Organizational Health Index (OHI):.....

After 14 years of navigating Yemen’s complex humanitarian and development landscape from Oxfam GB and other agencies to senior program management-the persistent challenge remains: closing the capacity gap between local and international NGOs. While local organizations demonstrate immense bravery, achieving true institutional maturity requires moving beyond survival mode toward a structured, "healthy" organizational model.

Yemen presents one of the most volatile operational environments globally. To achieve sustainability, local organizations must move past a "funding-first" mindset and build institutional resilience through robust governance and strategic clarity.

Data alone is insufficient. Reaching institutional maturity requires expert guidance to balance these dimensions. In the Yemeni context, organizations often excel in external coordination but struggle with Internal Accountability and Innovation, leading to "talent drain."

I recall the year 2011, when I took my first professional steps with Oxfam GB, a leading international NGO in the development and relief sector. Throughout my career-advancing from Project Officer to Program Manager,the "capacity building of local organizations and their staff" was a constant objective that accompanied me in every role.

After more than 14 years of working in development and humanitarian projects in Yemen, the question of "capacity building" remains a top priority for program and project managers in international organizations. This often leads me to wonder: When will local organizations in our country reach full institutional maturity? Can local NGOs rise to the capacity levels of international ones? What is the fundamental difference between them? And how does the gap today compare to where it was 14 years ago? Why does this disparity persist?

Through my long experience, I have found numerous factors affecting the efficiency of institutional work in nonprofits. There are many variables and many however some of these is the "Work Environment." From my perspective, Yemen is one of the most complex environments in the world. Organizations operate under volatile political, security, and operational conditions, requiring a high degree of institutional resilience and governance to ensure sustainability.

There are many lessons I have learned that cannot all be recounted here, but the core question now to extend is related : What are the indicators of institutional and organizational health for nonprofits?

This inquiry led me to explore the Organizational Health Index (OHI) developed by McKinsey & Company:

The OHI program is a diagnostic tool designed to help nonprofits evaluate their current operational health. Developed by McKinsey, it measures nine key outcomes of organizational health to identify practical pathways for capacity building and performance improvement.

The Nine Dimensions of Organizational Health

The OHI assesses non-profit capabilities across nine vital areas:

• Direction
• Shared Vision: Do employees believe in the future the organization is striving for?
• Strategic Clarity: Are plans understood by everyone, or are they just "ink on paper" in management drawers?
• Meaningful Values: The feeling that daily work serves the community (crucial for non-profits).

Local Context: When a local NGO has a clear vision for economic empowerment in rural areas and refuses to chase "Grants" that do not align with its core mission. Success is when a field officer knows the goal isn't just distributing aid and collecting a salary, but truly changing lives.

• Leadership
• Authoritative Leadership: The ability to make tough decisions during critical times.
• Enabling Leadership: Empowering employees to perform tasks without micromanagement.
• Supportive Leadership: Caring for the human element and the psychological well-being of the team.

Local Context: In the face of permit delays or security challenges, "Authoritative Leadership" protects staff and makes quick safety decisions, while "Supportive Leadership" provides flexibility for employees facing difficult living conditions due to the crisis. It is the opposite of leadership based on favoritism, nepotism, or exclusion.

• Work Environment
• Openness and Trust: Can an employee speak their mind without fear of retaliation?
• Inclusion and Belonging: Valuing diversity and ensuring everyone feels like an essential part of the team.
• Organizational Connectivity: Cooperation between departments instead of working in "isolated islands."

Local Context: Success is integrating staff from diverse geographical, social, and cultural backgrounds (Inclusion), where the Food Security team seamlessly shares information with the WASH team to serve the same region.

• Accountability
• Role Clarity: Every person knows exactly what is expected of them.
• Performance Management: Clear consequences (positive or negative) based on performance.
• Personal Ownership: Employees feeling that the project’s success is their personal success.

Local Context: A clear Authority Matrix ensures a field officer knows which decisions they can make on-site without referring back to the head office, backed by a performance system that links actual achievement to reported data.

• Coordination and Control
• Operational Discipline: Commitment to standards and quality in execution.
• Risk Management: Predicting problems before they occur and creating contingency plans.
• Financial Sustainability: Efficiency in resource use and expenditure auditing.

Local Context: Strong procurement and financial control systems prevent conflicts of interest, ensuring aid reaches actual beneficiaries through transparent, institution-led processes rather than personal whims.

• Capabilities
• Talent Acquisition: The ability to attract the best personnel.
• Tech Enablement: Availability of technological tools that facilitate work.
• Technical Expertise: Deep knowledge in specific sectors (e.g., relief, education).

Local Context: The ability to use KoboToolbox for field data collection, or having a specialized team in Proposal Writing that understands international donor requirements and supply chain tracking technology.

• Motivation
• Core Values: The employee's connection to the organization's principles.
• Rewards and Recognition: Not just financial, but moral appreciation and celebration of achievements.
• Growth Opportunities: Seeing a professional future within the organization.

Local Context: Amidst fluctuating market salaries, a successful organization creates "meaning" for its staff and offers career development that makes an employee feel they are growing professionally despite the war.

• Innovation and Learning
• Knowledge Sharing: Does the organization learn from its mistakes and document lessons learned?
• Bottom-Up Innovation: Encouraging junior staff to propose improvements.
• Data-Driven Decisions: Making choices based on numbers, not guesswork.

Local Context: Developing a low-cost drip irrigation technique using local materials rather than waiting for expensive imports, or documenting why a project failed to ensure the mistake isn't repeated.

• External Orientation
• Beneficiary Focus: Do projects meet real needs or just donor requirements?
• Stakeholder Management: Building strong ties with governments, donors, and local partners.
• Public Image: How the community perceives the organization’s credibility—vital for long-term survival in the charitable sector.

Why Does This Matter?

These dimensions are critical indicators of a non-profit’s ability to achieve its mission. By identifying specific gaps, organizations can move from generic operations to targeted growth. While the OHI provides a data-driven picture, maximizing these insights often requires guidance from experts who have worked under similar conditions. Even global giants like Ford allocate budgets for expert consultations to identify gaps and find sustainable solutions.

How Can "ATYAF Consulting" Help You?

ATYAF Consulting specializes in assessing institutional and sectoral capacities. We go beyond data analysis to provide practical, actionable development plans tailored to the unique context of each organization.

In Yemen, we often find a focus on Capabilities (Dimension 6) and Control (Dimension 5), while neglecting Motivation and Innovation. Our role as consultants is to help you balance all nine dimensions to create a "healthy" and resilient organization.

We conduct comprehensive studies based on these criteria to tell you, for example: "You are very strong in external coordination, but your internal accountability is weak, which is why you are losing top talent." We then provide the right solutions to fit your organization's specific needs.

Connect with us to be partners in development: Visit us and register at www.atyafye.com or reach out via our social media channels to learn how we can partner with you to strengthen your organization’s capabilities.