10.2 Positioning Your Organisation

The following are elements for developing a responsive development programme:

• Target audience(s) - Who is the NGB serving?
• Needs and/or interests to satisfy - What needs and/or interests of its target audience(s) are the NGB going to address?
• Resources and capabilities - What resources and capabilities does the NGB have available to satisfy its target audience(s)
• Programmes offered - What are the programmes offered by the NGB to satisfy its target audience?
• Goals for programmes - What is the NGB trying to achieve with each programme offered?
• Marketing and execution - How do the programmes get developed and implemented?
• Evaluation - Which programmes successfully meet their goals (and which programmes are unsuccessful)?
• Planning process - How does the NGB manage the development process?

Each of these elements is important to potential sponsors because they allow the potential sponsors to assess an NGB's focus, ability to deliver positive result vis-à-vis their target audience(s), and ability both to effectively use the sponsor's resources and respond to the sponsor's management requirements.

From a very practical perspective, it is important for NGBs to make a concerted and organised effort at development level. Many NGBs always will rely primarily on their own community for support, so this home base must be kept strong. For those NGBs that want to attract sponsors, it is essential that they realise that the "product" they are selling (their sport and its community) must be in good shape - provide value - or there will not be any buyers (sponsors)