Strategic Planning for Nonprofits

Strategic Planning for Nonprofits
December 8, 2010

Sam Frank
Synthesis Partnership

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Today’s Speaker

Sam Frank

Strategic Planning
for nonprofits

Sam Frank

Strategic Planning for Nonproﬁts

December 8, 2010
© Copyright 2010 Synthesis Partnership

www.synthesispartnership.com

All rights reserved.

SYNTHESIS
http://bit.ly/SyPBlog
Copies permitted only with full attribution

PA R T N E R S H I P

Take-aways
•  The benefits of an effective planning process

•  How to approach structure a planning process

•  How to get broad buy-in

•  Tools for
•  assessing your situation
•  engaging your constituencies
•  developing implementing an effective plan


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS
http://bit.ly/SyPBlog PA R T N E R S H I P

Why Plan?

Circumstance
Operations
Wisdom
Cultivation
Organizational Development


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

What is Planning?

INTEGRATED PLANNING

December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Roles
Governing Board

Planning Committee
•  Set the strategic direction
•  Own the planning process •  Shape the planning process
•  Offer inclusiveness and transparency
•  Ensure participation and completion
•  Craft mission-based goals objectives
•  Approve goals supporting objectives
•  Facilitate action plan
•  Launch implementation
•  Monitor implementation
Both

•  Gain a more robust understanding of the organization

CEO Board Chair

•  Maintain proper focus


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process

Prepare
Assess
Engage
Plan
Implement


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

1. Prepare

Board Commitment
Committee Chair
Documentation
Process Design
Committee


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

1. Prepare
Typical Timeline


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

2. Assess
Examine Component Plans
Gather Data
Interview Key Players
Identify Critical Issues
Conduct a Board Self-Assessment


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

2. Assess
Board Self Assessment Tool


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

2. Assess
Mission Statement


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

3. Engage
Board senior staff
All stakeholder groups
Ongoing communication


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

3. Engage
Situation

Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats
External Environment: Opportunities Threats

Internal Environment: Strengths Weaknesses
•  Inputs (Human resources, funding, facilities)
•  Processes (Programs, operations, governance)
•  Outputs (Quality of programs, social change)


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

3. Engage
Polarities

MANAGEMENT

by Budget by Mission
Sustainability Purpose
+

Fulfillment of mission
Service to community
Bottom-line decision making Requires extraordinary leadership involvement
-

Cut programs if budget can’t be balanced Requires full commitment to fundraising
Not attuned to ultimate purpose of institution

FUNDING PRIORITY

Facilities Programs

+

-


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

3. Engage
Surveys


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

4. Plan
Mission
Mission-Based Goals
Supporting Objectives
Board Endorsement
Measurable Actions


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

4. Plan
Goals Objectives

CBE

Mission-Based Goal: Membership
Strengthen ties the sense of community among all members.
Supporting Objective 1:
Develop programs that appeal to every segment of the CBE
community.
Connect with new members through as many means as possible.
Reach out to members only partially engaged in the CBE community.
Cultivate all younger members as potential leaders.


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

4. Plan
Goals Objectives

CBE

Mission-Based Goal: Finance
CBE will operate in a fiscally responsible manner.
CBE has not made a compelling case for the appropriateness of its current spending or its need for a higher level of
funding. More transparency is needed to indicate where funds are going and how thinly they are stretched. For financial
sustainability CBE needs to look at retaining existing members and increasing membership.
Communicate the financial facts more clearly to the membership.
Identify opportunities for revenue enhancement to support
expansion of programming and services.
Make prudent choices about programs that can be supported.


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

4. Plan
Mission-Based Goals

i[2]y

Mission
End isolation improve quality of life for young adults affected by
cancer.

Mission-Based Goals

Program: Access
Offer access to resources for young adults with cancer, their families, and their care providers
Program: Connections
Create opportunities for young adults with cancer to make meaningful connections to each other.
Program: Quality of Life
Have an impact on the quality of life of young adults with cancer
Fundraising
Develop a sustainable funding stream from foundations, individuals and corporate sponsors
Marketing
Make i[2]y a visible resource to all diagnosed young adults, survivors, their families and care providers
Governance
Shape the board and its activities to support sustainably the mission of i[2]y
Finance / Operations

December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

4. Plan
Goals Objectives

i[2]y

Mission
End isolation improve quality of life for young adults affected by
cancer.

Mission-Based Goal: Access
Offer access to resources for young adults with cancer,
their families, and their care providers
Upgrade the website to the state of the art, with full Web 2.0
capabilities.
Develop a robust presence in cancer treatment centers.
Develop new/improved promotion strategies.

December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

4. Plan
Goals Objectives

SGIS

Mission
SGIS prepares students for a life of learning and meaningful contribution through
dedication to academic achievement and the development of moral character.

Plan

I.

Dedication to Excellence

II.

Building Meaningful Relationships

III.

Focus on Sustainability

Goal 1:

Develop a strategic advancement plan to foster a culture determined to
support and perpetuate the school’s vision.

Goal 2:

Protect, perpetuate and enhance the strong and distinct SGIS brand.

Goal 3:

Identify develop alternative revenue sources to reduce dependence on
tuition.

Goal 4:

Reshape administrative and board functions to ﬁt the single school model.

Goal 5:

Promote a culture of planning to ensure strategic thinking ﬁscal responsibility.


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

4. Plan
Goals Objectives

SGIS

III.

Focus on Sustainability

Goal 1:

Develop a strategic advancement plan to foster a culture determined to support
and perpetuate the school’s vision.

The school’s expansion requires the development of a broad level of parent, alumni, and other constituent participation driven by
the desire to give back to the school both in appreciation for what the children receive and in perpetuation of the mission for future
students.
Objective 1: Ensure the development office is staffed with the skill sets required to meet SGIS financial goals.
The ambitions of SGIS will require access to the highest level of fundraising skills and experience.
Objective 2: Cultivate a community of “investors” through demonstrated leadership by each constituent group.
Trustees, faculty/staff, parents and alumni must all feel ownership of and responsibility to the school of it is to thrive.
Objective 3: Ensure that all constituent groups are aware of the fund raising needs of SGIS.
Clarity and consistency of communications of vision, values, and goals will require ongoing efforts of planning and execution.
Objective 4: Strive for 100% annual giving participation levels from each constituent group.
All constituents must understand the critical importance of voluntary annual support.
Objective 5: Build a strong, supportive alumni network.
Over extended periods, alumni are the most critical source of funding and support. The building of a strong, supportive alumni
body begins in the senior year and continues through active alumni engagement with each other and with the school.
Objective 6: Raise sufficient funds to meet the objectives of the capital campaign.
The school must have a clear set of financial goals and milestones if it is to realize its ambitious and complex plans for
continuing to provide each campus with high-quality environments for teaching and learning

December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

4. Plan
Public Plan

SGIS

Dedication to Excellence
Goal 1!
SGIS will operate as a single school in pursuit of its mission.
To preserve SGIS’s unique culture and to ensure that the school stays true to its mission and provides consistent
quality and efﬁciency in the delivery of that mission, the school must operate as a single entity with a focus on
understanding the value of inter-relatedness and diversity in providing a rich learning environment for
students. !
Objective 1!
Ensure that learning experiences across all campuses are student-centered and prepare students
for a diverse global world by providing the opportunity for authentic discovery of ideas and
skills in order to foster a love of learning. !
The student experience – whether in the classroom or in an after-school or summer program – is at the core of an
SGIS education. Through goal-setting, reﬂection, and teacher comments, students at all levels will be guided
to an understanding of the learning process and a love of learning for learning’s sake.!
Objective 2!
Develop an understanding among the SGIS community of the value of excellence in education
created by the SGIS model. !
The SGIS model is not just an added value of the school, it is an essential feature of


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

4. Plan
Action Plan

WS


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

5. Implement
Plan tracking and monitoring


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Planning Process:

5. Implement
Published Plan


December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

SYNTHESIS

PARTNERSHIP

Advising nonproﬁts in

strategy, planning, and organizational development

683 Commonwealth Avenue

Newton MA 02459

617 969 1881

info@synthesispartnership.com

Strategic Planning for 2010 Synthesis Partnership

© Copyright
Nonproﬁts

December 8, 2010 All rights reserved.

Copies permitted only in entirety and with full attribution


SYNTHESIS
synthesispartnership@blogspot.com


Resources

Critical Issues
#1: Why Plan?

http://bit.ly/SyPci01

#2: The Secret Life of Surveys


#5: The Structure of Planning


#7: On a Mission


Blog

(entries on planning)

http://bit.ly/SyPBlog

Other Webinars on Planning

listings, registration, archivehttp://www.nonproﬁtwebinars.com

schedule

registration linkshttp://bit.ly/SyPwebinars

Complimentary consultation

sbf@synthesispartnership.com

(by e-mail or phone appointment)

December 8, 2010

SYNTHESIS

Find the listings for our current season of webinars
and register at

NonprofitWebinars.com

Chris Dumas
Chris@NonprofitWebinars.com
707-812-1234

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