The Organizational Self-Assessment Tool aims to help agencies strengthen capacity and accountability. It enables organizations to assess their strengths and weaknesses against the sector standards and then links them with the resources and policies they need to further develop their organizational systems.
The Organizational Self-Assessment Tool is administered by the Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants through the Organizational Standards Initiative.
 
In this section:

About OCASI

About the Organizational Standards Initiative

Background
   - Why Standards?

Acknowledgements

OCASI

The Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants (OCASI) is a registered charity formed in 1978. Its membership is comprised of more than 200 community-based immigrant and refugee serving organizations across Ontario. OCASI acts as a collective voice and facilitates information sharing and capacity development for member organizations. Click here to learn more about OCASI’s mission, principles and objectives.

The Organizational Standards Initiative

The Organizational Standards Initiative (OSI) is a response to a long-standing call from OCASI members to build capacity, develop standards, and professionalize the immigrant and refugee-serving sector. The OSI will strengthen organizational capacity across the sector. This voluntary effort by the sector shows our commitment to accountability and to the delivery of high quality services for immigrants and refugees.

The first phase of the initiative, funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation, focused on the development of the voluntary organizational standards and this self-assessment tool. The standards and tool were developed in wide consultation with OCASI members, with the guidance of an Advisory Committee and in keeping with our Framework of Guiding Principles.

This initiative builds on existing resources and strengths. While there are a number of standards programs and assessment tools for non-profit organizations, OCASI members called for sector-specific standards that address the unique needs, conditions, and values of the sector. OCASI held extensive consultations on the organizational standards and capacity development needs and priorities.  Click here to read the full Consultation Report.

The Organizational Standards Initiative continues to offer support to agencies using the self-assessment tool. Fall 2010 will see the beginning of a new phase of capacity building opportunities for agencies in the sector, based on a peer learning model, the priorities identified by OCASI members, and with the support of the Ontario Trillium Foundation.

Background

Why Standards?

 The overarching goal for community based immigrant and refugee serving agencies is to meet the complex settlement needs of newcomers by providing high quality, relevant and effective services. But there are a number of external pressures and trends that impact community-based immigrant and refugee serving organizations and challenge us to be strategic about how we move into the future. Changing immigration and socio-economic policies as well as shifting demographics have resulted in more complex and multifaceted needs in more communities. The Canada-Ontario Immigration Agreement (COIA) provides tremendous opportunities for the sector through increased funds. More funds come with increased accountability demands. This coupled with the limited funds available to nonprofits for infrastructure costs creates challenges for organizations.

The OSI aims to address these challenges through a multi-phase process. Developing and implementing voluntary organizational standards has shown our sector’s commitment to delivering high quality services and to being accountable to our funders, the communities we serve, our staff, and the broader Canadian public. Strengthening agencies ultimately means strengthened communities.

 OCASI plans to further support organizations as they implement standards by creating enhanced and new capacity building opportunities, such as training, mentorship development, and online and peer support. As well, OCASI will continue to dialogue with policy makers and funders on the need for increased funds for organizational infrastructures.

Acknowledgements

This tool was developed by OCASI, guided by an Advisory Committee and funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation.

For the implementation of the standards in the sector, the members of the advisory are as follows:

• Ravi Subramaniam, Thorncliffe Neighbourhood Office
• Lucya Spencer, Immigrant Women Services Ottawa
• Cathy Woodbeck, Thunder Bay Multicultural Association
• Sri Guggan Sri-Skanda-Rajah,Tamil Eelam Society of Canada
• MK Mabaya, ACFO de London-Sarnia 

Click here for a list of organizations who have shown leadership through the contribution of resources and participation in the pilot testing of OrgWise.

We wish to thank OCASI member agencies for providing support, feedback and insight into the development of the standards and this tool. We would also like to thank JoAnne Doyle, D. A. Falconer & Associates, Mohan Doss, G. Vergilio & Associates, United Way of Greater Toronto, and Community Organizational Health Inc.