Week 5: Progress
This week was all about compliance. At the beginning of my time here, Tessa Tigar-Cross and I created a spreadsheet that listed everything IBJ needed to do to be compliant with their funders' rules. As we took stock of the policies and procedures already in place, one thing became clear: we would be doing a lot of these policies from scratch. The spreadsheet has remained an intimidating document looming in my Google Drive; but this week, I got the chance to make some very real progress.
The spreadsheet has been split up into more manageable chunks with the arrival of more summer volunteers. I have been left with a collection of stray HR policies, forms, and agreements that need either heavy revision or to be newly created. This week, I chipped away at that to-do list, revising IBJ's procurement policy, privacy policy, confidentiality agreements, and more.
One large on-going compliance project I have undertaken is the creation of a risk management plan for IBJ. With the help of a new volunteer, I was able to knock out two more sections of the plan; now, over half of the risk management plan is complete.
It's really rewarding to see progress being made. This weekend I hiked Mont Saléve, a mountain across the French border that overlooks Geneva. As I struggled up the four-hour climb, I realized how important it was for me to actually seemy progress. I took purposeful stops to admire the view and pat myself on the back for how far I had gone. The view of Geneva, growing ever-smaller, was very important motivation for me.
Like the stopping to see the views on my way to the top of Mont Saléve, crossing a policy off of my to-do list has allowed me to visualize IBJ's progress toward total compliance. Every time I finish something off of that giant spreadsheet, I feel even more determined to jump into the next task.
Next week, I look forward to crossing even more off of that list.