Mar 09, 2012

Welcome to the blog!

On the site you will find a number of resources, assessments, links, and peer-learning exchanges from grantees who have received Technical Assistance awards. The exchanges are designed to help people who are seeking Technical Assistance awards avoid common pitfalls and to create resources for each other as we seek to interview consultants, try to engage our boards, develop lasting strategic plans, and the list goes on...

Ideally, this resource will serve as a space to raise the collective knowledge of the vibrant and critical nonprofit sector in Denver Metro. I encourage you to add to this knowledge base by

providing links to resources you find useful

commenting on peoples stories, articles, and assessments found on this site

Visit the categories for which you are thinking of applying and connect with peers who have received technical assistance awards.

email me documents you would like to share with your peers

A listing of peers by category are here:

As with most things in the world of technolgy, this site is a work in progress. I look forward to learning with you.

Christiano Sosa

Program Officer

The Denver Foundation

Eight Dimensions of a Healthy NPO

All nonprofit organizations need help from time to time in order to function more effectively and efficiently. This is especially true of new or emerging nonprofit organizations or those with smaller budgets. We are pleased to report that based on 61 online final reports, key findings show that TA grantees continue to make significant progress.  The impact of the Technical Assistance (TA) program continues to evolve and we look forward to future updates! A few highlights follow: 

Most Improved:
56% of the 40 attributes of healthy nonprofits in our TA program experienced significant growth.
100% of board retreat and strategic planning grantees saw significant improvements in eight dimensions of a healthy nonprofit.
100% of all TA grantees greatly improved in programming and in planning.

Somewhat Improved:
36% of the 40 dimensions of healthy nonprofits in our TA program experienced some growth.
61% of all TA grantees improved somewhat in the area of governance

Challenges:
25% of inclusiveness grantees did not make solid gains in evaluation or in formalizing processes of inclusiveness. Remember, inclusiveness is a journey - not a destination!
30% of all TA grantees struggled with the inclusiveness dimension of a healthy nonprofit

Interpreting the rubric:
The five subject areas on the left-hand side of the rubric represent the vast majority of requests to the TA program.
Green cells represent self-identified areas most growth, yellow cells represent slight growth, and red cells represent little growth.
The rubric/report is designed as a tool to help you determine your unique technical assistance needs. It also illustrates how other TA grantees fared in the same areas.

Based on this data, the rubric/report may also be helpful to you as you interview potential consultants for either assessment or provision of services

To learn more about the TA Program in terms of eligibilty, to find a listing of grantees who have received TA awards (to connect on a peer-to-peer basis if you are thinking of applying for a TA award), links to resources and websites that help nonprofits to do your work more effectively, and a database of consultants that can help with various types of technical assistance, click here.

For questions or comments about the Technical Assistance Resource Center, contact Christiano Sosa at 303-300-1790, or csosa@denverfoundation.org.

Christiano Sosa

Program Officer

 

 

Category: From the desk of Christiano