Our values
The NCVO Consultancy team works with integrity, independence and energy. We support our clients according to a set of principles:
We don't take away your problems: we help you solve them
It is vital to the success of our consultancy projects that we enable our clients to come to their own solutions and prioritise changes they want to make to their own organisations.
We will work collaboratively with you to tackle difficult issues and devise practical and creative ways of overcoming obstacles, but we won't ever impose solutions on a client.
Our aim will always be to improve your skills during the project, rather than expecting you to rely on ours.
We will act as your critical friend
Critical friends are not just critical. They're not just friends either. We will listen as much, if not more, than we speak.
We will ask searching questions, help clarify ideas, encourage focus and clarity of meaning and act with integrity. We value simple, clear and honest communication and want to help you achieve your mission.
We won't assume we know more than you about running your organisation, but neither will we always say what you want to hear just because you are paying us.
We will develop a detailed scope with you
Dedicating time to a thorough scoping of your project is absolutely essential to its success.
We will take time to fully understand the work you want done, the reasons why you want it done, and the outcomes you want to achieve.
We'll ensure we have a shared vision for the work, which will act as the basis of the consultancy agreement between us.
We know what we're good at, and focus on that
In our proposal we will be clear and upfront about the skills and expertise we can bring to your organisation.
We offer a set range of services to our clients and stick to those. Our Consultancy team is made up of experienced voluntary sector professionals. We're not interested in selling you a particular approach, framework or product; we can bring to your attention a wide range of tools and techniques.
When we consider taking on a project in the first place, we honestly assess whether we will make a real difference to your organisation. If we don't think we can help you, we will say so, and suggest other sources of support you could try.
We will offer you value for money
Our prices allow us to offer a sustainable consultancy service to a variety of organisations of different size, income and capacity. We will be upfront in our bids about our price and what's included and what's not. We will reinvest 100% of any surplus from this service into NCVO's work to provide voice and support for the sector.
We will evaluate our work with you and make a difference to the sector
We don't exist to make a profit, we exist to make a difference. That's why every piece of work ends with a proper evaluation, both immediately after we've finished, and again some time later to see how you're getting on.
With your permission, the learning from our joint experiences will also be fed into NCVO's wider work, to enable the whole sector to profit from the insights gained. It also means we are focused on continually improving our service, benefiting the clients that come after you, as you will have benefited from those who came before.
Find out more about our service and meet the team.
