#BrioEmpowers NAMA Foundation: Driving Change Inside and Out
Non-governmental organizations, or NGOs are a unique sector. They are normally established for noble purposes – to advocate for marginalized groups; to raise awareness of pressing issues; and to create a better world in general.
NAMA Foundation is one such organization. Its goal is to empower targeted communities together with civil society throughout the globe. This is done through providing institutional grants and partnership building, supported by project management techniques and measurable outcomes. They are also a member of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
Challenges Unique to NGOs
NAMA Foundation doesn’t have a large number of staff. Zulfirdaus Abu Hassan, NAMA Foundation’s Head of Program Management explains that the foundation operates effectively with less than 20 staff.
But at the same time, like many NGOs, they also face unique challenges especially in HR. Zulfirdaus says, “Finding qualified employees and retaining them is a challenge for us, and this is actually common in most NGOs across the globe. It is not easy to attract good talents in the first place due to funding constraints, and even after they are hired, the possibility of them leaving for a better pay or environment is very high.”
Thus, proper workforce management is key to recruitment and reducing staff turnover for NGOs. This is why NAMA Foundation decided to use BrioHR to help them with their unique HR requirements. “I have personally experienced a number of platforms being utilized and considered here before we found BrioHR. Most of the platforms were either too complex or too simple to meet our requirements,” explains Zulfirdaus.
NAMA Foundation at the Social Entrepreneurship for Rural Youths (SERY) programme ceremony
I personally believe that performance management is a good feature that I would recommend to NGOs. Performance management can help NGOs to be more systematic and practical in managing their employees’ performance year on year.
Improving People Management with BrioHR
Aside from hiring and turnover, Zulfirdaus said that the foundation’s leadership has always been very particular about continuously improving its effectiveness and efficiency especially when it comes to people management.
This also extends to NAMA Foundation’s usage of HR software. “NAMA’s employees started using BrioHR even before the official onboarding session with the BrioHR team. That tells a lot about how user-friendly the system really is. I can comfortably say that there is no resistance at all from the employees when it comes to utilizing the software,” elaborates Zulfirdaus.
But more than just the user-friendliness aspect, it is the way in which BrioHR can help NGOs empower their people and move towards the future they envision. “I personally believe that performance management is a good feature that I would recommend to NGOs. Performance management and monitoring may not be something properly practiced in many NGOs, so this feature can help those NGOs to be more systematic and practical in managing their employees’ performance year on year,” explains Zulfirdaus.
