The Mission of the Keen USA Organization - Research Paper Example

of the Agency Vision, Mission, and Values KEEN San Francisco is a part of the Keen USA organization and was launched in San Francisco in 2006. The mission of the organization is to provide activities and recreation ideas to both children and adults with disabilities. Very often, people with disabilities are not able to enjoy recreational activities because such activities are not designed in a disabled friendly manner. KEEN overcomes this challenge by pairing them with trained volunteers so that they can enjoy activities such as swimming, tennis, soccer, fitness exercises and other social activities. The mission of the organization is to make sure that each of the disabled people develop their confidence and hence, can participate in a wider number of recreational activities. Respondent X says that the vision of the organization is to provide recreational opportunities to the disabled so that they can also equally participate and to make the people more confident to participate in them. Respondent Y also agrees to it, but adds that the mission is to make the disabled community feel equal when it comes to outdoor activities. According to Respondent Z, the aim is to empower the disabled people through outdoor activities so that their emotional and physical health improves. Therefore, all the three respondents are attuned to the mission of the organization and understand the aim in a comprehensive manner. In fact, one of the respondents felt that encouraging the outdoor activities not only makes them involved but improves in their physical and emotional health. From the responses, it is clear that the staff have been trained well to understand the mission and vision of the organization. All the three staff also responded that KEEN San Francisco serves the disabled community that lives in San Francisco bay Area and caters to the population in this particular location. KEEN USA has other centers across the US that carries out similar activities in particular locations. All the respondents had interesting aspects to say about the positive influences of the agency. According to Respondent X, one of the most important positive aspect is that it has increased confidence among the participants and it has also encouraged more volunteer involvement. Respondent Y adds to this saying that it has helped in improving the quality of life of the disabled population and has helped them to enjoy the games, which they were not able to participate in earlier. Respondent Z says that earlier, the disabled people were restricted to participating in indoor games, but now they can participate in outdoor games and hence, bring about changes in their lives. The positive aspects also could be due to the reason that the activities are carried out in a non-competitive manner so that the disabled community does not come under any pressure to compete. However, none of the respondents mentioned this aspect. Interestingly, all of the respondents said that they cannot think of any aspect that would have caused negative influences on the agency. Agency Staff The Agency head has a crucial role to play in managing the activities of the agency. The Agency head of KEEN San Francisco is given the designation of Executive Director. The main role that the agency head has to carry out is to manage all the aspects related to fund-raising programs. Additionally, she also has to carry out responsibilities related to working with trainers, coaches, volunteers, participants and supporters. All the three respondents clearly understand the responsibility of the agency head as they mention that the primary role involves fund-raising for the agency. Unlike many other agencies where some amount of funds also come from nominal fees charged to the participants, KEEN does not charge anything from them and hence, fund-raising is a very important role that the agency head has to carry out. Respondent X says that agency head also participates in overall co-ordination with the coaches, volunteers and supports. Respondent Y adds that the agency lead also carries out awareness programs so that there is increase in participation both from the disabled people and also from the volunteers and contributors. Respondent Y also brings out another important responsibility carried out by the agency head, which is that of motivating the staff and coaches so that they are able to carry out the responsibility more effectively. Agency head also comes up with new and innovative ideas on how to improve the program. Respondent Z also agrees with respondent Y on the responsibilities of the Agency head. A body like KEEN San Francisco needs the support of a number of staff members for effective functioning. When asked about the staff requirements, all the three respondents, X, Y and Z mention about the Center-coordinator or the Administrator who coordinators various programs that are carried out by KEEN. The educational qualification needed is that of a basic management degree and the experience is around 2 years with agency management or administration work. The role of an Administrator seems to be an important one as respondent Y says that the day to day activities are co-ordinated by the administrator. Another staff position that all the respondents mention is that of the Coach. The Coaches are responsible for making sure that the pairing between volunteers and disabled people are correct and providing instructions on how the activities around the disabled should be centered. The educational qualification needed for this role is a degree in sports management with special attention to sports for the disabled. It also requires at least two years’ experience. Apart from these two main staff positions, Respondent X mentions the role of Program coordinator, who seems to carry out similar responsibilities to that of the Administrator. Respondent Y and Z also mention the roles of both Psychologist and Doctors. The doctors conduct physical test to make sure that the disabled individual carries out only those activities that is suitable for the body. Psychologists tries to track the emotional state of the individual throughout the program. For both these roles, a professional degree such as MD is needed. The roles are open for both fresher’s and experienced individuals. The respondents have fair idea of the staffing needs of the agency. Finances All the respondents said that the agency received all the funds from the donations only. As mentioned earlier, agency is totally dependent on donations from individuals as well as corporate donors for the functioning. The Agency head takes the lead in organizing these fund raising activities. The three respondents are also of the opinion that more funds are always needed because the agency is a non-profit one and all the activities are carried out from the donations only. According to Respondent Y, participation of more and more volunteers can help in saving money because volunteers can carry out a lot of functions and expenditure would be reduced. Respondent Y also provides some additional ideas, such as negotiating with more sports agencies so that they can contribute to KEEN San Francisco. Sports agencies can provide the services of experts and help in providing sports arena for trainings, which will help in saving money. This respondent also adds that finding more corporate sponsors can help in gaining more money because such sponsors usually support the organization in a big way from a long-term perspective. Respondent X feels that only trained staff should be hired so that the agency does not spend money on training the people. According to Respondent Z, the agency manages the funds very well and hence, does not give any ideas related to saving the funds. Overall, managing finances and donations seems to be an important area of concern for the agency. Agency Problems and Suggestions Being a non-profit organization, KEEN is totally dependent on the funds provided to it through donations. In addition, it also depends immensely on the volunteer support to carry out many activities. All the three respondents have mentioned that the one of the problems or challenges that the agency faces on a regular basis is the lack of funds. Keen has planned donation programs as well as spot donation programs that people can use to make contribution. In addition, it also seeks corporate support for funds. The responses from all the three respondents indicate that they are aware of the functioning of the non-profit agency. Respondent X also adds that the demand of the program is very high and hence, they need more coaches and volunteers. This indicates that the program is popular among the disabled community, but there is also a need to expand so that it can benefit the maximum number of people. Respondent Y feels that there is a need for more volunteers. It indicates that the agency may often face shortage of volunteers. Respondent Z also adds an interesting fact that one of the issues is that they need volunteers on a consistent basis, which highlights that fact that volunteers come for a short period and leave, and new volunteers need to be trained pretty often. Probably one good way to overcome this issues is by having yearly plans for volunteers so that they commit for longer period. Respondents X and Z did not have ethical concerns about the organization, but Respondent Y had a concern about the need for more sensitivity among the volunteers. It is true that many people do not develop the necessary sensitivity to deal with disabled people until they are not informed about it. Hence, the agency also should introduce mandatory sensitivity training for the volunteers so that there are no ethical issues that arise because of it. Other than this issue, no other ethical concerns are mentioned by the respondents. All the respondents were also asked how their values matched with the values that the agency followed. Respondent X always wanted to support the disabled community and hence, the values matched that of the agency because the agencys mission was also to provide support to the disabled. Respondent Y says that the agency carries out all the activities with diligence and commitment. These are two values that Respondent Y values considerably and hence, feels that the values of the agency match the personal values. Respondent Z says that the agency does not carry out any discrimination between the disabled people and the others. As Z also nurtures a similar line of thought, he/she feels that the set of values match with that of the agency. All the three respondents agree to the fact that their set of values are in tandem with the values of the agency, however none of them elaborate the values in detail and just mention a couple of points regarding it. The final question asked to the respondents was whether they think that the agency would be working 10 years from now and if yes, what changes need to be bought about to keep the place running. All the three unanimously answer that the agency would be running 10 years from now. This answer indicates that the three of them have a strong conviction about the cause and the mission of the agency. All the three respondents again mention that one of the factors to sustain the organization is that they would need more funds. Respondent X says that programs also should expand to give more scope. It would be a good plan to introduce other games so that people with diverse interest can also participate and feel included. Respondent Y also adds that providing additional vocational services for the disabled community would be required in the years to come, so that the agency can become a one-stop center that caters to many needs of the disabled people. According to Respondent Z, the agency would need more involvement from the volunteers in the future years to keep it running. This response indicates the high dependency of the agency on volunteer activity. The above mentioned are some of the agency problems and suggestions mentioned by the respondents. Appendix A: Interview responses for Respondent X 1. What are the vision, mission and values of your agency Keen San Francisco? To provide recreational opportunities to the disabled so that the can equally participate, to make sure that the disabled people are confident to participate in the activities. 2. Which community and population does the agency serve? Residents of San Francisco Bay area – disabled population 3. What are some of the positive influences and negative influences of the agency? Positives – good participation and increased confidence among the participants, more volunteer involvement. Negatives – none. 4. What are the responsibilities of your Agency head? Organizing fund raising programs, overall coordination with coaches, volunteers and supporters. 5. Can you elaborate on the various staff positions, the experience and the educational qualifications needed? Center-coordinator/Administrator to coordinate various programs (2 years in agency management, basic management degree); Program co-ordinators (Devise program schedules on a daily basis, carry out athlete-student pairings. No experience needed, any degree) Coaches – For activities such as Swimming, basketball and athletics ( experienced and freshers, degree in sports management with special focus on people with special needs. (3 years experience as trainers on language, vocational courses and personality development) 6. What do you know about funding – current funds and the actual funds needed? Current funding comes from donation made by the patrons, More funds are needed to expand and introduce more programs. 7. Do you have any ideas to save money? Hire only trained staff so money is not spent on training. 8. Can you describe some of the current problems with the agency? Need more funds, unable to meet high demand so need more coaches and volunteers 9. Are there any ethical concerns that you have? No 10. How does your set of values compare with the values of the agency? I have always wanted to support disabled community and therefore, my values match that of the agency. 11. Will the agency still be working 10 years from now. What changes need To take place to keep it running? Yes, it will be working, provided the funds increase and programs expand to give more scope. Appendix B: Interview responses for Respondent Y 1. What are the vision, mission and values of your agency KEEN San Francisco? Involve the disabled community in various recreational activities like sports and games. Mission is to make them feel equal with others in terms of participation in outdoor activities 2. Which community and population does the agency serve? Bay area of San Francisco – any age group, both children and adults. 3. What are some of the positive influences and negative influences of the agency? Positive – has helped disabled people to enjoy games and feel equal to others, has helped in improving quality of life. 4. What are the responsibilities of your Agency head? Creating awareness to increase donation and participation, motivating the staff and coaches, coming up with newer ideas 5. Can you elaborate on the various staff positions, the experience and the educational qualifications needed? Coaches – to co-ordinate the pairing between volunteers and the disabled people, ensure right teaching( 2-3 years in sports management, especially disabled friendly sports, sports based degree), psychologist – (2 years experience in working with disabled population, degree in psychology) Doctor – to conduct physical tests (no experience needed, M.D), Administrator – Day to day co-ordination of activities (2 years as admin, any management degree) 6. What do you know about funding – current funds and the actual funds needed? Purely based on donations – more funds are always needed because it is a non-profit. 7. Do you have any ideas to save money? Increase more volunteer led activities. Negotiation with sports agencies, deals with more corporates. 8. Can you describe some of the current problems with the agency? Need more volunteers who are dedicated. Need more funds. 9. Are there any ethical concerns that you have? Not any major, but some volunteers need to be trained on sensitivity related to disabled. 10. How does your set of values compare with the values of the agency? Values match as I am dedicated to this cause. The agency carries out the activity with diligence and commitment which is exactly how I work. 11. Will the agency still be working 10 years from now. What changes need To take place to keep it running? Yes, definitely. The agency should look at some other vocational services for the disabled to become a one stop center. Appendix C: Interview responses for Respondent Z What are the vision, mission and values of your agency KEEn San Francisco? Empower the disabled people to enjoy outdoor activities, improve their emotional and physical health with it. 2. Which community and population does the agency serve? Disabled population of San Francisco bay area 3. What are some of the positive influences and negative influences of the agency? Has helped in brining about changes in the lives of physically disabled as they are no longer restricted to indoor games. No negative influences at all. 4. What are the responsibilities of your Agency head? Mainly to co-ordinate fund raising activities, motivating all the staff and also the participants. 5. Can you elaborate on the various staff positions, the experience and the educational qualifications needed? Administrator – carry out day to day coordination (2 years in admin related work, any graduate). Doctors and psychologists – to carry out physical and mental counseling sessions (no experience required, but MD needed). Coaches and trainers (experts in sports therapy, especially for the disabled) 6. What do you know about funding – current funds and the actual funds needed? Fully through contributions. Funds needed on a regular basis because it is a non profit. 7. Do you have any ideas to save money? Everything is managed well currently. 8. Can you describe some of the current problems with the agency? Need volunteers in a consistent basis – many people come and go, and hence new people have to be trained. 9. Are there any ethical concerns that you have? No 10. How does your set of values compare with the values of the agency? Agency does not carry out any discrimination between disabled and others, and I believe in that too. 11. Will the agency still be working 10 years from now. What changes need To take place to keep it running? Yes, it will be. More involvement of volunteers, more funds. References KEEN Sanfrancisco. (n.d). Home Page. keensanfrancisco.org Retrieved Feb 21, 2012 from http://www.keensanfrancisco.org/. Read More