The Role of Choice

 One powerful way to improve California’s supportive services delivery system for immigrants is to increase the scope of cooperation between the non-profit organizations and government entities to expand the availability of services and make them more accessible. When newcomers have easy access to choices, they can make meaningful adjustments that best meet their needs to advance their lives. Furthermore, availability of resources will encourage immigrants to get more involved for their future. 

For that choice to be effective, immigrants must have: 1) a reliable organization for assistance; 2) reasonable access to available services; and 3) information to make informed choices about what is best for building their new lives. SIVRRC will create a mechanism for increasing choices available for all immigrants. Access and information will undoubtedly continue to be an important part of SIVRRC’s efforts.

SIVRRC is at an important juncture because California is welcoming more immigrants. The organization’s work will have tremendous potential to catalyze change in the delivery of available resources. As a result, SIVRRC will hone its strategy to reflect its views on what is needed for organization’s role to be effective. SIVRRC will focus on what the organization must do to have a direct impact, and what the organization must do and what must happen externally to cause an impact. SIVRRC’s ultimate goal is to improve the achievement of all immigrants. There are two steps to achieving that goal: 1) SIVRRC will expand its outreach activities consistently in the community to provide real choices for immigrant families and demonstrate willingness to help; 2) Then, SIVRRC will leverage its resources to improve immigrants’ lives in California. 

SIVRRC plans to grow in geographies with concentrated large immigrant population. SIVRRC approach of growth will be: 1) big enough to be relevant in the community, and 2) big enough to reach financially sustainability, but 3) small enough to preserve flexibility, culture, and values. SIVRRC will be relevant in targeted communities to serve a high number of disadvantaged immigrants. SIVRRC expects to grow gradually and evenly in a steady rate of growth. 

PHASES OF GROWTH 

This growth strategy will be implemented in multiple phases. 

PHASE ONE: STRENGTHENING AND PLANNING:

The objective of Phase One is to build an organization capable of supporting its growth plans. This phase also serves as a planning period for SIVRRC’s expansion to other communities. Main activities during this phase include: developing and implementing systems and processes; hiring and training staff; and creating implementation plans for the growth initiatives. 

PHASE TWO: FULL-POTENTIAL EXECUTION 

The objective of Phase Two is to reach wider regional geographies. During this phase, SIVRRC expects to open additional offices in the targeted communities. Growth will be staged with checkpoints in order to ensure the organization’s strategy is refined as needed. In the process, SIVRRC will develop its regional capabilities, and extend the early outreach concept of prevention. Growth plans and strategy will be adjusted as necessary. 

 SIVRRC’s success will depend on its ability to manage seven major risk factors:

1) Organizational Capability: Building the systems, infrastructure and staffing at the Home Office and Regional Offices, required supporting organizational objectives;

2) Program Quality: Consistently executing high-quality, personalized services and experiences that lead to exceptional life improving results; 

3) Facilities Development and Financing: Acquiring and developing suitable and affordable office facilities;

4) Community Relations: Managing the relationship with local and state entities; 

5) Human Resource Management: Attracting, developing and retaining high quality staffer and administrators who are able to implement the SIVRRC’s goals;

6) Government Funding: Securing all available federal, state and local funds to ensure all services are financially self-sustainable at steady state; and 

7) Philanthropic Funding: Securing the gifts and grants required to start and scale new offices and to cover costs of home and regional offices.

SIVRRC’s service delivery model is designed to provide immigrants with access to opportunities and resources to succeed in higher standard of life, work, and citizenship. Through personalized counselling and experiences, immigrants are guided to seek and maintain consistent efforts until they succeed.

SIVRRC’s service delivery model has seven core elements, each aligned with the others: 

1. High Standards and Clear Supportive Goals: To establish a foundation for success, immigrants will receive information and supportive services.

2. A Sense of Community: SIVRRC’s service deliver points and its outreach activities will create an environment that involves the community in which immigrants live. SIVRRC encourages all stakeholders to participate and volunteer to take part in helping newcomers which will result to maintain a sense of community. 

3. Less Time for Joining the Mainstream: SIVRRC provides package resources to maximize results. Immigrants can develop more rapidly while receiving multi available supportive assistance clearing the way to integrate seamlessly. 

4. A Balanced Help Package: SIVRRC’s uses a combination of adopted programs and in-house developed elements to build self-sufficiency. The help package will be based on standard measures and individual needs. Immigrants will have flexibility to use a variety of supportive services depending on their needs. 

5. A Variety of Outreach Methods: SIVRRC staffer and volunteers use the organization’s guidelines, which describe a variety of information and service delivery strategies and guides staffer in employing the strategies most effective for the problem matter and for individual immigrants. Awareness presents immigrants with a problem or question, around which they formulate and seek resolution to work towards a solution.

6. Rigorous and Ongoing Assessment: Assessment allows SIVRRC to observe individual immigrant progress, determine the efficacy of service delivery, and evaluate the success of the program as a whole. Multiple assessments are used because no single assessment provides sufficient information on immigrants’ progress and independency. 

7. Extra Support for Immigrants: As needed SIVRRC employs a variety of strategies to provide extra support for immigrants who are struggling. This can include educational and job training, financial assistance and referral programs. To meet the needs of immigrants who are lagging behind, SIVRRC will use a number of supportive strategies in addition to its core activities, including: building on immigrants’ culture, language, and experiences. SIVRRC may partner with local community entities and private enterprises for opportunities such as: on-the-job training or marketable skills developing.

SIVRRC believes that successfully carrying out its goals and growth plan requires strong governance and skillful management. As the organization will grow, it will be even more important to continue improve staffing capacity, to reevaluate the organization structure to support growth, to adapt its core processes for consistency throughout the organization, and to continue building means of performance measurement. 

To ensure continued success, consistent quality service delivery SIVRRC will need to manage six core processes successfully:

1) Quality Management

2) New Startup 

3) Outreach Support 

4) Financial and Asset Management 

5) Fund Development 

6) Advocacy 

SIVRRC management will ensure consistent service delivery results. To do so, SIVRRC will use a variety of mechanisms and tools to collect and analyze performance data and provide professional development to staff. Management will seek a more deliberate and formalized orientation program for new staff and Board members.

SIVRRC’s home and regional offices will also need to develop functional expertise in areas that cut across the six core processes: 

• Leadership: Developing and refining organizational strategies, developing and inspiring staff, building internal and external relationships 

• Finance: Developing financial strategies, understanding not-for-profit and public entity accounting, reporting financial information internally and externally, financing facilities 

• Program: Understanding and designing relevant service delivery principles and tools; coaching and mentoring

• Human Resources: Adjusting human resource practices and policies with organizational objectives; understanding payroll, benefits, and labor laws 

• Legal: Applying legal principles related to not-for-profits organization 

• Technology: Leveraging information technology to increase efficiency and efficacy, using media to communicate internally and externally, training diverse users in technology 

Thoughtfully managing organizational culture is essential to SIVRRC’s success; the service business relies upon the day-to-day, minute-by-minute judgment, skills, and attitude of individuals on the front lines. Developing a strong organizational culture, in which values are closely held and coordinated with the ultimate vision, will enable SIVRRC to avoid ineffective bureaucracies. 

Many of the SIVRRC’s functions and processes are designed to reinforce these values. For example, the process of outreach targets immigrants’ communities highlighting the ideas of quality service and purposefulness. The feedback process from immigrants will reinforce the importance of customer service and increase stakeholders’ sense of ownership. The practice of outreach explaining why we exist underlines the notion of purposefulness. SIVRRC will treat immigrants and staffers with respect and dignity; a practice that will complement the notion of ownership. Management will create a deliberate and formalized orientation program for new staff, Board members, as well as immigrants to provide a view of the organization’s work and values. SIVRRC will organize an annual gathering occasion that will enable staffers and immigrants to reconnect with the organization and share their success stories. 

Based on projected growth plans, SIVRRC will reach the point of self-sustainability once establishments are secured. At which point, the overhead charge to the sites will be sufficient to cover the costs of the Home Office and Regional Offices, including both costs related to direct support of existing sites and costs related to growth.

SIVRRC’s success will require tracking of progress towards the organization’s direct impact on immigrants’ lives and its ultimate goal. Metrics to measure and communicate success is an operational need. Having measurable results is also crucial to SIVRRC’s advocacy and community partnership efforts. SIVRRC will create a scorecard tracking both outcome results of SIVRRC’s work towards its goals, and its efforts impact in short-term and long-term results SIVRRC hopes to see from its work. Having these metrics is SIVRRC‘s strategy, SIVRRC will be able to test its assumptions, communicate its achievements, and engage important community members, decision makers and philanthropists in its network. In addition, SIVRRC also will use measurements to track the effectiveness of its processes, staff, and activities.

SIVRRC’s work and efficacy are possible only through the support of a growing number of organizations, individual immigrants, and their residing communities. SIVRRC anticipates strong partnership with community leaders, local officials, state and federal organizations and other nonprofit organizations for financial support and commitment from many foundations and individuals. SIVRRC will be developing relationships with all interested entities and businesses on an on-going process.