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Group at table discussing

Leadership & Planning

Find out if the charity has the leadership capacity, strategic development, and ability to adapt to internal and external changes to better deliver on its mission.

The Leadership & Planning beacon includes three evaluation areas: Leadership, Program Planning, and Governance. Scoring details and the evidence behind each metric are fully detailed in the Rating Methodology Guide.

Leadership

Clear goals provide a strategic roadmap for activities and resource alignment. We report whether the charity maintains established mission, vision, and organizational goals.

Development and succession planning cultivate a resilient workforce and service continuity. We report whether the charity offers professional development or mentorship opportunities.

Strategic partnerships and advocacy mobilize external resources to amplify mission impact. We report if the charity utilizes thought leadership, advocacy, or strategic collaborations.
Resilient organizations revise strategic plans and resources to navigate internal and external changes. We report if the charity utilizes restructuring, risk management, or capacity building.

Program Planning

A shared roadmap ensures that program activities are intentionally designed to achieve social change. We report if the charity utilizes a theory of change or logic model.
Evidence based models require regular refinement and stakeholder input to stay effective. We report if the charity documents and reviews its theory of change every one to three years.
Structured tracking ensures that program activities and milestones remain aligned with the mission. We report if the charity maintains a plan with defined activities and outcomes.
SMART frameworks provide a disciplined, concrete standard for evaluating progress and impact. We report whether the charity’s program objectives follow the SMART criteria.
Informing program design with community input and research ensures relevance and effectiveness. We report if the charity uses surveys, discussions, or data reviews to inform development.

Governance

A board-approved budget promotes financial accountability and strategic alignment by ensuring spending supports mission-driven activities. For this metric, we check whether the charity’s board reviews and formally approves the annual operating budget.

For most organizations, we verify that the organization has at least three board members and that a majority (more than 50%) are identified as independent on Form 990.

 

For large, donor-funded organizations, we verify that the organization has at least five independent board members who together constitute a voting majority.

Industry professionals strongly recommend an independent governing body to allow for full deliberation and diversity of thinking on governance and other organizational matters.

Board meeting minutes provide an official, contemporaneous record of board actions. Since charities are not required to make these minutes public, we do not review their contents. For this metric, we check whether the organization reports on its Form 990 that it retains board meeting minutes.

Providing the Form 990 to the governing body prior to filing is considered a best practice, as it allows those responsible for overseeing the organization to conduct a thorough review. The Form 990 asks charities to disclose whether they have followed this practice.


This metric applies to donor-funded charities with $2 million or more in annual revenue.

Find Charities with Strong Leadership Practices

Discover charities rated on Leadership & Adaptability. Find a new and exciting giving opportunity.
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