Board Profile
- 11 board members (mostly in Hong Kong, one in mainland China), 3 administrators
- Industry: Non-Profit
- Meeting Frequency: Quarterly as a board; standing committees meet either monthly, bimonthly or quarterly
Objectives
- Minimise costs and establish better board workflows for document signing
- Minimise costs and simplify the board pack creation process
- Provide board members with a single source of truth
Results
- Streamlined the document signing process with the use of digital signatures
- Estimated postage savings of $500 HKD per month
- Reduced board pack preparation time by 50%
- Estimated savings of $1000 HKD per board meeting in resource and printing costs
- Successful transition and adoption by all board members and administrators
Challenges
Habitat for Humanity Hong Kong, a locally registered charity representing the world renowned non-profit, Habitat for Humanity International, has been serving the local community in Hong Kong since 2004, recognising that decent and affordable housing is a catalyst for pulling families out of a low- or no- income existence and breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty. From disaster response activities to local initiatives such as the home renovation, repair and deep cleaning programme Project Home Works, working with schools in underserved areas with the Project School Works programme, and their annual Women Build, the organisation continues to be a beacon of hope for low-income communities in Asia's World City and beyond.
How Habitat for Humanity makes an impact
Helped
35,000,000+
people obtain a safer shelter since 1976
Mobilised
~1,000,000
volunteers in FY2020
Improved
5,900,000+
people's living environment in FY2020
Governance activities and oversight of Habitat for Humanity Hong Kong's mission-critical programmes fall under the purview of its executives and board of directors. The recent growth of their board from six to eleven members, however, added a layer of complexity to board-related tasks.
"Since our board and standing committees grew significantly in membership, we needed a platform that would reduce administration, manage version control, and streamline meeting management," says Jo Hayes, CEO of Habitat for Humanity Hong Kong. "We required a system that would encourage a paperless board."
As one of three board administrators, Jo knew the pain points that had to be directly addressed.
"Our Board Chair was based overseas, and whilst he would fly into Hong Kong for board meetings, the signing of documents in between meetings was problematic," Jo recalls. "It was a lengthy and costly process with remote directors. And it became more complicated when documents required multiple signatories."
In addition to this, Jo also cites inefficiencies in the way time and resources were being utilised.
"Three years ago, the board pack was circulated as one continuous PDF file. As the board grew, so did the board pack," Jo recalls. "We evolved to a .zip file of papers that was circulated via email. The time spent on creating the paper pack was extensive. We would print full packs for all board directors and staff present in the board meetings. This meant allocating hours on printing and organising, as well as the high use of paper and ink. And if the board pack had an essential update, version control became an issue."
"The board can focus their time on questions, analyses, and recommendations. They don't need to spend any time or energy on administrative matters, questioning version control, or waiting for outstanding documents."
Solutions
Prior to the transition to the board management application, Jo says that the days leading up to the publishing of the board pack were "always stressful and packed with administrative tasks." But as soon as they transitioned their board activities to Praxonomy's board portal solution, Boardlogic, the process became much smoother.
Jo credits the platform's Digital Board Pack Builder. The Board Pack Builder is the easiest and fastest way to compile digital meeting packs. The board pack is published by simply uploading files to the platform and linking them to specific agenda items. Board pack information is shared in real-time, and edits can be made on-the-fly.
"With the Digital Board Pack Builder, Boardlogic has reduced our preparation time by half and lightened our workload significantly," Jo says. "The feature has helped alleviate many of the stresses we felt, and now we can focus more on the content of the board pack rather than administrative tasks."
In addition to the Board Pack Builder, Jo has found the digital signatures and version control features beneficial. These were functionalities that stood out to her as key differentiators from project management tools that they were considering.
Boardlogic's digital signature feature enables the board to approve and sign-off on documents securely regardless where they're at—and in a matter of clicks. The platform's version control functionality, on the other hand, ensures that the latest information is always being presented to the board, eliminating confusion as to whether files in the board pack are up-to-date.
"Collating signatures from remote directors is no longer a logistical challenge, and version control of documents is better managed today," Jo states.
Boardlogic provides a full set of tools to organise meetings and manage materials and tasks throughout the entire meeting lifecycle.
"Boardlogic has reduced our [meeting] preparation time by half and lightened our workload significantly."
Results
Since the transition, the response and feedback from the board and administrators have been overwhelmingly positive.
"The platform is very user-friendly. We have a technically-diverse board. The ease of use means accessibility to all our board directors regardless of their tech background and expertise," Jo adds. "But even so, when hands-on guidance is needed, Boardlogic's client service has been impeccable—always ready to step in and advise."
All of this has led to notable efficiency gains for Habitat for Humanity Hong Kong. In less than a year, the board meeting solution has helped achieve the following:
- Reduced the preparation time for the board pack by 50%
- Saved an estimated $1,000 HKD per board meeting in staff time and printing cost
- Saved an estimated $500 HKD per month in a postal costs savings due to digital signatures
- Provided a single source of truth for board information
"We have enjoyed using the platform," Jo says. "It shows the board of directors that we can run an efficient meeting that caters to board members joining both in person or online."
More importantly, Jo states that using Boardlogic has made an impact on the way board members execute their governance responsibilities. It has allowed the board to truly hone in on helping the organisation execute its vision of "a world in which every person has a decent place to live."
"The board can focus their time on questions, analyses, and recommendations. They don't need to spend any time or energy on administrative matters, questioning version control, or waiting for outstanding documents."
