Key components of building or transforming a social impact organization into a high performance and high growth culture

1. Framework
for
Building
a
New
&
Sustainable
501c3
Organiza?on
Aakif
K.
Ahmad
Akazia
LLC
2016©

2. Building
an
organiza?on
is
a
journey
of
1,000
steps
Plan
ahead
for
a
lot
of
them;
then
learn
and
adapt
as
you
grow.
2

3. Role
of
Founding
Team:
PuRng
in
Place
the
Building
Blocks
of
a
Sustainable
Organiza?on
Akazia
LLC
2016©
3
Fundraising
Implemen?ng
programs
Office
management
Finding
(and
keeping)
staff
Building
networks
Values
Governance
Accountability
Performance
Financial
Management
Vision,
Mission,
Strategy
and
Plan
Learning
Culture
Communica?ons

4. • Graciousness,
humility,
generosity,
holding
everyone
in
posi?ve
regard
• Commitment
to
goals
and
shared
learning
• Openness
&
curiosity
• Ability
to
listen
deeply,
iden?fy
concerns
and
underlying
needs
• Respect
for
importance
of,
and
recogni?on
of,
the
par?cular
role
everyone
plays
• Resilience
and
“s?ck-­‐to-­‐it-­‐iveness”
• Dependability
• Sense
of
humor
Opera?ng
Values
Akazia
LLC
2016©
with
apprecia?on
to
Rally
Point
for
Collabora?ve
Change
2015
©
No
Single
Person
Has
All
the
Answers
People
who
Disagree,
or
who
Have
Different
Points
of
View,
can
Collaborate
to
Generate
Breakthrough
Ideas
and
Ac?ons
4

5. Governance
and
Accountability
Leadership
Council
Board
Commiaees
Board
Of
Directors
Annual
Staff
Planning
Retreat
Monthly
Management
Mee?ng
Weekly
Staff
Mee?ng
• Facilita'on
• Agenda
based
• Prepara'on
• Regular
schedule
Reinforce
Values,
Culture
through
Ac<ons
and
Behavior
Akazia
LLC
2016©
5
Create
Space
for
Construc<ve
Interac<on
Org
structure,
roles
&
responsibili?es

6. Staff
&
Team
Performance
**Set
goals
collabora?vely
Revisit
them
periodically
Discuss
results,
progress
or
shoreall
openly
Understand
and
learn
from
what
was
not
achieved
Adapt
as
necessary
Celebrate
and
learn
from
what
was
achieved
Trust
Transparency
Candor
Akazia
LLC
2016©
6
Individual
Goals
/
Organiza<onal
Goals

7. Disciplined
Financial
Management
Cash
Flow
Repor?ng
and
Presenta?on
Disciplined
Accoun?ng
&
Accountant
Restricted
vs.
Unrestricted
Expense
Management
Time
Sheets
Consultant
&
Vendor
Management
Financial
Controls,
990
&
Audit
Con?ngency
Plan
&
Reserve
Bank
Rela?onship
&
Credit
Line
(Bi-­‐)
Weekly
Budget
Review
Monthly
Repor?ng
&
Variance
Analysis
Quarterly
Finance
Commiaee
Board
Oversight
and
Review
Annual
Budget
Planning
&
Board
Approval
Akazia
LLC
2016©
7
Core
Elements
Managerial
Process

8. 8
Board
Development
and
Management
Akazia
LLC
2016©
Structured
Agenda,
High
Quality
Materials
&
Mee<ng
Facilita<on
By
Laws
By
Laws
Structure
&
By
Laws
Term
Lengths
and
Term
Limits
Role
Expecta?ons,
Standards,
Norms
Board
Commiaees
Governance
and
Nomina?ng
Finance
Fund
Development
Communica?ons
Board
Par?cipa?on
Required
Aaendance
Financial
Support
Collegial
Spirit
Staggered
1-­‐3
yrs
Up
to
3
renewals
Balance
Con?nuity
&
New
Ideas

9. 9
Learning
occurs
in
real
work
contexts
Everyone
is
an
ac?ve
par?cipant
in
his
or
her
own
learning
Learning
is
rooted
in
meaningful
rela?onships
Learning
happens
at
many
?mes
and
in
many
places
An
individual’s
strengths
are
fuel
for
the
development
of
knowledge
&
skills
Core
Elements
of
a
Learning
Culture
Add
knowledge
and
skills
Bridge
gaps
Expand
interests
Develop
new
op?ons
Create
opportunity
Challenge
assump?ons
and
frameworks
Add
perspec?ve
Respond
to
passions
and
goals
Learning
Outcomes
Learning
Values
Mo?va?on
Engagement
Problem-­‐solving
orienta?on
Produc?vity
Effec?veness
Resilience
Excellent
results
Impacts
of
a
Learning
Culture
Akazia
LLC
2016©
with
apprecia?on
to
Educa?on
Reimagined,
a
Project
of
Convergence
Learning
&
collabora?ve
problem
solving
go
hand-­‐in-­‐
hand
Problems
&
mistakes,
are
not
bad
or
punishable

10. Opera?onalizing
a
Learning
Culture
Learning
is
an
Organiza?onal
Priority
Psychological
safety
Apprecia?on
of
differences
Openness
to
new
ideas
Time
for
reflec?on
**
**adapted
from
haps://hbr.org/2008/03/is-­‐yours-­‐a-­‐learning-­‐organiza?on
Discussion
>>
lecture
Hands
on
>>
classroom
Problem
solving
>>
performance
judgment
In
work
flow
>>
separated
out
Environmental
condi?ons
Opera?ng
Condi?ons
Sample
Content
Curated
literature,
podcasts
and
videos
Program
and
process
retro-­‐
spec?ves
Digi?zed
case
studies
&
best
prac?ces
library
Origin
and
impact
stories
Structured
Occasions
Onboarding
Staff
or
team
mee?ngs
1:1
interac?ons
Panels
and
workshops
Akazia
LLC
2016©
Collegial
and
Collabora?ve
Spirit
10
External
coaches
/
facilitators
History
of
organiza?on
/
business
plan

11. 11
Building
Blocks
for
Monitoring
&
Evalua?on
8.
Roll
Out
Evalua?on
Method
1.
Define
Your
Theory
of
Change
2a.
Define
Your
Expected
Outcomes
2b.
Define
Your
Intended
Impacts
3.
Intermediate
Milestones
that
lead
to
Outcomes
&
Impacts
5.
Choose
Evalua?on
Methods
that
Help
You
Measure
Process
Effec?veness
and
Achievement
of
Milestones,
Outcomes
&
Impacts
6.
Design
Evalua?on
Tools
7.
Pilot,
Test
and
Refine
Tools
Impact:
the
Change
You
Want
to
See
Happen
in
the
World
Outcome:
Results
of
Your
Work
that
Drive
Impacts
4.
Breakdown
of
Processes
Your
Organiza?on
Follows
to
Support
Achievement
of
Milestones
Thougheul
&
Relevant
Approach
Avoid
Heavy
Handedness
&
Bureaucracy
Evalua?on
Should
Advance
Your
Mission
Integrate
Evalua?on
&
Learning
System
9.
Use
Informa?on
for:
Assessment,
Learning,
Performance
Management
&
Repor?ng
Akazia
LLC
2016©
Take
Time
to
Research
&
Build

12. • Cul<vate
and
nurture
a
con<nuous
pipeline
of
current
and
future
donors
• Mee?ngs
today
lead
to
money
tomorrow,
so
it
never
stops
• 1:1
coffees
,lunches
and
dinners
• “Friend-­‐raisers”
• Friends-­‐
introducing-­‐friends-­‐
introducing
friends
• Research
• Prepara?on
• Rela?onship
building
• Tracking
and
follow
up
• Weekly
fundraising
planning
mee?ngs
• Build
a
community
and
team
that
believes
in
your
idea
• Always
on:
planes,
trains,
metro,
lobby’s
and
sidewalks
• Source
for
future
staff,
interns,
Board
members,
Leadership
Council,
friends,
connectors,
donors
• Create
an
environment
where
everyone
can
do
their
best
work
• Administra?ve
support
• Recruitment
and
hiring
• Onboarding
&
training
support
• HR
&
office
policies
• Comp.
Benefits,
&
rewards
• Financial
systems
&
controls
• IP
&
legal
policies
• Job
descrip?ons
&
career
ladder
• Internship
program
• Performance
management
&
outplacement
• Gradual
investment
in
IT
• Contact
database
and
rela?onship
tracking
• Space
and
equipment
Infrastructure
for
Sustainability
Build
Your
Network
Fundraise
Run
Your
Office
Akazia
LLC
2016©
12

13. • Scheduled
LC
mee?ng
every
3-­‐4
months
for
half
day
to
one
day
• Prepared
agenda
that
enables:
great
camaraderie,
rela?onship
building
and
shared
learning
• Report
on
the
organiza?on,
on
programs
and
strategic
ini?a?ves
• Introduc?ons,
ice
breakers,
guest
speakers
add
to
experience
• Fun,
inspiring,
insigheul
experience
• Professionally
organized
and
facilitated
• Start
small,
grow
to
40-­‐50
members
• Invita?on
only,
guests
welcome
Leadership
Council
or
Board
of
Advisors:
Engage
Your
Volunteer
Leadership
Network
Akazia
LLC
2016©
• Structured
way
to
engage
and
connect:
friends,
connectors,
advisors,
donors,
supporters,
staff
and
Board
• Organiza?onal
“Brain
Trust”
to
advise
on
tough
challenges,
growth
strategies
• “Farm
team”
for
Board
of
Directors
and
long-­‐term
home
for
Board
alumni
• Source
for
donor
introduc?ons
and
space
for
donor
rela?onship
building
• Resource
for
pro-­‐bono
help
in
specific
areas
of
exper?se
• Place
for
guests,
future
supporters
to
get
to
know
your
mission
and
your
organiza?on
• Posi?ve
pressure
on
your
organiza?on
to
show
regular
progress
Purpose
Implementa?on
13
Convert
Interest
&
Commitment
into
Leverage
&
Ac?on

14. Fundraising
14
Akazia
LLC
2016©
One
Year
Fundraising
Goals
One
Time
Renewing
One-­‐
Year
Giu
or
Grant
Mul?-­‐
Year
Giu
or
Grant
Major
Donors
Founda-­‐
?ons
Corpora
-­‐?ons
Govern-­‐
ment
Int’l
Small
Donors
Connectors
#
of
New
Donor
Mee?ngs
Per
Month
Documen?ng
Program
Outcomes
&
Repor?ng
Marke?ng,
Communica?ons,
Social
Media
and
Events
Cul?va?on
&
Stewardship
Program
Building
Donor
Lists
Proposal
Wri?ng
Three
Year
Fundraising
Goals

15. 15
Finding
great
people
to
work
for
you
Iden?fy
Candidates
Clear,
well
defined
job
descrip<on
Referrals
from
Network
Resumes
from
Job
Pos?ngs
Selec?on
Process
Conduct
final
round
candidate
interviews
with
mul?ple
staff
at
different
levels
to
minimize
bias,
maximize
evalua?on
of
“fit”,
&
set
stage
for
effec?ve
onboarding.
Successful
onboarding
starts
during
recrui?ng
process.
During
interviews
you
and
the
candidate
are
both
geRng
to
know
each
other.
By
Laws
Belief
in
Vision
and
Theory
of
Change
Commitment
in
Mission
Complementary
Values
Disposi?on
Work
Style
Communica?on
Style
Knowledge
Skills
Experience
Networks
Sample
Interview
Screens
Structured
Interviews
that
Involve
Many
Staff
Hiring
affects
culture,
strategy,
finances,
turnover,
program
implementa?on;
overinvest
in
hiring
decisions.
Hire
Diversity
Akazia
LLC
2016©

16. 16
Onboarding
and
integra?ng
new
staff
while
reinforcing
organiza?onal
culture
and
values
Onboarding
(3
months)
Integra?on
(6-­‐12
months)
By
Laws
Maximize
individual
new
hire
success
Rela<onships
Knowledge
transfer
Goals
Performance
supports
90-­‐
Day
Check
in
180-­‐
Day
Check
in
3-­‐month
onboarding
goals
Calendar
year
goals
Program/Organiza?on
Professional
1:1,
1:2
or
1:group
mee?ngs
with
all
staff
in
first
2-­‐3
weeks
New
hire
discussion
groups
Reading
club
Annual
Year
in
Review
Discussion
Onboarding
packet
Team
Lunches
and
Ou?ngs
Staff
Retreat
Akazia
LLC
2016©

17. Examples
in
italics
17
Communica?ons
Communica<on
Goals
Means
by
which
Your
Message
Reaches
Your
Audiences
(Distribu?on
Channel)
Audiences
You
are
Trying
to
Reach
(Audience
Segmenta?on)
Brand
Messages
Communica?on
Tools
Mul<-­‐year
business
plan
and
annual
organiza<onal
goals
Akazia
LLC
2016©
Donors
Stakeholders
Public
Opinion
Leaders
Panels
&
Events
Social
Media
Publi-­‐
ca'ons
News
Media
Newsleaer
Website
Brochure,
videos,
tes?monials

18. I.
Introduc?on
II.
Why
[NAME
OF
ORG]?
III.
Theory
of
Change
i. Vision
ii. Intended
Impact
&
Outcomes
iii. Impact
&
Outcome
Indicators
iv. Strategy
v. Process
vi. Theore?cal
Underpinning
of
the
Work
IV.
Current
Projects
and
Impacts
V.
Picture
of
Success
in
3
Years
VI.
Three-­‐Year
Growth
Strategy
i.
Programs
ii.
Program
Development
Approach
iii.
Monitoring
and
Evalua?on
iv.
Strategic
Communica?ons
VII.
Organiza?onal
Structure
&
Resource
Plan
VIII.
Organiza?onal
Learning
Strategy
IX.
Three-­‐Year
Financial
Picture
X.
Barriers
to
Success
XI.
Conclusion
Sample
Business
Plan
Template
Akazia
LLC
2016©
with
apprecia?on
to
Convergence
Leadership
Council
Members
18

19. Akazia
Consul?ng
Sales
Accelera?on
w
Business
Opera?ons
w
Growth
Culture
w
Strategic
Planning
&
Facilita?on
w
Non-­‐Profit
Development
If
you
would
like
to
discuss
strategies
to
grow
your
organiza?on,
please
reach
out
to
us:
haps://www.linkedin.com/in/aakifahmad
Akazia
LLC
2016©
19