Capacity Building (Nonprofit)

Capacity building has fast become a major topic among nonprofits and management support organizations (funders, associations, training centers, consultants, etc.) that provide services to nonprofits. There are a variety of definitions for capacity building. Perhaps the most fundamental definition is "actions that improve nonprofit effectiveness" (from Investing in Capacity Building by Barbara Blumenthal, published by The Foundation Center). Some other discussions about capacity building refer to the concept as actions that enhance a nonprofit's ability to work towards its mission.

The concept of capacity building in nonprofits is similar to the concept of organizational development, organizational effectiveness and/or organizational performance management in for-profits. Capacity building efforts can include a broad range of approaches, eg, granting operating funds, granting management development funds, providing training and development sessions, providing coaching, supporting collaboration with other nonprofits, etc. Prominent methods of organizational performance management in for-profits are beginning to be mentioned in discussions about capacity building, as well, for example, the Balanced Scorecard, principles of organizational change, cultural change, organizational learning, etc.

Information in this topic of the Library will acquaint you with the concept of capacity building in nonprofits, including offering you a broad background from some suggested previous readings, numerous perspectives on capacity building from numerous articles, and then review of various common functions in nonprofits (eg, boards, role of CEO, programs, marketing, fundraising, finances, evaluation, etc.). The topic closes with review of major methods of organizational performance management.

Sections of This Topic Include:

Articles About Capacity Building

There are an increasing number of publications about the general topic of nonprofit capacity building. The following list will help you to get you started. Some items on the list are not available as online articles and need to be ordered from the publisher.
Common Types of Capacity Building
Building Capacity in Nonprofit Organizations, Urban Institute Press (online and can take a while to download)
Capacity Building: Beware the Easy Fix, order from Nonprofit Quarterly
Echoes from the Field: Proven Capacity Building Principles for Nonprofits (online and can take a while to download)
Effective Capacity Building in Nonprofit Organizations (online and can take a while to download)
How to "Do" Capacity Building, order from Council on Foundations.
Lessons from the Street: Capacity Building and Replication (online and can take a while to download)
Building the Capacity of Capacity Builders
Nonprofit Capacity Building Toolkit, order from Authenticity Consulting, LLC
Reflections on Capacity Building by California Wellness Center (online).
Capacity Building
Strengthening Nonprofit Organizations: A Funder's Guide to Capacity Building

Common Functions in Nonprofits

The following links are to information about the major functions typically carried out in nonprofit organizations. An understanding of these functions is important to the success of capacity building efforts.
Preparation for Planning a Business Venture
How to start nonprofit venture (everything you need to know to start a nonprofit)
Complete Free Toolkit for Boards
Role of Chief Executive
How to conduct nonprofit business planning (guidelines and samples)
How to conduct strategic planning (guidelines and samples)
Basic Guide to Program Design and Marketing (complete guidelines)
Advertising and Promotions (basics, guidelines and samples)
All About Marketing (basics, research, pricing, promoting, etc.
All About Sales (basics and advanced information)
Public and media relations (basics and advanced information)
Nonprofit Fundraising and Grantwriting
Free Online Guide to Staffing
Volunteer Management
Basic Guide to Managing Nonprofit Finances
Basic Guide to Program Evaluation

Organizational Performance Management Approaches

The following approaches are some of the most common for enhancing the performance of an organization.
Balanced Scorecard
Benchmarking
Cultural Change
Knowledge Management
Management by Objectives
Organizational Learning
Outcomes-Based Evaluation
Program Evaluation
Strategic Planning

For the Category of Capacity Building (Nonprofit):

Recommended Books

Starting a Nonprofit Organization

Overall Capacity Building to Enhance an Established Nonprofit Organization

Starting a Nonprofit Organization

Field Guide to Nonprofit Program Design, Marketing and Evaluation: by Carter McNamara, published by Authenticity Consulting, LLC. The most important aspect of starting a new nonprofit is designing your first program -- the reason for your new nonprofit. Your new nonprofit is built around the success of your first program. Too many books completely separate the highly integrated activities of planning, marketing and evaluating programs. This book integrates all three into a comprehensive, straightforward approach that anyone can follow in order to provide high-quality programs with strong appeal to funders. Includes many online forms that can be downloaded.

Field Guide to Developing, Operating and Restoring Your Nonprofit Board: by Carter McNamara, published by Authenticity Consulting, LLC. Provides step-by-step, highly practical guidelines to organize, operate and sustain high-quality nonprofit Boards -- and to fix a broken Board! Includes variety of Board models you can choose from, roles and responsibilities, how to get the best members, how to train and organize them, goals for standard committees, ensuring high-quality meetings, evaluating Boards, how to evaluate and/or replace the Executive Director, and much more! Includes many sample Board policies you can download! Written by the developer of the Free Management Library. Many materials in this Library's topic about Boards are adapted from this book. 30-day, money-back, guarantee!

The following books are recommended because of their highly practical nature and often because they include a wide range of information about this Library topic. To get more information about each book, just hover your cursor over the image of the book. A "bubble" of information will be displayed. You can click on the title of the book in that bubble to get more information, too.

Overall Capacity Building to Enhance an Establish Nonprofit Organization

Field Guide to Consulting and Organizational Development With Nonprofits: by Carter McNamara, published by Authenticity Consulting, LLC. Provides complete, step-by-step guidelines to identify complex issues in nonprofit organizations and successfully resolve each of them. This book is also helpful to organizations that are doing fine now, but want to evolve to the next level of performance. This is one of the truly comprehensive, yet practical, books about this complex subject! Includes online forms that can be downloaded. Many materials in this Library's topic about guiding change are adapted from this comprehensive book.

Venture Forth! The Essential Guide to Starting a Money-Making Business in Your Nonprofit Organization: by Rolfe Larson, published by Fieldstone Alliance. Provide step-by-step guidelines to identify and implement the best ideas to generate more revenue to further your nonprofit mission. Ideas can come from current or new services -- many nonprofits are already providing critical services from which they could generate more revenue. The movement of social entrepreneurship, including earned-income generation, is becoming a must for every nonprofit to consider. Many funders greatly appreciate nonprofits generating more income -- this book shows you how!

Coping with Cutbacks -- The Nonprofit Guide to Success When Times Are Tight: by Emil Angelica and Vincent Hyman, published by Fieldstone Alliance. This treasure trove helps nonprofits to consider a very wide range of practical ideas for addressing financial shortfalls in their nonprofit organization. Every nonprofit, not just those in financial trouble, should be doing financial contingency planning -- planning for what they will do if they do not get the revenue that they expect from fees and fundraising. This book gives you plenty of ideas!

Strengthening Nonprofit Performance -- A Funder's Guide to Capacity Building: by Paul Connolly and Carol Lukas, published by Fieldstone Alliance. Provides step-by-step guidelines for funders to plan and develop highly effective capacity building services for nonprofits in their area. Many funders are finding that it's not enough just to write checks -- nonprofits need highly accessible, low-cost means of support and guidance to use the funder's resources to enhance organizational performance. This book explains common types of capacity building, key criteria for any successful capacity building program, and how to set up the best capacity building program.

Field Guide to Nonprofit Strategic Planning and Facilitation: by Carter McNamara, published by Authenticity Consulting, LLC. Step-by-step guidelines to customize and facilitate planners to implement the best strategic planning process to suit the particular nature and needs of their nonprofit. This is one of the few books, if any, that explains how to actually facilitate planning. Includes many online forms that can be downloaded and used by planners.