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Capacity
Building
What is Capacity Building?
Capacity building refers to efforts made to improve the effectiveness
of an organization in achieving its mission and making it sustainable
for the future. Rather than directly increasing the number of
services provided or individuals served, capacity building activities
focus resources on those organizational areas that support and
maintain service provision such as the staff, board of directors,
financial systems and sources, technology, and more.
The following list provides examples of capacity
building activities from the Compassion Capital Fund:
Leadership Development
- Providing staff with professional development and training
to enhance skills in service delivery, administration, management,
and/or leadership
- Recruiting, developing, and managing volunteers more effectively
- Establishing a board of directors
- Decreasing vacant positions on the board of directors
- Providing formal orientation for new board members
- Keeping minutes and attendance of board meetings
- Expanding the activities of the board of directors
- Recruiting board members with diverse experience
- Developing a board of directors that represents a cross-section
of the community and/or that has ties to different constituencies
- Creating plans to understand board responsibilities and improve
performance
Organizational Development
- Incorporating as a legally recognized organization
- Obtaining 501(c)(3) status with the IRS
- Creating and adopting a written mission statement
- Creating and adopting a written strategic plan
- Participating in an organizational assessment by an external
individual/entity
- Hiring a financial manager to pay bills, make deposits, keep
records, etc.
- Getting an audit of its finances/financial records by an
external auditor
- Creating formal, written financial management procedures
- Developing or implementing systems to ensure more effective
resource allocation and/or organizational financial management
- Implementing a budgeting process
- Increasing the number of volunteer hours in an average week
- Creating written job descriptions for each staff position
or job category
- Conducting annual performance reviews for paid and/or volunteer
staff
- Increasing computer and/or software proficiency
- Purchasing computers and/or software
- Increasing organizational utilization of the Internet
- Purchasing computer software to keep financial records
- Developing or implementing electronic record-keeping methods
Program Development
- Developing plans to increase the number of clients served
and/or the number or scope of services offered to clients
- Developing plans to expand into a new programmatic area
- Developing plans to incorporate a new approach to services
- Developing plans to improve quality/effectiveness
- Developing plans to include a new group of service recipients
or geographic area
- Developing or implementing plans to collect more information
about clients, including number, characteristics, and/or how
they are helped by the program
- Collecting feedback from service recipients
- Conducting formal assessments of the services provided
- Developing or implementing plans to strengthen organizational
evaluation
Revenue Development Strategies
- Creating a written fundraising/fund development plan
- Increasing the number of applications for funding submitted
and/or approved
- Seeking and/or obtaining funding from new sources
- Hiring a grant/contract writer to train staff to prepare
applications for funding
- Identifying and pursuing new sources of government funding,
non-government funding, and/or in-kind donations
Community Engagement
- Creating or updating a Web site
- Developing or distributing written materials, such as a brochure
or newsletter
- Making presentations to and/or engaging in partnerships with
other local faith-based and community groups
- Utilizing public service announcements or paid advertising
- Undertaking activities to better understand the needs in
your community or service area (e.g., meeting with constituents,
community mapping, needs assessment survey
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