Our Initiatives

Overview

Social Purpose Organizations (SPOs), especially small and mid-sized ones, face persistent challenges in achieving high standards of governance and accountability. Limited resources, insufficient governance training, and complex regulatory requirements often redirect their focus from core missions to administrative compliance. Recognizing this gap, the Indian School of Development Management (ISDM), supported by the Ford Foundation, has launched an initiative on Catalysing Good Governance & Accountability Systems. Anchored in the context of social sector priorities, challenges, and opportunities, this initiative aims to:

Enable SPOs to integrate robust governance practices to meet accountability standards
Equip stakeholders through professional certification courses and ongoing education
Champion a cadre of governance professionals dedicated to the social sector

Phases of the Initiative

Phase 1: Needs Assessment Study

Need assessment to understand the perspectives, challenges, enablers and priorities of key stakeholders to anchor the solution in their needs

Phase 2: Solution approaches for capacity development

Capacity Building Toolkits: Empower organisations with necessary resources and tools to establish strong governance frameworks & practices and promote transparent communication with stakeholders.
Open Program Offering: Empower professionals with knowledge and skills to address governance requirements as expert governance & compliance professionals for the sector
Peer-to-Peer Skill Labs: Establish a collaborative platform where professionals, SPO leaders and practitioners can connect to share insights, and exchange expertise

Phase 3: Pilot and Scaling

Pilot the solution approaches and make them ready for scale

Details on Phase 1 Needs Assessment Study - Towards Accountability and Resilience - The initiative’s first phase involved a comprehensive needs assessment report titled Towards Accountability and Resilience, undertaken by ISDM with NAVGRAAM Development Consulting LLP. This study, based on surveys conducted and insights from interviews with SPO leaders and compliance experts involving over 234 SPOs , revealed key challenges and gaps within the sector:

Complex Compliance Requirements: Navigating regulatory frameworks such as tax laws, labor regulations, and the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) is resource-intensive for many SPOs, straining both financial and human capacity.
Knowledge Gaps and Limited Resources: Smaller SPOs often lack awareness and resources for compliance, leading to dependency on costly external consultants for governance functions.
Impact on Programmatic Focus: Due to these governance pressures, SPOs are frequently unable to prioritize programmatic goals, limiting their capacity for transformative social impact.

The Decoding Good Governance report also identified promising practices among larger SPOs, which are more likely to implement strong internal controls, regular audits, and compliance management software. These practices foster greater accountability and stakeholder trust. However, smaller SPOs often lack the budgets and workforce to adopt similar measures, highlighting the need for targeted capacity-building initiatives.

Recommendations emerging from the study - Based on Decoding Good Governance, the initiative has proposed targeted recommendations for stakeholders:

SPOs: Strengthen internal capacity through governance training, adoption of compliance management tools, and active board oversight in governance.
Government Bodies: Simplify regulatory processes, clarify SPO classifications, and support SPOs with statutory guidance and training programs to improve compliance literacy.
Funders: Standardize due diligence, support compliance funding, and help SPOs build internal governance systems.
Ecosystem Enablers: Facilitate knowledge-sharing, organize workshops, and promote simplified reporting standards to ease governance burdens.