What due diligence should we do before onboarding an NGO?

Marpu Foundation
Jun 30
2 min read

When it comes to employee volunteering, CSR projects, or corporate NGO collaborations in India, finding the right partner is key — but verifying that partner is even more important. Here’s a quick guide on how CSR and HR leaders can do due diligence before onboarding an NGO for CSR partnerships in India.

Why Now? Why June?

June and July are peak planning months for most CSR heads and HR teams in India. With companies finalizing their CSR volunteering calendar, project proposals, and NGO collaborations, this is the right time to lock in credible partners who align with your impact goals.

Step 1: Legal and Compliance Check

Before anything else, ensure the NGO has:

Valid 12A and 80G registration
Updated CSR Form 1 filing on MCA portal
PAN, registration certificate, and audited balance sheets for the last 3 years
FCRA (if any funds are international)

📌 Why it matters: Without this, your CSR funds are at risk of non-compliance.

Step 2: Program Credibility & Track Record

Ask for:

Case studies of CSR projects with impact
Success metrics (e.g., number of beneficiaries, outcomes, SDG alignment)
Volunteer testimonials or corporate references
Media or award recognitions, if available

📌 Look for NGOs with a proven history of working with corporate teams across India.

Step 3: Ground Team & Implementation Readiness

This is where many CSR projects fail — ideas are great, but execution is weak.

Does the NGO have local presence or pan-India reach?
Are their trainers/volunteer coordinators full-time or on-call?
Do they provide ready-to-deploy kits or require heavy internal coordination?

📌 The best NGO partners work like your extended CSR team.

Step 4: Impact Reporting System

Ask what kind of impact reports they provide:

Are there pre-post surveys, photographs, testimonials, SDG reporting?
Will they support your internal CSR dashboard, presentations, or sustainability report?

📌 Choose NGOs that give visual, quantifiable, and timely data.

Step 5: Budget Transparency

Don’t just look at total cost — ask:

What’s the per-beneficiary impact?
What % is used for admin vs field?
Any hidden costs like travel, printing, logistics?

📌 A reliable NGO will give a breakup without hesitation.

Step 6: Cultural Fit & Volunteer Engagement

Do they understand corporate timelines, work culture, and approvals?
Can they design volunteer activities for office employees that are fun, scalable, and goal-driven?

📌 Good CSR partnerships feel like co-creation, not outsourcing.

Final Word

Due diligence isn’t just about compliance — it’s about building trust, scalability, and real social change through CSR. To make this happen, you can collaborate with an experienced NGO like Marpu Foundation, which supports Indian companies with end-to-end execution, compliance-ready documentation, and high-impact volunteer-led programs.

👉 To learn more, visit www.marpu.org