You're struggling to expand a non-profit program. What steps will lead to the greatest impact?

A major component to operating any organization is to understand the strengths and the opportunities for improvement of the organization by running a needs assessment. You can’t expand without first identifying the gaps, whether it be funding support, personnel, location, lack of community engagement, etc. Most grants will require you to include an assessment of the needs to help them know that you have a comprehensive plan to use the funds effectively and efficiently.

Too many non-profits fall into the trap of expanding in reaction to shifts in funding priorities. Mission and need should always drive expansion.

One strategy I found helpful is to look at similar organizations and partners to ensure services are aligned and not duplicative. Assess areas to complement and strengthen each other.

To effectively expand your non-profit program, start by conducting a thorough needs assessment of the community you serve. Engage with community members to understand their challenges and goals. For example, use surveys, focus groups, and interviews to collect data on what they truly need. Suppose you're running an after-school program and find out that parents are looking for more arts and creative activities. This insight reveals a gap in your current offerings and highlights an area where you can expand for the greatest impact. By aligning your expansion efforts with the community’s most pressing needs, your program will remain relevant and valuable, ensuring it meets the needs of those you aim to help.

I conceptually agree with the response to the question with one exception. After assessing the need for the program, scan the environment for the assets that may be used and/or accessed to leverage resources needed for the program(s). If there are useful resources that can be added using sweat equity or community organizing. They may offset some of the funding needed for program operation.

Particularly in the non- profit space, it is crucial to be able to use all funding well. Too many non-profits seek grants that require providing either services they are not equipped to provide or services their constituents don't actually need. This is wasteful and often comes with penalties from the funder. In my experience, having a grant writer is only helpful if the person has complete understanding of the needs of the organization and it's priorities in meeting those needs. For example, I ran a grant-funded tutoring program that only funded teacher stipends. Students were happy to get the extra help, but struggled to focus because they were hungry. I told our grant writer of the need and within a week we had funding for snacks.

Building partnerships is essential to long-term success. I am a strong supporter of "let's do this work together" versus "fund our work." Well designed partnerships allow organizations to not only maximize resources, but it creates the ability to share skills and talents across a more expansive portfolio of work, reduce development/production time, and reach a wider audience. I also urge a liberal definition of partnerships beyond the traditional 2 org concept and include multiple org alignments.

Start by identifying potential allies like local businesses, other non-profits, and government agencies that share similar goals. For example, if your non-profit focuses on community health, you might partner with a health clinic to provide free screenings. Approach these entities with a clear value proposition, outlining how collaboration can benefit both parties. Partnerships can bring additional expertise, new audiences, and shared resources, like volunteers or funding. By working together, you can accomplish more than you could alone, creating a network of support that helps propel your program forward and make a greater impact in the community.

Partnership addition is an essential part of the resource and needs intelligence gathering. Creating partnerships and alliances is not niche work. It has to be an ongoing practice that offers win-win propositions for partners and allies.

Training staff combines with other skills including benchmarks, informal channels and even storytelling that allows staff to showcase work in different arenas. Ongoing dialogue with staff may reveal skill and/or desire to add feedback loops and broadcast successes via social media.