Nonprofits Need the Capacity to Do What?

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1 Nonprofits Need the Capacity to Do What? Carry Out Their Mission (mentioned 5x 3 groups listed it as one of the highest priorities) Perform/Achieve Desired Impact (2x) o Conduct and evaluate programs (3x) o Benchmark and measure success/impact (3x) Engage and Connect with Community o Actively collaborate (2x - 1 group listed it as one of the highest priorities) o Understand and actively address community needs o Identify community assets and resources Govern and Manage Their Boards (mentioned 4x four groups listed it as one of the highest priorities) Plan and Lead Adaptively (11x) o Mature, expand, and grow (3x) o Learn and operationalize what they have learned (3x) o Identify organization s relevancy and purpose o Plan and define organizational goals to avoid mission drift o Create and maintain a positive culture and embed it within organization o Evaluate organizational success o Balance passion with performance o Balance proactivity and reactivity o Innovate o Identify and respond to opportunities, threats, and emergencies o Move along the capacity continuum Recruit/Retain/Develop Board and Volunteers (3x - 1 group listed it as one of the highest priorities) Strengthen Administrative and Operating Practices (mentioned 4x - 1 group listed it as one of the highest priories) Manage Organization s Financial Health (6x 1 group listed this as one of the highest priorities) o Become sustainable through managing, analyzing, and understanding finances Fundraise (mentioned 4x 2 groups listed it is one of the highest priorities) o Effectively and efficiently. Don t pursue unrelated grants. o Strategically and not on the fly Recruit/Retain/Develop Competent Staff (mentioned 4x 1 group listed it as one of the highest priorities) o Retain current staff (2x) and plan for successions Build Skills technology, time management Communicate (2x) o Raise awareness of organization/issues o Organization s results and impact (2x)

2 What Works to Build Nonprofit Capacity? Organizational assessments Internal study (CF of Muncie & Delaware Counties) Capacity Mapping Tool (Paul Light) rate/rank on simple 1-5 scale Prosperity Indiana s Outcomes Platform Survey of nonprofits during needs assessment (Linda Speed) Operating grants Fund leadership transitions and/or positions for one year Staff/Board Training Incentives to attend learning series o Grants tied to participation in training programs 1K grants to cover cost of conferences and trainings Topics: Grant writing, fundraising, volunteer management CFRM program (Boone County) 40 people attending classes program also serving as a collaboration tool INRN programs, specifically June Miller in SE IN. Quarterly programs open to all nonprofit CEOs/staff Workshops (not just lectures) pairing training with practices Center for Nonprofit Excellence programs (funded by Louisville Donors Forum) Lilly School fundraising programs Customized programs for individual nonprofits or nonprofit cohorts Board trainings that provide case studies and/or encourage board members to apply the business principles of their day jobs to their nonprofit work Networking Events Meetings that offer participants moments to shine instead of just providing organizational updates or promos for upcoming events/programs Independent facilitators Performance Challenge approach to meetings. Case studies. Using networks to identify and develop coaches. Leaders emerge thru networks. Meetings based upon.. o Size of nonprofit (small/medium/large) o Service (youth providers, arts organizations) o Role at nonprofit (boards, CEOs, staff) o Staff experience level (1-5 years, 5-10 years) o Organizational lifespan or continuum (emerging, maturing, leading) o Geographic service area or interest (national, state, local) o Specific purpose (cohorts like the 10-month program through CF Leads) o Relationships (nonprofits with endowments at CF, grantees, non-grantees) o Time (quarterly, 6x per year, once per year)

3 Intentionally building capacity culture and infrastructure Offer on-going ED/Board support Foster a partnership mentality (foundations and program officers partnering with nonprofits) Understand the cost of quality Remove barriers to services and participation in programs Develop a common language Recognize continuum of support (from operating grants to skills development and adaptive leadership) Recognize the entire eco-system of your nonprofits (size, challenges, culture) Develop an array of services (grants/training/consultant/assessments/adaptive leadership/technical skills) Develop an All Boats Rise Approach (collaboration, community of nonprofits, non-duplicative services) Customize services : Coaching/Mentoring/Consulting (2x) o Offer just-in-time services Organizations or individuals doing a great job in supporting nonprofit capacity Welborn Baptist Foundation (work on npo management) Capacity Mapping (Prosperity) Fundraising School Paul Light, Peter York, Paul Conway Community Foundation of Elkhart County o Answered Why are We Doing This o Partnership of five museums and partnership for children o Created an All Boats Rise mentality o Array of services

4 Questions/Ideas for November 7 th How can funders support shared nonprofit services? Ideas for networking/peer implementation Are community foundations looking at their internal capacity and sustainability? Should nonprofit leaders and staff be at the table for these conversations? Role of CF as partner vs. parent and dependency for resources How are we measuring our impact as a foundation? Best practice for granting processes (rubric, applications etc.) What assessment tools are being used (small, medium and large organizations/ different issues) Standards for board? Standards for npos? Who can mentor/coach? What is the definition of capacity GEO definition? What are Adaptive Leadership vs. Technical Skills What is the value/costs of customized training Discuss categories of support o Capital Purchases o Operating grants o Access to resources (books, data, space ) o Consultants/Coaches o Convening/Networking o Education/Training Discuss length of capacity program grants o One-time grants o On-going support

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