Capacity Building and Technical Assistance

updated 1/9/07

Governance as Leadership: Reframing the Work of Nonprofit Boards

Until recently there has been a narrow conception of nonprofit boards of directors, focused on their operational, oftentimes unfavorable, role as fiduciaries, authorizers and micromanagers.  Conversation about board governance has centered more on lists of dos and don’ts than around compelling or competing concepts of governance. Now, current board development best practices support the idea that effective boards must become a reflective community of interpretation where trustees can and do talk seriously about organizational purpose and the nature of governance.

In their 2005 book, authors Richard P. Chait, PhD, William P. Ryan, PhD and Barbara E. Taylor, posit that there are three modes of board governance that together comprise governance as leadership:

• Type 1 – the fiduciary mode, where boards are concerned primarily with the stewardship of tangible assets.
• Type 2 – the strategic mode, where boards create a strategic partnership with management.
• Type 3 – the generative mode, where boards provide a less recognized but critical source of leadership for the organization. 

Type 1 constitutes the bedrock of governance – the fiduciary work intended to ensure that nonprofits are faithful to mission, accountable for performance, and compliant with relevant laws and regulations.  Without Type 1, governance would have no purpose.  If a board fails as fiduciaries, the organization could be irreparably tarnished or even destroyed.  Type 2 concerns the strategic work that enables boards (and management) to set the organization’s priorities and course, and to deploy resources accordingly.  Without Type 2, governance would have little power or influence. If a board neglects strategy, the organization could become ineffective or irrelevant. 

The Generative mode (Type 3), though the least recognized of the three modes according to the book’s authors, shapes the work of the strategic and fiduciary mode and is a critical source of input for the organization.  It underscores the expressive aspects of the organization.  In other words, a board that is generative is concerned not only with productivity or logic, but also with values, insights and judgments. 

A generative board might inquire:

• How will a proposed program advance our mission? (in lieu of, “Will the proposed program attract enough clients or funders?”)
• Is it ethical? (in lieu of “Is it legal?”)
• Are we treating staff fairly? (in lieu of “Is staff turnover reasonable?”)

In reality most organizations encounter issues that require fiduciary, strategic and generative considerations, but often act out of only one mode. The current challenge to boards is to learn how to become and practice being more flexible and to recognize and then let go of operating out of a single mode of governance. When boards work well in the fiduciary, strategic and generative modes, the board achieves what these authors, of the book of the same name, refer to as Governance as Leadership.

For more about this book go to http://www.boardsource.org/Bookstore.asp?Item=161

Identifying Enablers of Nonprofit High Performance

Accenture, a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company, recently surveyed more than 230 executive directors of nonprofit organizations and for-profit executives serving on nonprofit boards of directors from a variety of nonprofit organizations.  The purpose of the survey was to help nonprofits identify and address key barriers to and accelerators for achieving high performance in the nonprofit community. 

The top 10 issues facing nonprofits as identified by the executive directors and board members were:

1. Expanding the current donor base.
2. Recruiting high impact board members.
3. Increasing donations from current donors.
4. Attracting and retaining skilled staff.
5. Increasing donor loyalty and retention.
6. Cultivating a dynamic and effective culture among board members.
7. Establishing a clear set of quality benchmarks for assessing services.
8. Using IT to reduce costs and create value.
9. Pursuing collaborative partnerships with public sector agencies, including government.
10. Pursuing collaborative partnerships with the private sector.

Not surprisingly, the study found that fundraising – and survival – are primary issues for nonprofit executives.  Expanding the donor base was the most commonly issue, identified by 77% of executives as their biggest concern.   But as nonprofits maintain their intense focus on fundraising, according to Accenture, most organizations represented in the survey appeared to be overlooking opportunities to improve their own operations and more effectively leverage the funding they do have. 

Accenture research found that nonprofits would benefit from embracing basic business practices and tools and the report recommends six actions that nonprofits can take to improve their operations and address the internal and external challenges they face: 

1. Make better use of technology.
2. More effectively organizing and managing volunteers as an extension of staff.
3. Explore and adopt new collaborative business models with complementary organizations.
4. Convince corporate and private-sector donors to fund general operations instead of “signature” or “vanity” programs.
5. Adopt appropriate metrics that enable organizations to evaluate the success and impact of their delivery of services and programs.
6. Engage board members to ensure quality governance structures.

Go to https://www.accenture.com/Global/Registration/ExecutiveRegistrationStudy.htm to register to download a PDF of the full study, along with detailed appendices.

The Charitable Impulse, a report from Public Agenda

This 2005 report looks, in part, at the results of focus groups and interviews conducted with people around the United States who give to and volunteer for nonprofit organizations. 

To participate in the study, participants had to meet three of the following four criteria:

• Voted in the last election,
• Contributed at least $300 to charitable organizations in the past year,
• Were a member of a civic group,
• Volunteered at least once in the past year.

Though this research was not conducted specifically with LGBT community-based organizations, the results of this inquiry generally bode well for LGBT community centers looking to attract and retain community member participation in their activities and organizations.  For example, “small donors often see small, local nonprofits as the engine of efforts to improve local civic life,” and most donors seem to admire and trust local nonprofits more than government and national organizations. 

In addition, the findings indicate that:

• Donating to charity is often seen as a civic act, another means of voting, activism or making one’s preferences known.
• Donors were also impressed by – and said they were more likely to donate to – organizations that use volunteers, which they viewed as evidence that an organization is efficient and focused on the cause, not just on raising money.
• Small donors give based on the call of their heart and gut instincts about the people and groups involved. 
• Donors seem to prefer an active rather than passive engagement in charities, e.g. they want to volunteer if they can and they clearly like to “see charity up close and personal” in their local communities.  They understand that money is often the preferred and most “rational” type of charitable donation, but sometimes it is less satisfying and meaningful to these donors.
• The current debate on accountability, transparency and effectiveness of the nonprofit sector is crucial to maintaining public trust but is not sufficient in and of itself.  The public’s sentiment is much more about the passion they feel for the work of charities, especially because they believe this is work that business and government cannot or will not do to help ordinary people improve their lives and communities. 

Read the full report, The Charitable Impulse, http://www.publicagenda.org/research/research_reports_details.cfm?list=94

To download a 1998 report on the giving and volunteering patterns of the LGBT community, by Funders for Lesbian and Gay Issues and the Institute for Gay and Lesbian Strategic Studies, go to: http://www.lgbtfunders.org/lgbtfunders/volunteering.pdf

The Five Life Stages of Nonprofit Organizations

In her book, The Five Life Stages of Nonprofit Organizations, Judy Sharken Simon (published by Fieldstone Alliance, 2001) examines nonprofit organizations and their strengths and weaknesses in relation to five stages of development. 

Being able to identify where your organization is developmentally can help board members and staff plan for the future, anticipate challenges, and make proactive decisions to avoid the common  - though very normal - pitfalls of running and growing a nonprofit organization.  The inventory examines seven arenas of organizational performance: 1) governance, 2) staff leadership, 3) financing, 4) administrative systems, 5) products and services, 6) staffing, and 7) marketing. 

Though no one assessment tool should be viewed as a cure-all for diagnosing and solving an organization’s struggles, this tool may prove helpful in the following situations:

• to generate discussion at a board or staff retreat
• prior to embarking on a strategic planning process
• during times of high stress or challenge for an organization
• when engaging an organization development consultant
• prior to an executive search
• when an organization wants to see how it compares to generally recognized standards of high functioning nonprofits. 

To complete the Nonprofit Life Stage Assessment online go to:
http://surveys.wilder.org/fieldstone/lifestages

For additional resources on all aspects of nonprofit management, go to http://www.fieldstonealliance.org.

Are You Ready?  Criteria for Funding Startups

A significant percentage of LGBT community centers are startup organizations.

But what do we mean by a “startup”? According to Tool for Assessing Startup Organizations, written by La Piana Associates (go to www.lapiana.org) and published by  Grantmakers for Effective Organizations, a startup is a nonprofit organization that has been in formal operation for too short a time to have an established infrastructure track record.  A startup might also be a small organization with some experience and history but that is about to embark on a period of rapid growth and expansion that would be fueled (at least in part) by grants. 

Startups tend to be:

• highly informal in their organization, systems and record keeping
• generally lacking in established policies and procedures, often with no bureaucratic or routine approaches to doing business
• predominantly focused on mission-related work with less time spent on the mundane, yet necessary, administrative tasks
• run by people with lots of energy and passion for the mission but with limited leadership experience in the sector
• run by a small and homogeneous board of directors
• lacking in a diversified funding base, and other areas

Though intended for funders, the assessment tool described in this report can be useful to startup nonprofits because it offers criteria, focusing on organizational (not programmatic) readiness, that funders might consider in assessing the strengths and weaknesses of an organization prior to approving (or not) a grant proposal from a startup.  It serves as a supplement to be used by funders, once they have completed the initial due diligence to assess:

1. if an organization has a mission closely aligned with the funder’s program goals
2. that the organization is providing services that aren’t duplicating the efforts of others
3. that the organization is the right one to take on the work proposed. 

The six key elements addressed by the tool, and that are necessary (according to the report) for nonprofits to succeed in advancing their missions, are:

1. a healthy governance function
2. a competent executive director
3. a sound financial management system
4. a workable, legal, human resource policy and practices
5. a successful fund development strategy
6. a clear, consistent message. 

Visit La Piana Associates here.

Get the Tools for Assessing Startups report here.

How to Do a Community Needs Assessment

• Establish a working committee to solicit individ ual and community involvement and develop a plan of action.
• List important issues to be addressed.
• Identify the population to be surveyed.
• Determine the information that is needed -- it may be existing information which must be collected, or it may be information gathered using a survey.
• Select a random sample of persons to survey.
• Develop and pretest a questionnaire.
• Collect information.
• Analyze the data.
• Report the results.

Follow this link for a detailed discussion of these steps.

Capacity Building  - A Working Definition

In an excerpt from Evaluation of Capacity Building: Lessons from the Field by Deborah Linnell, published by the Alliance for Nonprofit Management, Capacity Building refers to activities that improve an organization’s ability to achieve its mission or a person’s ability to define and realize his/her goals or to do his/her job more effectively.

For organizations, capacity building may relate to almost any aspect of its work: improved governance, leadership, mission and strategy, administration (including human resources, financial management, and legal matters), program development and implementation, fundraising and income generation, diversity, partnerships and collaboration, evaluation, advocacy and policy change, marketing, positioning, planning, etc.

For individuals, capacity building may relate to leadership development, advocacy skills, training/speaking abilities, technical skills, organizing skills, and other areas of personal and professional development.

As we begin to build this section of our website and plan our annual roster of training sessions, we encourage you, our growing list of member LGBT community centers, to let us know the types of capacity and skills building information and training you would like to see offered through our website, e-newsletter, conference calls, regional meetings and through the Community Center Institute offered each November at the annual Creating Change Conference sponsored by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.

In January 2005 the Gill Foundation published a report titled "An Exploratory Look at the Financial State of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Movement." The report compares the fiscal health of LGBT organizations to all U.S. philanthropic organizations in 1999 and 2001, the latest years for which comprehensive IRS documentation was available. The top line finding is that LGBT organizations received only one-tenth of one percent (.001) of all philanthropic giving ($248 million of the $212 billion total).

If you wish to obtain a copy of the research report please contact Joanne Kron, joannek@gillfoundation.org or at 303-292-4455.

Show Me The Models!

(with special thanks to Frankie Reynolds, Executive Director of the Prescott Pride Center in Prescott, Arizona for her Great Idea)

Does your community center have a great volunteer management manual?  Lesbian health brochure?  Policies and procedures for running an information and referral program?  Have you gotten the scoop on local or state funding opportunities that may benefit other LGBT community centers?  If yes, then we want to hear about it!  Share those model programs, policies and procedures, and materials with CenterLink so that we can make them available – either on our website or (better yet) as a link to your center’s website – to LGBT community centers across the country. Contact us. 

And if you have other Great Ideas for information you would like to see on our website, included in our e-newsletter or offered through one of our training or technical assistance programs, let us know that too. Contact us.

Community Center Resource Manual

CenterLink offers a resource manual for community groups planning to open a community center or looking for ideas and materials to expand or professionalize their existing center's programs and services. The manual, produced and compiled in 1995 by the Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center is a compendium of sample forms, "how to" articles, and training materials on volunteer management, fundraising, and other important areas of center development. It also includes information on applying to the IRS for tax-exempt status and sample articles of incorporation and by-laws.

The publication is available in hard-copy form by sending a check for $75.00 to:

Executive Director
L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center
1625 N. Schrader Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90028

To view a copy of the table of contents of the entire Center Resource Manual, click here.

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