THE Salvation Army has been rated New Zealand's 'most reputable' not-for-profit organisation in a survey by NZ Management magazine and global business consultancy company Hay Group. Their survey findings are reported in the magazine's September 2010 edition.
'The Salvation Army leads the reputational charge as the country's highest-ranking not-for-profit,' notes NZ Management. 'It contributes positively to the New Zealand community. It does this through its effective organisation structure. And it consistently delivers on its customer promise and service.'
Commissioner Don Bell (Territorial Commander for New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga) said The Salvation Army was humbled by the recognition it had received. 'We work with New Zealanders in their darkest hours,' he said, 'and everything we do is guided by our mission statement and our belief that we need to be there for people when they need us most.'
More than 70 per cent of survey respondents were chairs, directors, chief executive officers, general managers or partners. The remaining 30 per cent were senior managers, managers or similar. All were asked to consider an organisation's contribution to the New Zealand economy and community as a whole rather than just focusing on commercial factors such as profit and return on investment.
The Salvation Army sits alongside Air New Zealand (top company), Kiwibank (top state-owned enterprise) and the New Zealand Police (top government department).
Despite the diversity of organisations surveyed, respondents were consistent in their opinions about reputation-defining characteristics. This included strong and effective leadership, well-developed strategic plans and objectives, and a clear and compelling vision. The Salvation Army's mission statement – caring for people, transforming lives and reforming society – defines its strategic objective and the way in which it aims to deliver on its promise of service to the community, particularly to society's disadvantaged.
The survey and Hay Group's anecdotal evidence suggests that more and more organisations are focused on strategies to address reputation-building. 'Reputation can be a forgetful and unforgiving companion,' said NZ Management in its coverage of the survey. 'Abuse it and chances are it will bite back. Leave it unattended and suddenly it has gone.'
Commissioner Bell stressed that reputation was not something the Army set out to engineer. 'It is really a by-product of our work. What we strive to do each day is to put the Christian gospel, our beliefs and values, into action – Christianity with its sleeves rolled up. I would hope this is how we are perceived. Our members, paid workforce and volunteers are primarily motivated by and committed to our mission. I see the evidence of this every day. They are our most valuable asset.'
While reputation is not The Salvation Army's primary focus, it is critical to the Army's effectiveness, said Commissioner Bell. 'Without the moral and financial support of the public, our corporate partners and various trusts and foundations, the breadth and depth of our work would contract dramatically. We don't take this support for granted, and its significance goes far beyond any dollar value.'
This was the first such survey for New Zealand but, with enthusiastic response, it looks to become an annual study. Hay Group New Zealand's chief executive Ian MacRae said that one of the significant lessons for businesses to learn from the findings was that they needed to 'think more carefully about their social responsibilities and community perceptions'.
