Transparency Efficiency Frugality

To ensure that we efficiently provide quality educational experience to the children our operations are managed using business principles including viewing the delivery of such services as a supply chain and using project management methodology. In addition, we are quite frugal in way we manage our processes by relying on a core group of volunteers and are very prudently managing our operational expenses. Our processes are transparent through a sophisticated web-based management information system to track, monitor and control operational expenses and student outcomes. Finally, we rely on research to guide our endeavors

Project Management

Our projects are implemented within budget and on time by using project management methodology and team work. Our projects are deeply imbedded with the local communities and provide us with vital on the ground data, access and resources. We continuously improve upon our processing through documentation, case studies and conducting research. We encourage third party visits to our facilities by donors, university students and officials. We have benchmarked our operations with other entities throughout the world and our cost structure is less than half of other entities click here.

We have developed a set of spreadsheet based templates that helps us deal with the uncertainty and interdependency that projects may carry.

Supply Chain Management

Spread International’s approach is to view the development of a child as an interrelated process of providing the right health care, nutrition, shelter and educational support to ensure a healthy and well educated child. This requires coordination with the local health care entities, government schools and providing nutritious meals in our facilities. We also provide tutors.

Research

As part of a research study Lauren Burkhardt, Elizabeth McCarthy from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater wrote a paper entitled "Learning from Afar: Applicability of Project Management Theory By Indian NGOs." Some findings include: " in this research we identify the relevant variables for NGOs setting up developmental projects in the developing world. Specifically, we identified the following external characteristics of the project (size, resource availability, stakeholders, quality of infrastructure), internal characteristics of the project (information, complexity, uncertainty), management processes (use of methodology, team building, quality of communications, networking, flexibility), and outcome (deliverables, total cost, total time). This research sets up the stage for the development of project management theory that is applicable to a wider context than what has been previously established (developing world and developmental context).