Achieving our goal of ‘20,000 satisfied members by 2034’ requires us to identify and act upon the diverse needs, aspirations and behaviours of our members.
We aspire to provide outstanding business services that make good and effective use of our members’ financial investment in the association, and be responsive to members. To do this we recognise, value and invest in our core governance and business infrastructure, in our staff team and our digital platforms.
This will also be achieved by engaging effectively with our members, making best use of their individual and collective expertise and being responsive to them in our service provision.
Over the past five years, the BDA has been on a journey to improve our governance model and build our core capabilities. These include our knowledge and people skills, process improvement and staff development supported by an integrated, reliable and progressive technology platform, and a clear digital roadmap.
We will continue to invest in this improvement journey aiming to exceed our members’ expectations, to support growth and to ensure we are delivering excellence behind the scenes.
Since 2018 the BDA has been developing its governance model and growing transparency and engagement between the Board and members. We have introduced the Professional Committee to increase the voice of the profession in the organisation.
This improvement journey will continue, with a focus on the development of the connection between BDA governance and membership.
We have made improvements to how our administrative support function is delivered within the office and will continue to develop our standard operating procedures and improve our staff induction programme.
We have also completed one of the most significant digital infrastructure programmes with our CRM system, integrated with an upgraded website and other data platforms. This investment will enable us to support members more dynamically with fewer account related errors and will provide increased opportunities for personalised and flexible service offerings.
We currently use over 50 different IT systems with more being incorporated as we swiftly moved our business services online during the Covid-19 pandemic. The implementation of this strategy will see rationalisation of these systems and a greater focus on tools that work well for members; reducing the complexity and operational cost of our technology.
By 2034
By 2034 we want to be delivering excellence behind the scenes which means operating in a manner that is affordable and financially sustainable with seamless and standardised policies, processes and systems and a high level of responsiveness for members, demonstrating good practice.
We will have a solid digital platform that is stable, fit for purpose, automated activities where possible and personalisation where appropriate.
There will be a sustainable technology framework which sets out our digital future, focused on the needs of members and maximising investment.
Our governance framework, supporting the delivery of this and future strategies, will be transparent to members and have clear engagement mechanisms.
The BDA will have a greater presence in Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland evidenced by proactive recruitment, employment and support for member activity in each nation.
Internally, the BDA staff team will feel supported to deliver, will be diverse and succession planning will be in place for key roles.
By 2027
By 2027, with support from our CRM system, we will be reviewing the data we capture and looking at increasing the effectiveness of reporting to the Board. This will include reporting the major elements of this strategy.
We will specifically begin a programme of reporting to include the diversity of our BDA membership and a project to look at how we might use data more smartly to inform our decision making.
By 2027 the Professional Committee and EDI Committee will both be embedded and they will be making recommendations to the Board that reflect the needs of an evidence-based, diverse and inclusive profession.
We will run a series of regular governance webinars to introduce members to how BDA governance works and promote interest in being engaged with the organisation.
By 2027 the BDA will be operating sustainably against in-year income and will have developed a clear investment plan focused on sustaining the services enjoyed by members for the long-term.
We will have effective IT infrastructure based on the CRM, MS Teams and an effective web environment. The investments made in this space will be maximised and the BDA will have a digital roadmap for future digital-sustainability.
The BDA will be utilising the resources available to deliver higher levels of personalisation and automation for member interactions and communications.
We will have new accessible online offerings for all members, which support the wider work programme. We will have used our membership database to measure membership engagement and satisfaction.
By 2027 the BDA will have implemented a staff wellbeing strategy and will have achieved silver Thrive at Work programme accreditation.