This project is supported by Grant No. 2012-TA-AX-K056 awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, conclusions, and

recommendations expressed in this presentation are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women.

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ABOUT TRANSFORMING COMMUNITIES:

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, TRAINING AND RESOURCE CENTER (TC-TAT)

2

17 years providing intensive training, technical assistance and resources to organizations

working to end violence against women.

Embarking on a two-year project funded by the Office on Violence Against Women to

offer technical support, training, and resources to organizations in all 21 OVW funded

program areas.

For more information on our services and resources, visit

www.transformcommunities.org

Future Training Events

Webinar archives

Resources and Online Tools

Shiree Teng

Independent Strategy and Evaluation Consultant

shireeteng@gmail.com

510-532-1799

WELCOME… AND OVERVIEW

In the next two hours, we will cover:

• Setting direction and strategy differentiated from

traditional “strategic planning” processes;

• Using ongoing learning and evaluation as a strategic tool;

• Communicating to funders and financial sustainability;

• Good practices on using technology; and

• Coopetition – the future state of collaboration and

competition.

Effective organizations

On-going strategic thinking

Financial sustainability

review

Smart use of technology

Cross-sector collaboration

communications

Vision

Mission Body of practice

Tracking results

Money Staff Volunteers/Board members

Visibility

STRATEGY FORMATION

STRATEGY … AND PLANNING

Strategy is

• Ongoing

• Being responsive to opportunities

• Knowing and leveraging your core strengths

• Strategy = set of coordinated actions.

Strategy is NOT planning…

Planning

• What, when, who, how

Nonprofit Sustainability: Making

Strategic Decisions for Financial Viability

By Jeanne Bell, Jan Masaoka

and Steve Zimmerman

STRATEGY PYRAMID

ORGANIZATIONAL IDENTITY

WHO ARE WE?

A – Business model

• Who are we?

• We exist to prevent and end domestic violence

• What we do?

• Prevention education; intervention through direct service; advocacy for

individual survivors and for systems responses; leadership development of

survivors and allies; healing circles to address sustained trauma

• Where do we work?

• Geographic boundaries

• Where do we NOT work?

• How we do it?

• Service teams; operations; allocating budgets; policies and procedures; fund

development

• How we finance it?

• What does your funding pie look like today?

• Who should be funding your work?

• How do we get from a to b?

MARKET AWARENESS AND ANALYSIS B – Market Awareness

Types of trends Direction of trend Comments

Social needs or demands for

preventing and ending DV

programs or services

Needs or demands are

• Increasing

• Decreasing

• Staying about the same

Case management and healing

trauma services will be high

priority. Influencing factors are

federal funding and the growing

awareness of the prevalence of

DV.

Available funding for DV

programs and services

Funding is

• Increasing

• Decreasing

• Staying about the same

In our region, we have seen a

____________ of foundation

support, ____________ of public

funding, and a potential for

______________.

Other trends impacting our

organization

The impending retirement of

sector leaders in our region and

the need to develop secondary

leadership

We need to strengthen our

cultural competence in serving a

changing demography in our

region.

MARKET AWARENESS AND ANALYSIS

Position & Competition

• How are we positioned in our field or market?

• Who else is in the field or market?

• Where do we stand relative to other players in the field or

market?

• How we got to our current status relative to others?

• Where do we want to go within the field or market?

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE … OR NICHE

“Nonprofit competitive advantage is a nonprofit’s ability to sustainably produce social

value using a unique asset, outstanding execution, or both.”

David LaPiana, Strategy Revolution

Asset or niche advantage examples:

• Culturally-informed program practices leading to measurably better

outcomes of those historically underserved

• Superior integration of direct service and advocacy leadership

• An accessible location, network of locations or co-location with a FRC

• Great name recognition and reputation among funders and/or

community allies

• Powerful partnerships resulting in integrated community referrals and

follow-on support

• A well-connected board of directors who are also enthusiastic brokers of

people, knowledge and money

• Reputed to be a great place to work or volunteer

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE … OR NICHE

Execution advantage examples:

• Quickest to respond in crisis situations, faster intervention cycle

• Complete integration of legal intervention with case management

• Better tracking of results for accountability and public reporting

• Culturally-grounded staff from intake to senior leadership

SUMMARY OF ORGANIZATIONAL IDENTITY

Components of Identity Statement Identity Statement

We advance our mission of preventing and ending domestic and intimate-partner

violence

and seek healthier relationships based on mutual respect and

understanding

by serving individual survivors and families

in our (name) County – focusing on the East End

through direct intervention, case management, legal advocacy

and outreach

and emphasizing our niche of being grounded in our community’s cultures and offering

culturally-based services

We are sustainable by a diverse funding stream that consists of public dollars

(federal, state, county, city), foundation funding, and

individual donors

STRATEGY SCREEN

• Is a set of criteria to help guide decisions re: opportunities

• A simple, powerful tool for decision- and choice-making

• Evolve over time as you adapt to changes in the environment

• Usually includes 5 – 8 elements

STRATEGY SCREEN EXAMPLES

• Consistent with mission

• Build on or reinforce our current niche

• Will break even or produce a surplus within 12 months or have a

dedicated funding stream

• Will yield results that are sustainable, not fleeting

• Will put us in direct collaboration with XYC organization, one that

we’ve been looking to build

STRATEGY SCREEN

Or consider the following:

• What is its value to our mission?

• Does it pay for itself?

• How does it reinforce our competitive advantage?

• Do we have the capacity? Does staff have the passion to do this?

BIG QUESTIONS

FRAMING BIG QUESTIONS

A BIG question is a strategic challenge, understood in context of your

organization’s mission, environment and priorities.

Example:

How can we respond to the loss of State dollars that we’ve come to

rely on? Can we replace it from other sources, if so, from where?

Or will we need to cut expenses? How will the loss of State funds

impact DV organizations across the State? Is this a temporary

setback or the beginning of a trend of more cuts? How should we

mobilize our member organizations to mount a coordinated

response?

STRATEGY PYRAMID

FORMING PROGRAM STRATEGIES

Key questions to ask about program strategies:

1. What activities should we offer, at what scale, to effectively pursue our

mission within our resource constraints?

1. Where should these activities be located or delivered?

1. Who specifically should each program target?

1. How, or what approaches, based on what we know about our field are

most likely to maximize our intended impact on survivors and families?

PROGRAM LOGIC MODEL OR THEORY OF CHANGE

Assumptions Activities Resources Outputs Short-term

outcomes

Impact

At the core of the

causes is the use

and abuse of power

in an intimate

partner setting,

made worse by the

oppression of

women, and

economic, political,

physiological,

psychological,

cultural, spiritual

factors. There is no

one single factor

that is the cause of

domestic violence.

Case

management

(1:20 ratio)

Healing circles

(2 per month)

Legal

intervention

(TRO, custody)

Crisis line

(3 peer

counselors +

on call)

An inspiring

director and 8

staff

$900,000 a year

A co-located

space with FRC

at below-market

rent

Annual gala

event to attract

volunteers,

donors and

visibility on the

issue of DV

100 survivors

and children

served per year

24 healing circles

attended by 65

survivors per

year

(minimum of 4

sessions)

50% of survivors

receive legal

assistance

75% of crisis line

callers are

successfully

referred to at

least one other

culturally

appropriate

community-

based resource

40% of survivors

report feeling

physically safe

after one year

60% of survivors

report children

are feeling safe

after one year

75% of survivors

who attend

healing circles

report feeling

more empowered

and supported

after one year

An increase of 8

culturally

competent

community

partners

Each year, 40

survivors are

safe and feel

more empowered

to make

decisions for

their futures.

60 children are

safe and more

secure.

100 survivors

are more

connected to

culturally

appropriate

services based in

the community.

Strategies Short-term

outcomes (immediately after)

Interim outcomes (1 year out)

Transitional Housing •Housing

•Case Management

-Crisis needs met:

safety (plan),

-Referral to resources

(housing/legal/finance)

-Increased awareness

of resources

--Community referrals

- Donations

Long-term outcomes (3 years out)

-Client story sharing

-Regular donors

--Community

fundraising

-Improved mental health, self-esteem - Add’l support structures -More empowered to make own decisions

Theory of Change Sample

-Affordable housing

--Increased stability,

safety, self-confidence

-Connected to resources Helpline •Crisis Management

•Information •Referrals

Outreach •To: Clients, Donors,

Community, Volunteers

•Presence via print

materials; events; online;

media/ads

Vision

Awareness of and connection to existing and culturally-based resources Independence to make decisions for themselves – physically, financially & legally Sense of confidence, peace and mental wellbeing that allows her to shed the past and look forward

Assumptions

Strengths •Desire for change •Courage, resilience, resourcefulness Aspirations •Violence-free life •Children’s security •Independence •Empowered to make decisions Challenges •Societal/cultural expectations: Systemic: legal, child & social welfare, immig. systems •Isolation: cultural barriers; lack of DV/rights knowledge; •Personal: shame/doubts; low self-esteem;

Legal •Info on legal rights

•Court accompaniment

•Safety planning & crisis

mgt

•Referrals

-Outreach/referrals of others

-Testimonies

-Continuous feedback to

improve/expand programs &

inform org direction

-Regular donations

Mental Health • Counseling

•Small Groups

Education •Trainings, presentations,

workshops on healthy

relationships, DV, prevention

-Confidential safe space

with peer counselor

-Community referrals

-Prevention education

-Awareness of rights

-Legal steps (TROs, etc)

--Increased safety

-Informed choices

-Continued legal

advocacy/support

-Increased confidence

on legal issues

-Informed choices

-Legal process completed

(divorce/custody)

-Increased knowledge &

access to resources

-Safe space

-Housing (if needed)

-Increased financial

self-sufficiency

-Children stable/

-Some support

structures

-On-going counseling

-Working towards self-

empowerment

-Safe space

-Some support

structures

-Partnerships

Increased referrals

-More stable finances & housing - Children’s security -Legal issues resolved -Improved mental health, self-esteem - Add’l support structures -More empowered to make own decisions

-Outreach/referrals of others

-Continuous feedback to

improve/expand programs &

inform org direction

LEARNING + EVALUATION AS A STRATEGIC TOOL Measure

effectiveness of activities (e.g. are

they working?) Be accountable

(community, funders, ourselves)

Meet our goals (progress)

Improve what we do (program

development)

Document our work

Inform the field/replication

Plan

Build organizational capacity

Communicate our success

Reflect (Reflections/personal

development - insights)

EVALUATION

Typical Approach Evolving Approach

Focused on measurement Focused on inquiry

Evaluation as a specialist’s

responsibility

Evaluation as a leaders’

responsibility

Evaluation as a discrete,

outsourced function

Evaluation as an ongoing,

collective responsibility

Evaluation at the final stage of a

program

Evaluation at every stage of the

program

Evaluation on the margins Evaluation at the center of

everything we do

FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY

Is a orientation,

not a destination

Know your true costs

Who should be funding your work?

How diverse is your

funding pie?

FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY

MISSION IMPACT + FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY

5 THINGS I’VE LEARNED FROM WORKING IN AND WITH

FOUNDATIONS

1. Relationships matter

• Funders fund people

• Cultivate these relationships

• Be authentic

2. Outputs are not the same as Results

Most funders want to know the results you’re creating in the world

3. Ask for what it takes to produce the results you want, not what you think you can

get

4. Funders know each other…

Ask them…

• For introductions

• To host a funders briefing

• To serve on your board

• To review your financial sustainability model

5. Funders need you! We need each other!

GOOD PRACTICES ON USING TECHNOLOGY

IS… AND MOVING TO USED TO BE…

2.0 AND FUTURE…

SOCIAL CHANGE 2.0

• systems-thinking

• visualizing

• network-mapping

• asset-based inquiry

• collective strategy

• technology-enhanced connectivity

• requires having both “hard skills” (technology, network mapping, analytic tools, strategic thinking, understanding of complexity and dynamic systems) and “soft skills” (group dynamics, crossing boundaries, ability to create alignment, relationship building, networking/ connecting people, conflict resolution

FIRST TIME WILL BE A BIT SCARY…

COOPETITION

LIKE IT OR NOT… COOPETITION IS WHAT IS

BUILD CROSS-SECTOR ALLIANCES

NIMBLE COLLABORATIONS

Essential

Elements

Cooperation Coordination Collaboration

Vision &

relationships

As needed basis,

may be temporary

One specific project

of definable length

One or more

projects for longer-

term results

Structures,

responsibilities &

communication

Informal

Each organization

functions

separately

Some project-

specific planning is

required

Comprehensive

New structures,

roles

Authority &

accountability

Rests with

individual

organization

Some sharing of

leadership &

control; some

shared risk

Leadership is

dispersed; control

& risk are shared

Resources &

rewards

Resources are

separate

Resources are

acknowledged;

rewards are mutual

Resources are

pooled

10 PRINCIPLES OF RESILIENT

COLLABORATIONS 1. Leadership energetically supports the collaboration’s purpose;

2. Equity of organizational power;

3. Systems are adapted continuously;

4. Leadership is shared;

5. Conflict is expected and is managed effectively;

6. Transparent – not another layer of bureaucracy;

7. Each agency is accountable to its own leadership & constituents;

8. Decision making is delegated to appropriate subgroups;

9. Collaborations are usually impermanent;

10.Documentation supports resilience.

REVIEW +WRAP UP

• Setting direction and strategy differentiated from traditional

“strategic planning” processes;

• Using ongoing learning and evaluation as a strategic tool;

• Communicating to funders and financial sustainability;

• Good practices on using technology; and

• Coopetition – the future state of collaboration and competition.

Effective organizations

On-going strategic thinking

Financial sustainability

review

Smart use of technology & social media

Cross-sector

nimble collaborations

communications

Vision

Mission Body of practice

Tracking results

Money Staff Volunteers/Board members

Visibility

RESOURCES

• The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution, David LaPiana

• Nonprofit Sustainability, Jeanne Bell, Jan Masaoka, Steve Zimmerman

• BethKanter.org

• Mobilizing Generation 2.0, Ben Rigby

• The Nimble Collaboration, Karen Ray

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Transforming Communities: Technical Assistance, Training and Resource Center

(TC-TAT) Webinars

Upcoming Webinars: June- TBD July- Doing Different with Less- Three Tools Tuesday, July 15 from 10am to 12pm (Pacific Time) Facilitated by Liz Weaver, Vice President of Tamarack – An Institute for Community Engagement. Archived Webinars: For past webinars, please visit- http://transformcommunities.org/content/training-archives

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Thank you! Please DO NOT exit. Once the webinar is closed, a

link will appear directing you to our evaluation. We appreciate your feedback!

This webinar is funded by the Office on Violence Against Women and administered by Transforming Communities: Technical Assistance, Training and Resource

Center in partnership with Shiree Teng.

www.transformcommunities.org http://www.ovw.usdoj.gov/