Author: William Simi

6 Big Questions to Ask Before Starting a Nonprofit Social Enterprise As they look for ways to become more self-sufficient and provide themselves with predictable revenue, increasing numbers of nonprofit organizations are engaging in social entrepreneurship.The benefits of going this route take many forms. Making money through a nonprofit social enterprise can help fund the expansion of programs and services. That money is free from the restrictions of government agencies and foundations, which typically provide grants for narrowly defined purposes. And, with more money coming in, an organization’s leadership can focus less on fundraising and more on capacity building and the development of programs that meet the nonprofit’s mission.Social entrepreneurship comes with its fair share of challenges, especially for organizations with little to no experience in the for-profit world. Below…

How good financial management increases your nonprofit’s social value Managing a non-profit organization or trade association effectively is a very specialized skillset. As the management board or trustees, you’re the absolute experts in running the day-to-day elements of your non-profit in order to meet your key social objectives. You’re driven by your social beliefs, you’re bringing in the donations you need and you’ve got all your event planning, fundraising, and membership under complete control. But there’s one element of managing your non-profit where many organizations fall down – and that’s getting control of your financials. The better your financial management is, the more impact you can create from your available funding – and, after all, increasing your organization’s social value is precisely why you went into the non-profit sector, right?…

You may have recently come to the conclusion that your nonprofit organization is in need of an overarching strategy in order to be successful. And you would be right. The first step in any effective strategic process is essentially a truth telling exercise. It’s a matter of confronting the reality of what an organization - any organization - is, and what it really does. In his book ‘The Nonprofit Strategy Revolution’, consultant David La Piana of La Piana Associates calls this “understanding Organization Identity.” It’s fair to say that leaving out this step may doom a strategic planning process to failure. Now, strategy is not the same as planning (although planning can be strategic). Strategy should be an ever-evolving, ongoing effort to determine the right approach towards a desired end.…