Impact and Strategic Clarity Planning: Pre-Kickoff Materials

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Impact and Strategic Clarity Planning
Pre-Kickoff Materials

• Innoweave
• October 2012

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Agenda

• Introduction to this process and expectations
• Introduction to your organization
• Next steps and deliverables before Nov 16th

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Introducing The Bridgespan Group and team members
for Impact and Strategic Clarity Planning
The Bridgespan Group
Your Bridgespan teammates for the
Impact/Strategic Clarity project
Bridgespan collaborates with mission-driven
leaders and organizations to accelerate
breakthrough social impact. A nonprofit
ourselves, we share our clients passion for
building a better world. (link to our website
found here)
Samantha Levine Manager Samantha.levine_at_bridgespan
.org 617-572-2336
Chase Behringer Consultant Chase.Behringer_at_bridges
pan.org 617-572-2753

• History Founded in 2000
• Services Strategy consulting, executive search,
  leadership development, philanthropy advising,
  and developing and sharing insights
• Offices Boston, New York, and San Francisco
  (200 staff)
• Clients 400 foundations and nonprofits globally

Jennie Funk Consultant Jennifer.Funk_at_bridgespan.or
g 617-572-2653
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Reminder of the Innoweave Impact and Strategic
Clarity project goals

• Innoweave aims to provide community sector
  leaders with new tools and processes to effect
  large-scale change
• This project will help 14 nonprofit organizations
  to examine your current efforts in a structured
  and data-driven way
• What impact you aim to achieve
• How you will achieve it
• How you will measure your success

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The project officially kicks off on Friday, Nov
16 (although preparation begins now!)
Oct. 15 Participants selected
Nov. 16 First workshop
Jan. 17 Second workshop
March 15 Official project end
April 15 Feedback concludes

• Prep for Workshop 1 includes creating a draft
  Intended Impact statement
• Full details on the prep required contained in
  these materials

• Draft your theory of change - the activities that
  you will pursue to achieve Intended Impact
• Test theory of change
• Complete a program analysis to determine your
  past performance relative to intended impact
• Gather external evidence to see what implications
  that research has for your theory of change

• Refine your theory of change based on the
  analyses
• Create a learning agenda with the outstanding
  questions to investigate over the next 3-5 years
• Determine implications for programs and
  operations, develop implementation plan

One-hour coaching calls with Bridgespan every
other week
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Fourteen organizations will be working in
parallel during this process
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A few words on the role of the shadow coaches
Why are there coaches?
Who are the coaches?
What role will the coaches play?

• Innoweaves goal is to increase the capacity of
  the community sector
• One strategy to increase capacity is training
  others to support nonprofits in gaining strategic
  clarity
• The trained coaches, well-versed in the tools and
  approach, can then take other nonprofits through
  a similar process

• The coaches are local community sector leaders
  who have been selected through a competitive
  application process
• We are currently pairing a coach with your
  organization
• The specific person shadowing your organization
  will be announced shortly

• Coaches will shadow this process, attending
  both workshops and the regularly- scheduled calls
  between your organization and Bridgespan
• While the coachs primary responsibility is to
  listen and learn, coaches may also offer advice
  and thoughts during discussions based on their
  own extensive nonprofit experiences

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Expectations over the next six months
Commitment focus

• This intensive process involves hours of senior
  team time beyond the regular Bridgespan check-ins
• In order to reap the benefits we ask that you
  devote appropriate focus to the process

Respect for schedules and deadlines

• With 14 nonprofits to support, we can rarely
  accommodate changes to the check-in schedule so
  please guard our time on your calendars
• Respect for deadlines is also an expectation

Confidentiality

• During our workshops you may learn about each
  others organizational challenges and key
  questions, which we ask all nonprofits to keep
  confidential

Candid feedback

• We seek to learn about both what is working well
  and what can be improved
• We welcome feedback and ask that you share it
  early and often

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Agenda

• Introduction to this process and expectations
• Introduction to your organization
• Next steps and deliverables before Nov 16th

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At our pre-kickoff meeting we would love to learn
more about your organization and answer your
questions
Questions for discussion
Other topics that you may have questions about

• How would you describe the overall goal of your
  organization and the audience you aim to serve?
• What are the central opportunities and challenges
  facing your organization today?
• What questions you are hoping to answer through
  the project?
• What else are you most excited to take away from
  this process?

• You team structure for this project
• What the actual work will be like, and how much
  time it will take
• What to prepare for our Nov 16 workshop (also
  covered in the next section)
• Anything else? Please bring any and all
  questions to our pre-kickoff meeting!

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Agenda

• Introduction to this process and expectations
• Introduction to your organization
• Next steps and deliverables before Nov 16th

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Next steps and deliverables before Nov 16th

• Read Delivering on the Promise of Nonprofits
• Watch a short video on Intended Impact/Theory of
  Change (the link to which will be sent over email
  soon) and draft your organizations Intended
  Impact
• Plan Board engagement
• Begin gathering data for the Program Analysis
• Schedule check-ins with Bridgespan (via Doodle
  poll, the link to which will be sent over email
  soon)

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Pre-work
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Logistics
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Before the kickoff, please read Delivering on
the Promise of Nonprofits
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• The article, written by three senior Bridgespan
  partners, provides an overview of Bridgespans
  accumulated knowledge on the importance of strong
  strategies, and how to develop one
• It explains four questions nonprofits should
  rigorously address
• Which results will we hold ourselves accountable
  for?
• How will we achieve them?
• What will the results really cost, and how can we
  fund them?
• How do we build the organization we need to
  deliver those results?
• It also includes a case study about Harlem
  Childrens Zone
• We will refer to this at the kickoff and
  throughout the process

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There are several elements to strategic clarity,
intended impact being a critical element upfront
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What are you doing for whom and how?
Your intended impact statement answers What and
For whom
Priorities resources Organization
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Intended impact defines success for your
organization
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What is the impact that you will hold yourself
accountable for achieving, in what timeframe?
What? For whom?

Intended impact
The following slides and the Intended Impact/
Theory of Change video (which will be emailed
soon) will help you prepare a draft intended
impact statement to bring to the Nov 16 workshop
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When crafting your intended impact statement,
keep your ambition realistic
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Harlem Childrens Zone
Spanish Students Now
2009 budget 40M
2009 budget 1.5M
Spanish Students Now seeks to help native
Spanish-speaking students in Los Angeles to
graduate from high school prepared for college
and careers.
Over the next decade, Harlem Childrens Zone
(HCZ) will help children aged 0-18 living in the
HCZ to make a successful transition to an
independent, healthy adulthood, reflected in
achievement profiles consistent with those in an
average middle-class community.
Specific and achievable
Specific, but not as realistic, given the budget
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Additional sample Intended Impact statements
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• Homeless Youth Services (HYS) seeks to assist
  homeless youth age 12-23 in Washington D.C. to
  permanently exit life on the streets.
• The Enrichment Programs (TEP) target population
  is students of color living in low income urban
  communities in grades K 6 who are currently
  performing below grade level in school. Within
  this group, the Program seeks to improve
  individuals academic performance and
  self-concept, with the eventual goal of
  increasing their engagement as positive members
  and leaders within their communities.
• Increase by 50 the number of first generation
  college graduates from San Francisco by 2015.
• The San Francisco Child Abuse Prevention Center
  provides direct services, education, and systems
  coordination to prevent child abuse and neglect
  in San Francisco and the greater Bay Area. Over
  the next 5-10 years, SFCAPC will improve safety
  outcomes for children age 0-12 living in San
  Francisco and the greater Bay Area who are at the
  greatest risk for abuse and neglect.
• Create a healthy, sustainable ecosystem and
  reverse global warming by reducing carbon
  emissions to a safe, sustainable level, in part
  by achieving a mandated combined average fleet
  fuel economy of 40 MPG in the U.S. transportation
  sector within five years.

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Intended Impact template (optional use only if
helpful to structure your thoughts)
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Target beneficiaries of ltORGgt

• ltArticulation of beneficiariesgt

Target outcomes we intend to achieve for them
(and measures)

• Outcomes we track while in our program
• ltSpecific measuregt
• ltSpecific measuregt
• Etc.
• Outcomes we will track up end of program
• ltSpecific measuregt
• ltSpecific measuregt
• Etc.
• Long-term outcomes we intend to track/achieve
• ltSpecific measuregt
• ltSpecific measuregt
• Etc.

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Think now about how your board will engage
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• Early on, the full board selects 1-4 people (key
  board members) who are interested in being more
  deeply involved in strategic planning
• The key board members meet with the work group
  regularly to provide input and advice every 3-4
  weeks
• The key board members update the rest of the
  board at each of the regularly scheduled board
  meetings
• At the end of the process, the full board
  approves the strategic direction
• Note in some cases, board members have served as
  full work group members and attended all weekly
  meetings

Review your currently scheduled board meetings
and create a plan for board involvement using the
plan template sent over email
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Suggested topics and timing for engaging your
Board
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Oct. 15 Participants selected
Nov. 16 First workshop
Jan. 17 Second workshop
March 15 Official project end
April 15 Feedback concludes
Potential Board touchpoints

• Introduce this process to the full Board and
  identify a subset willing to engage more closely
  in the process
• Schedule regular check-ins with this subgroup

• Review draft Intended Impact/ Theory of Change
  with the subgroup
• Receive early input

• Check in with full Board
• Review early findings from Program and External
  Evidence Analyses
• Refine Theory of Change as needed

• Discuss implications of analyses on programs and
  operations with subgroup
• Brainstorm ideas for strategic direction

• Meet with full Board to present and gain approval
  for strategic direction and imple-mentation plan

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Also before workshop 1, start to fill out the
Program Info sheet needed to complete the Program
Analysis
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What is the Program Analysis?
What is the Program Info sheet?

• We have provided a template for program
  information data that will be crucial to have in
  business planning, but can take time to gather
• The act of gathering this data can also be very
  revealing
• Comparing target vs. actual data can generate
  important insights about each program
• In addition, if you discover that it is very
  difficult to gather certain information, that is
  also a valuable finding
• Begin filling these out now, and ideally complete
  them by workshop 1

• An analysis examining your past program data to
  see how well you are currently performing against
  your draft impact statement
• Are you serving the intended beneficiary group?
• Are they receiving the intended services in the
  right doses?
• Who is (and is not) achieving the desired
  outcomes, and why?

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Please indicate time preferences for your regular
check-ins with Bridgespan
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• We would also like to schedule regular check-ins
  between your organization, Bridgespan and the
  shadow coach as soon as possible to decrease the
  chance that future conflicts will arise
• As a reminder, we have meetings with all 14
  organizations every other week and as a result
  can only accommodate rescheduling requests for
  truly extenuating circumstances
• Please fill out the Doodle poll (which will be
  emailed to you soon) to indicate your
  availability ASAP, so we can block time in all
  participant calendars

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Recap and details
Next steps
How and when
1. Read Delivering on the Promise of Nonprofits Bridgespan emailed this article please read for the Nov 16 workshop
2. Watch the Intended Impact/Theory of Change video and draft your Intended Impact statement Bridgespan will email the video link to you please draft your statement by Nov 16
3. Draft Board engagement plan Bridgespan emailed template please send to Chase and Jennie by Nov 12
4. Complete program information sheet Begin now, and aim to have an initial draft completed by Nov 16
5. Go online to indicate which times are best for regular check-ins Bridgespan will email the Doodle poll link to you please respond online by Oct 24
Pre-work
Logistics
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Any other questions?
?
Feel free to contact us at any time!
Jennie Funk 617-572-2653 Jennifer.funk_at_bridgespan.org
Chase Behringer 617-572-2753  Chase.behringer_at_bridgespan.org
Samantha Levine 617-572-2336 Samantha.levine_at_bridgespan.org
Micaela Owen (logistics and scheduling) 617-572-2769 Micaela.owen_at_bridgespan.org