Overview

The success of United Way depends on the performance of partner agencies in delivering the programs funded by United Way. Understanding the needs and concerns of those partner agencies and how United Way could assist, can help insure their success. Information from partner agencies can help United Ways implement better planning procedures and more efficiently allocate resources to support their partner agencies.

Perspectives Consulting Group, Inc. tailors each partner agency survey to meet the specific information needs of the United Way. Partner agency surveys can be conducted by telephone or mail depending on the type and number of questions. Once the information is obtained, Perspectives Consulting Group, Inc. analyzes the information and provides direction for planning purposes.

Partner Agency Surveys

In the past, United Ways have used partner agency surveys for:

• Planning purposes
• Evaluating delivery of services
• Identifying issues of concern among partner agencies
• Exploring potential methods for assisting partner agencies

Perspectives Consulting Group, Inc. has developed a simple process for conducting partner agency surveys. The process starts by meeting with the United Way to identify the issues of concern. The survey is then developed to address those issues and meet generally accepted survey practices. On average, a telephone survey of partner agencies is about eight to ten minutes in length, and a mail survey of partner agencies is about 4 pages in length. Once the survey is approved interviewing is conducted over a two to three week period. Analysis of the data and preparation of the report is completed within a few weeks of interviewing. The staff of Perspectives Consulting Group, Inc. will present the survey results to the United Way. Most partner agency surveys require between ten and twelve weeks to complete depending on the amount of time required to develop the survey. The cost depends on the number of organizations surveyed, the type of survey, and the length of the survey.

Partner Agency Survey Outline

The following outline lists topics that could be included on a partner agency survey:

Partner Agencies Needs

• Areas that are a challenge to partner agencies
• Opportunities for United Way to help support and improve the performance of partner agencies
• Awareness of support and assistance available to partner agencies

Issues

• Assessing issues of concern in the community and the community response to the issues
• Interest in addressing concerns through new programs or projects
• Benchmarking issues being addressed

Demographics

• Size of the partner agency such as employees, volunteers, donors, etc.
• Programs and services offered by the partner agency