CAPACITY BUILDING

Capacity building initiatives are all designed to help organizations overcome the barriers that limit their effectiveness. The goal of capacity building is to help an organization do more of the good work that it does, better and more efficiently. There are five, commonly-recognized areas of capacity that address the common challenges of running an effective organization:

* Leadership Development (e.g. board training and recruitment, staff development, volunteer recruitment and training)

* Organizational Development (e.g. strategic planning, job descriptions, financial management procedures, technology like computers and electronic records)

* Program Development (e.g. expanding service, evaluating programs, client record keeping)

* Revenue Development (e.g. fundraising plan, diversifying fund sources)

* Community Engagement (e.g. marketing and communication tools, developing partnerships and collaborations, expanding service population)

While this division of topics has been an effective organizational tool, the boundaries are less clear-cut than they might appear. For example, program development and most areas to a greater or lessor degree require revenue. If you are looking for information about a particular area of capacity building, be sure to look in all of the areas that might seem relevant.

It is important to note that while capacity building helps the organization, it is not operational support. Capacity building focuses on sustaining the organization. In the examples above, capacity building would focus on the long-term needs of the organization that will help it better meet the short-term, practical needs of the organization and the population that it serves.

Why Build Capacity?

Struggling with old technology that makes daily tasks difficult or having to choose between paying a monthly utility bill that meets the needs of clients and developing a strategic plan for an organization are tough choices. Organizations that find themselves having to choose between the two may soon find their staff burned out or the organization in jeopardy. Both of these types of needs are vital to the organization and both are worthy of consideration. They are interdependent. Without a larger, focused plan, an organization will focus on its daily needs. Without the daily needs being met, the organization doesn’t meet its mission.

Both operational and capacity building support are needed to make a nonprofit effective at meeting its goals. Operational support provides the nonprofit with means to deliver its programs and serve its clients or members. Capacity building support provides long-term sustainability for the organization. It helps an organization both accomplish its mission and deliver programming more efficiently and effectively. In addition, capacity building activities can provide stability through transitions, thus strengthening the nonprofit. These are the reasons why the PWC focuses its efforts on capacity building activities. The PWC can’t provide operational support to every nonprofit, but it can supply a host of capacity building support to many.

This website has been created to be a resource to organizations who wish to build the capacity of their nonprofit organization. Whether your organization is already engaged in a formal, facilitated capacity building process, or you are not sure just what capacity building is, there is something here for everyone. The process of Capacity Building is outlined below. Click on the links within the diagram for further information on each step in the process.

We welcome comments, corrections, or suggestions for additional capacity-building topics to be added to this site. Please email Jim Zacks.