3.2 Assessing Your Agency
Every agency and organization has a history, a reason for existing. That history—whether it is long or short—has played a role in shaping the mission and vision statements of the organization, the long- and short-term strategic plans, and how the agency is organized, funded, and monitored. Knowing that story will help you understand your agency and assess it for strengths and weaknesses (or areas of emerging strength). It will help you understand its systems and service delivery methods. This is the foundation for your internship and will help you become a more effective human services professional from day 1.
In Focus: Using Public Data
Many organizations have a brief history of their agency on their website. A simple online search will help you discover both the history the organization wants the public to be aware of and the unflattering aspects that end up on the news and other forms of media. As an optional activity, you may want to browse websites that assess and rank nonprofit organizations such as BBB Wise Giving Alliance, GuideStar, CharityWatch, and Charity Navigator to name a few. Most focus on the financial practices of an organization, while others such as Glassdoor, Fairygodboss, and Comparably review general company data, compensation rates, reviews from employees, and diversity practices. These websites rely on anonymous information that is not vetted for accuracy. As a result, what appears to be insider information can be skewed to the negative or the positive. The savvy intern will review the information and form clarifying questions to discuss with their site supervisor.
There are no perfect human services agencies—the human aspect of the work makes that an impossibility. However, organizations and agencies can be primarily healthy, primarily unhealthy, or have both healthy and unhealthy aspects. Knowing what to look for and what kinds of questions to ask will continue to help you long after your internship concludes. The following sections cover some areas to pay attention to.
Mission Statements
A mission statement is the formal summary of why an organization exists, whom they serve, and how they are unique, and a vision statement is the formal summary of what an agency or organization wants to achieve. In other words, the mission statement tells you what an agency is aspiring to do now, and the vision statement tells you what they want to do in the future.
More and more organizations are adding a list of core values that guide their work. Depending on funding sources, leadership choices, and many other factors that we will be discussing later in this chapter, your internship site may not have a mission statement and a vision statement. Some agencies have both, some choose to have just one, and others choose to combine both into one statement.
For example, Goodwill Industries International (2019) lists their mission, vision, and values statements on their website as follows:
OUR MISSION
Goodwill® works to enhance the dignity and quality of life of individuals and families by strengthening communities, eliminating barriers to opportunity, and helping people in need reach their full potential through learning and the power of work.
OUR VISION
Every person has the opportunity to achieve his/her fullest potential and participate in and contribute to all aspects of life.
OUR VALUES
Respect – We treat all people with dignity and respect.
Stewardship – We honor our heritage by being socially, financially, and environmentally responsible.
Ethics – We strive to meet the highest ethical standards
Learning – We challenge each other to strive for excellence and to continually learn.
Innovation – We embrace continuous improvement, bold creativity and change.
The Wild Tomorrow Fund (2019), which focuses on habitat preservation, has a combination mission-and-vision statement:
We face the extinction of one million species in our lifetimes. But there is still hope. The solution to the extinction crisis lies in the expansion of natural habitats in threatened wild places. We must enlarge and protect the spaces devoted to the natural world in order to save the amazing variety of life on our planet—called biodiversity.
The most effective mission statements tend to be one to two sentences and have three main functions. The first is to provide the public with an overview of the agency and create interest. The second is to motivate and focus the employees and service users. The third is to inform short- and long-term decisions. For example, if an organization is considering starting a new program, one of the first questions asked should be, “Is this new program in line with our mission statement?”
Here are some questions about mission statements that you as an intern might find helpful:
- When did the agency develop the current mission statement?
- What were the previous mission statement(s)?
- How was the mission statement developed? Who participated?
- How were service users involved in the development of the mission statement?
- How frequently does the organization evaluate the mission statement?
- What does the mission statement mean to you? How does it inform your work?
- Does the mission statement address issues of diversity, equity, and/or inclusion?
Vision Statements
For a vision statement to have the desired impact of inspiring those who hear or read it to get involved, it should be clear and concise. It should also be inspirational and memorable. It should paint a word picture of why the agency exists and where it is going. Vision statements leave little room for debate or disagreement—they simply state what the future will look like when the organization fulfills its ultimate goal. Consider the following examples:
- Feeding America: “A hunger-free America”
- Alzheimer’s Association: “A world without Alzheimer’s”
- Special Olympics: “To transform communities by inspiring people throughout the world to open their minds, accept and include people with intellectual disabilities and thereby anyone who is perceived as different” (TopNonprofits, 2022)
Experts do not agree on whether the mission or the vision statement should be longer. There are strong and convincing arguments for both and strong examples of both. In the previous example from Goodwill Industries International, the vision statement is longer than the mission statement. However, Albertina Kerr (2019), a human services agency based in Oregon, has a longer mission statement:
MISSION
Kerr empowers people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, mental health challenges, and other social barriers to lead self-determined lives and reach their full potential.
VISION
All people thrive in nurturing and inclusive communities.
VALUES
The values of our expert caregivers remain constant: compassion, commitment, collaboration, and advocacy.
Each organization developed their specific statements and values to best communicate who they are, what they do, and where they are going to their employees, service users, and the general public. Both are correct. Both used processes that are reflective of their history, the present, and their desired future. Both are as individual as the people they serve.
Developing mission and vision statements is a unique and dynamic process. It can be accomplished in a single meeting of key stakeholders or in a series of meetings that are facilitated by a consultant who specializes in organizational design and development. The process generally involves answering the who, what, why, and how questions of the agency for now (mission statement) and in the future (vision statement). Who does the agency serve? What services does the agency provide? Why does the agency provide those services (vs. other services?) How does the agency deliver those services? When you as an intern are able to answer those questions, you will have taken a giant step in the journey of getting to know your agency.
Here are some questions about vision statements that you as an intern might find helpful:
- When did the agency develop the current vision statement?
- What were the previous vision statement(s)?
- How was the vision statement developed? Who participated?
- How were service users involved in the development of the vision statement?
- How frequently does the organization evaluate the vision statement?
- What does the vision statement mean to you? How does it inform your work?
- Were the vision and mission statements developed together?
- Does the vision statement address diversity, equity, and/or inclusion?
After taking some time to review your agency’s vision statement, take note of any questions you might have. The mission and vision statements can be used to assess the health of the agency and to measure the work that it’s doing. If you notice discrepancies or have questions, this would be a good topic to discuss with your supervisor.
Assessing Your Agency Licenses and Attributions
“Assessing Your Agency” by Sally Guyer MSW is licensed under CC BY 4.0.
A credit class in which students apply theory to practice by using what you have learned in coursework in a real-world setting with a supervisor/mentor who is invested in your growth and development (often also referred to as fieldwork or practicum).
the practice or quality of including or involving people from a range of different social and ethnic backgrounds and of different genders, sexual orientations, etc. that may or may not intersect with each other.
the formal summary of why an organization exists, who they serve, and how they are unique.
the formal summary of what an agency or organization wants to achieve.
Ethics are a code of morals or a philosophy that guides an individual’s behaviors and actions. Ethics also include a set of standards or code of conduct set forth by a company or profession.
the quality of being fair and impartial and providing equitable access to different perspectives and resources to all students.
the practice or quality of providing equal access to opportunities and resources for people who might otherwise systemically be excluded or marginalized, such as those who have physical or mental disabilities and members of other minority groups.