The Hub's Approach

Financial Resilience

Legal advice organisations have been grappling with an unstable funding environment for years. Keeping a service going in this context requires more than a good budget. Thus, at the Hub we share useful information and resources needed to develop fundraising strategies and strategic financial plans. We also aim to equip managers and leaders with skills to make strategic budgeting decisions.

People

These are your greatest assest, your team of staff and volunteers who do the work at your legal advice organisation. Yet, we hear that recruiting and retaining qualified staff with the needed specialisms is increasingly difficult for advice organisations because of unstable funding environment and a host of other reasons. Thus we aim to support managers and leaders by sharing essential skills and good practice approaches to recruitment, and building a learning, collaborative team environment where people want to stay.

Purpose & Impact

How does your legal advice organisation answer the questions: Why does your organisation exist? And who needs your organisation’s support? We help you and your team get clear and stay focused on your mission and your strategic goals for the community you serve. We can also support you to create systems to measure and demonstrate the positive impact you have.

Community & Ecosystem

Legal and other support needs of those we serve are increasingly complex. We therefore aim to build up the skills and motivation of legal advice organisations engage and collaborate with other organisations in order to share learning, leverage innovation, fortify the ecosystem of services available, and strengthen the sector’s voice to influence positive change for vulnerable and marginalised groups.

Systems & Technology

All of the work at an advice organisation involves forms, records, procedures and processes, etc. Technologiy is changing at lightening speed, and compliance expectations are increasing, especially for those providing legal aid advice. The systems and technology we use can help or hinder the efficient running of our services. At the Hub, we aim to  share resources and good practice so managers and leaders can access what they need when they need it; know who to ask for recommendations and thus spend more time doing the stuff that matters.

Service

We have strict standards when it comes to what we produce and never compromise on quality. This is especially true when it comes to the first-rate materials we use. Our customers deserve the highest level of products on the market, and we work tirelessly to maintain those standards.

THE DECISION-MAKING LENSES

Managers and leaders have to make numerous decisions each day. Some decisions appear simple, some are incredibly complicated; frequently decisions are made in a time of crisis, and other times managers can have time to process and reflect before making a decision. Regardless of the level of urgency or complexity, each decision made by a manager and leader will impact colleagues, the organisation’s resilience, the service, and most importantly, the clients. 

At the Hub, we support managers and leaders to apply different lenses to their decisions, so they bring in wider sources of data and perspectives to inform a decision; and consider how a decision will impact various people and factors in the short and long term. 

Think of how ‘rose-tinted glasses’ refers to those times when we look at someone or something and only see the good things and are inspired to do something positive. 

As a manager and leader, there are numerous other metaphorical lenses we want to wear as we make decisions. Some of these include:

• Leadership & culture – how can I ensure the decision is aligned with the values of the organisation?

• Equity, Diversity and Inclusion – how will this decision impact various groups of staff or in the community, in particular those from marginalised groups or those with less power in this situation?

• Wellness – how are the staff doing at this moment, and how will this decsision impact the wellness and vitality of the teams?

• Risk  - what risks are related to this decision, risks to staff, the organisation, and/or to the community? What are we compromising if we decide to take these risks?

• Environmental impact – even within a tight budget, how do we reduce our environmental impact of this decision?