Transparency Awards Call for Improvements

When international accounting firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers announced the winner of its inaugural Australian Not for Profit ‘Transparency’ Awards, its judging panel called for a number of changes around Third Sector Reporting.

PWC with the Institute of Chartered Accountants has released its "Report from the Jury" which incorporates insights gained during the detailed review process.

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Partner Rick Millen says the quality of reporting in the NFP sector in Australia is highly variable. Some organisations produce good quality, transparent reporting, but the general standard needs improvement in order to meet the information needs and expectations of all stakeholders.

The Jury found while NFPs annual reports are well presented with clear reporting of strategy and results, there was often insufficient information provided about how performance against strategy is being, and will be, measured.

The Jury reported that governance reporting by NFPs is an area needing greater articulation, in particular reporting the structure and processes of Boards and governing bodies.

Organisational risk management policies and procedures are areas warranting greater attention, as is stakeholder reporting because of inconsistencies in the level of detail provided for major stakeholder groups.

PCW says the winner of the Awards, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF),demonstrated clear, well written and easily accessible reporting with the inclusion of a five year strategic plan on their website, allowing readers to understand the future plans of the organisation.

It says a clear strength of JDRF’s reporting relates to the information provided to stakeholders. Stakeholder’s opinions are sought and their input provided into the shaping of the organisation’s strategic plans and research program.

It was also noted by the Jury that JDRF’s reporting on fundraising activities was outstanding. Detailed explanations of income and expenditure for specific fundraising activities were provided, as well as defining expenditure, and disclosing direct, indirect and total expenditure as a percentage of gross income.

It says that coupled with the position statement regarding responsible allocation of funds provided on the website, donors have transparent view of how their funds are applied by the organisation.

PWC says the runner-up, Australian Community Support Organisation (ASCO), clearly demonstrated their intention to be transparent and provided very comprehensive and readable information that is easy to access.

The winner receives $20,000 towards the training and development of its people, as well as being able to demonstrate to funding organisations its strong commitment to accuracy and openness in financial reporting.

The runner-up organisation receives $10,000 towards the training and development of its people.

All participating organisations will also be given individual feedback on their reporting practices and details of best-practice reporting trends within the sector.

The Jury Report can be downloaded at
www.pwc.com/au/transparencyawards2007.