Deadline: 14 September 2018

Nominations are open for Good Governance Awards 2018 that is an initiative that recognises and encourages adherence to good governance practice by nonprofits in Ireland.

2018 sees the introduction of a new award type “Best Governance Improvement Initiative” to recognise initiatives that have been taken to improve the quality of a nonprofit’s governance.

Types of Award

• Award Type 1: Annual Report/Director’s Report & Financial Statements
  • In 2018, An Award will be made in each of the following categories:
    • Category 1: For volunteer only and organisations with an annual turnover of less than €250,000.
    • Category 2: For organisations with an annual turnover of between €250,000 and €1 million.
    • Category 3: For organisations with an annual turnover of between €1 million and €5 million.
    • Category 4: For organisations with an annual turnover of over €5 million and €15 million.
    • Category 5: For organisations with an annual turnover of over €15 million.
  • The annual income turnover threshold for determining the relevant award category is based on the income stated in the organisation’s annual financial statements for 2017/18.
• Award Type 2: 2018 Best Governance Improvement Initiative
  • In 2018 they are introducing new award type for “Best Governance Improvement Initiative”. This new award will recognise initiatives that have been taken in the last 12-18 months to improve the quality of the non-profit’s governance. They are looking to nonprofits to submit their good governance initiatives, setting out (briefly – max 750 words) the governance issue(s) they addressed, the actions they took and the impact that this has had for the organisation.
  • In 2018, An Award will be made in each of the following categories
    • Category 1: For volunteer only and organisations with an annual turnover of less than €250,000.
    • Category 2: For organisations with an annual turnover of between €250,000 and €1 million.
    • Category 3: For organisations with an annual turnover of between €1 million and €5 million.
    • Category 4: For organisations with an annual turnover of over €5 million and €15 million.
    • Category 5: For organisations with an annual turnover of over €15 million.
  • The annual income turnover threshold for determining the relevant award category is based on the income stated in the organisation’s annual financial statements for 2017/18.

Eligibility Criteria (for both awards)

To enter, the organisation must meet the following entry requirements;

• The non-profit organisation must be an Irish (i.e. its registered head office is in the Republic of Ireland) nonprofit organisation. They use term “nonprofits” or “nonprofit organisations” as shorthand for civil society organisations. They don’t call them companies because many are not incorporated; they don’t call them charities because many don’t fall within the definition of a charity in law, or they have not yet registered as charities.
• The widely respected John Hopkins Comparative Non-Profit Sector Project came up with this way of defining civil society organisations: they are;
  • Organised: with some kind of formality and institutional reality;
  • Private: institutionally separate from government;
  • Non-profit distributing: not returning any surpluses generated to members or owners;
  • Self-governing: in a position to control their own activities and have their own internal procedures for governance;
  • Voluntary: participation in these organisations must not be mandatory.
• The organisers of the Good Governance Awards (GGA) will use the above John Hopkins University’s defining criteria to determine if an applicant organisation is a non-profit organisation for the purposes of the GGA and reserve the right to exclude applications from organisations who the organisers believe do not fully meet these criteria.
• Non-profit applicants for the awards can be any one of the following organisation types;
  • Incorporated organisation – Company Limited by Guarantee
  • Registered Charity
  • Un-incorporated organisation, – community/voluntary group or association
  • Social Enterprise.

How to Apply

Nominees can apply via given website.

Eligible Country: Ireland

For more information, please visit Good Governance Awards.