Examples of charity analysis

An example of a successful incubation model: Exeter Community Initiatives

Exeter Community Initiatives (ECI) is a very unusual charity. Like many community organisations it works to improve the quality of life for people in its local area, by making the local area more economically sound and socially vibrant. Unlike most community organisations it works to develop new projects to meet needs in Exeter with the aim that they become independent rather than stay within ECI.

This model has several advantages: Exeter benefits from a range of projects set up by people experienced in starting new work; and ECI can meet a variety of needs without having to grow. Over the past few years, ECI has strengthened its project development process so that it is more rigorous about making sure that it is the right organisation to fill the gaps. The challenge for the next few years, particularly in 2011/2012, is to improve its results measurement, which is currently an acknowledged weakness. This would give ECI even better evidence on need and what works and would therefore become an important part of project development.

Its focus on helping projects gain independence does put a strain on ECI, with staffing and financial implications to growing and shrinking the charity as projects start and leave. It also presents challenges for how ECI presents itself—people know its projects better than ECI itself, but it has to communicate to people the value of its approach, and how it is more than just the sum of its projects.

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