited
participants of changes was conducting financial resources prevent any major
surveys, which increased their input about recognition. The one sure fire way to reinforce
DWWAP’s services. Our rate of return for volunteers and encourage commitment is to
surveys for this invaluable feedback was 30 simply say thank you for the hard work that
per cent. It has become a useful way to they do. Recognition is also done at Board
discover where we need to make changes and Meetings and acknowledged in the minutes.
also to gain information when approaching E-mails and cards are also sent for a more
funding sources and lobbying for more warm personal touch. When one of the Board
water pools. More importantly it gives the members is too ill to attend a meeting or
clients a sense of belonging to DWWAP and perform their functions, the President
some ownership of the program. contacts them to see if anything is required.
Overall in DWWAP, compassion is one of the
Another change we implemented to advise our major drivers of the organization.
participants of DWWAP’s progress, was to
hold an Information Night. This proved to be During National Volunteer Week, a thank-you
an excellent way to bring everyone together to ad was placed in the local newspaper. Each
discuss concerns and celebrate achievements. volunteer was given a small token of
Participants have started to alert Board appreciation such as an angel pin.
members to networking opportunities and
potential leads for growth of the program. The work of DWWAP is celebrated at every
Board Meeting with the President
acknowledging everyone’s work and what
progress has been made over the past month.
Reinforcement Sometimes this may be a simple as producing
the newsletter, or as major as revamping a
governance procedure, but everything is
acknowledged.

Saying thanks is not the only reward. There
are social gatherings, and an annual
appreciation dinner for the instructors and
lifeguards. The costs for the rewards are
minimal, but the constant encouragement is
abundant. This helps to keep the Board
members and the volunteers interested in
continuing with DWWAP.

Reinforcement also comes in
acknowledgement from the community. Over
the past year, a real estate business wrote
about our services in their community
newsletter, government officials acknowledged
our work at public meetings, we are asked to
speak at community forums about our
services, and medical professionals in the
community refer their clients to DWWAP.


The best reinforcement however, is the Chair are not participants of the program.
testimonials from the participants, and There has been an increase in the numbers
encouragement they give the Board . using the program, and the Whitby pool is
now used six days a week. As a non-profit,
ensuring the administrative issues, and the
people side of change management were
Volunteers are Only Human crucial in ensuring the successful growth of
the organization. The concern about the
volunteers and participants is a major
accomplishment of the program. Also the
ability to work as a team, with open
Volunteering is hard work. It requires communication and transparency insured the
commitment, passion and the ability to Board’s ability to accomplish DWWAP’s goals.
remain organized and flexible. For those with
physical challenges, it can prove difficult. As
a result, when a board member becomes
overwhelmed, there are times when
resignations or leaves of absents are the only Future Focus
recourse left. As a result DWWAP has
changed the process of looking for Board
Members and is taking on a more planned
approach. We now advertise for board DWWAP needs to expand. As the population
members in our newsletter and actively seek ages in the area and people begin to seek
out prospective people in the community. As affordable means to overcome their physical
a result, our Board has become skilled and challenges, the demand for the program will
more diverse. increase. DWWAP needs to concentrate on
advocating for more warm water pools in the
We have also found during the process of area. Currently the Board is updating the
change management, it is important to make Strategic Plan, with this goal in mind. This
the process fun. Volunteering for a cause is will require another change management
rewarding, but if there are major problems process. Strategically the Board will have to
and constant upsets, the desire to continue expand their networking outlets and will need
decreases. An effort has been made to use to partner with private corporations and other
humour at Board meetings, keep spirits up, nonprofit organizations in the Durham area.
and talking if there are any concerns. With DWWAP’s focus and improved systems
Communication is vital in this process. due to change management, this task should
be accomplished within the next few years.

Outcomes
References

1. Durham Region Planning Report:
DWWAP progressed from a small non-profit to Durham Region-September 2007
a professional organization, with governance
procedures, a needs assessment, a successful
fundraising and marketing program, a good
connection to all levels of the organization and 2. Hiatt, J., ADKAR: A Model for Change
improved networking with the community, in Business, Government and Our
government officials and corporate levels. Community. Prosci, 2006.
The Board worked through having their first
employee and how reporting relationships
work. Three Board members including the


Lorraine has thirty years experience in social services including management roles. Currently she
is the Chair of the Durham Warm Water Aquatic Program on a volunteer basis. Professionally
she is an Associate at A Place for Mediation where she mediates estate, civil, employment, and
non-profit issues. For the past twelve years she has been a community member adjudicating
cases for the Commission of Review Tribunal for the Canada Pension Plan. Educationally
Lorraine has certificates in Alternative Dispute Resolution and Advanced Alternative Dispute
Resolution from York University. She obtained her Masters in Criminology from the University of
Ottawa. She is a member of the Alternative Dispute Resolution Institute of Ontario where she
co-chairs the employment section and a roster mediator with the Ontario Mandatory Mediation
Program.


Change Management In Non Profit Association.Final.March 20

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