Category Archives: Communities

When and How to Create a Strategic Plan

Communities Evaluation Nonprofit Program Development Strategic Planning

We often talk with clients who identify barriers to their success, but they don’t realize that they may need to create a strategic plan in order to accomplish their goals. In other cases, our clients do recognize their need for a new strategic plan, but they lack the expertise and capacity to develop it on their own. We help organizations navigate this process!

Should My Organization Create a Strategic Plan Now?

We wrote a blog to answer the question When Is It Time to Change Your Program? The factors in that blog may also indicate that your organization needs a new strategic plan: 

  • Are your programs not having the desired impact?
  • Do you lack sufficient funding?
  • Has new industry research emerged?
  • Are your community’s demographics changing?

In addition, there are other factors that signal a need for strategic planning:

  • Was your current strategic plan completed 5+ years ago?
  • Is your organization newly created?
  • Is large-scale systems change underway?

Newly Created Organizations

We recently worked with clients impacted by two of these factors, and one was a newly created organization. Kosciusko County’s Child Care and Early Learning Coalition, LaunchPad, was established in October 2018. In their first year, the coalition hired a director and gathered stakeholder feedback. However, they struggled to gain momentum without a strategic plan. Within their coalition, they didn’t have the strategic planning expertise they needed. They reached out to us for assistance creating a strategic plan. 

Launchpad LogoOur team came alongside LaunchPad, meeting them where they were in their work. Instead of restarting the process of gathering stakeholder feedback, we used the information already available. Due to that, we could shorten the first two steps of our strategic planning process. Then, we quickly moved on to facilitating consensus and developing a strategic plan. This enabled us to meet LaunchPad’s time frame and set them up for their next steps to accomplish their goals! 

Large-Scale Systems Change

The other client we recently partnered with is 4C of Southern Indiana. One of 4C’s primary functions is their role as a Child Care Resource and Referral (CCR&R) agency. The state of Indiana recently enacted large-4C-logo-color-black-fontscale systems change that impacted CCR&Rs and other agencies.

In order to adjust to these changes and plan for the future, 4C asked us to facilitate a strategic planning process for them. In our work with 4C, we connected with diverse stakeholders for feedback. We reached consensus on a new plan with the board, staff, and key partners. We created an implementation plan for them, and now they’re putting it into action!
4C Strategic Planning Retreat

Have you determined that you need help with your strategic planning to build capacity? Contact us today to chat about your goals and how we can help!

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2019 Year in Review

Communities Evaluation Fundraising Strategies Government Nonprofit Program Development Project Management Research & Analysis Strategic Planning

This year was another big year for Transform Consulting Group. In 2019, we were thrilled to once again work with a variety of clients and important causes across Indiana and Michigan. 

We are thankful for all that we accomplished as a team to help accelerate the impact of our clients in communities across the two states. We summarized a snapshot of the highlights from 2019 below. 

Building Capacity:

  1. We secured over $1.6 million in grants for clients and created development plans to increase and diversify funding. 
  2. We facilitated 8 strategic plans which included internal and external organization assessments, research, building consensus with stakeholders, and mapping out specific steps to achieve the goals. Many of these projects were community wide initiatives that involved a diverse group of partners utilizing a collective impact framework. 
  3. We shared our knowledge and expertise at over 15 trainings at conferences and more than 20 trainings with clients. 

Facilitating Evaluation, Research, & Analysis:

  1. We continue expanding our data visualization skills and created 31 data dashboards to make data user-friendly, accessible, and manageable for clients. View a few examples here.
  2. We completed 9 program evaluations that included setting clear goals, developing tools and systems, data analysis, and an evaluation plan.
  3. We developed 9 community needs assessment data reports to help organizations understand their community and target population to appropriately plan for and align programming and services.

Mobilizing Communities, Partners, & Systems:

  1. We created and disseminated 60 surveys for stakeholder feedback to help direct our clients’ next steps. 
  2. We’re passionate about Collective Impact and worked with Community Foundations and other partners across the state to identify and address big issues in their communities. 
  3. We helped launch a new state contract that connects a number of partners at the state and local level. 

Company Highlights: 

  • As a woman-owned business, it was a huge accomplishment to officially become a certified Women’s Business Enterprise. 
  • We increased our number of clients by over half in 2019. Of those clients, nearly half were brand new!
  • We were 2019 Big Data Visualization Challenge finalists for the 2nd year. The Challenge used data to highlight recommendations for improving health outcomes for Indiana mothers and infants. We were provided datasets on maternal health and infant mortality, and then tasked with creating a visualization solution. You can view the dashboard we created and our recommendations here. 
  • We expanded our reach with clients across Indiana and Michigan who represented so many different sectors in Education and Community Development including: 
    • Adult Education
    • Alternative Education
    • Child Welfare
    • College & Career Readiness
    • Domestic Violence
    • Early Childhood Education
    • Economic Development
    • Homelessness
    • Home Visiting
    • K-12 Education
    • School Counseling
    • Substance Abuse Prevention
    • Veteran Services
    • Youth Development

As we head into the New Year, we are grateful for the organizations who trust our team and partnered with us in 2019. We have exciting things ahead in 2020, and we would love to work with you! Do you have a clear plan for your upcoming year? Whether you’re looking to strengthen  your organization’s capacity, use your data to drive impact, or mobilize your community and partners to tackle big issues, we would love to help! Contact us to set up a call to talk further in the New Year.

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Using Data to Tell Your Story

Communities Education Evaluation Government Nonprofit Research & Analysis

We say we’re #datanerds at Transform Consulting Group. However, for a communication and marketing person like myself, I will admit that data intimidates me. I prefer using words and emotions to convey ideas rather than numbers and excel sheets. So, how does that translate to our data-driven work at TCG? 

In Nancy Duarte’s book “Data Story” she says, “Facts aren’t as memorable as stories.” She highlighted an experiment that revealed 5% of people remember individual statistics while 63% remember the stories. 

In our work – as an organization and for clients – we have to have both data and storytelling if we want to make an impact. If you search through our blogs, we have several data related posts (here, here, here, and here). We also have a whole marketing series (here, here, here, and here). This blog is bringing together those 2 worlds – with 5 tips for using data in your storytelling.  

5 Tips for Using Data to Tell Your Story

 

  1. Keep it simple. Numbers and data may seem far from simple at times, especially when you’re dealing with really complicated issues. The reality is though, most of your stakeholders are not technical experts. They don’t know the lingo. They don’t know your measurables. You don’t want to bog down your audience with so much “meat” that they can’t absorb anything. Simple is better. Be clear, straight to the point, and look at your data through the lens of an “everyday” person.
  2. Make it relatable. Why is the data important? Who does it impact? It’s hard for even the biggest #datanerd to get excited about an excel sheet full of numbers or a report with a bunch of charts. However, if you explain the implications of the data, people will connect. We like to call this the “so what?”

    What does it mean for your community when student graduation rates decline? How does it impact employers when there aren’t enough early childhood education programs available for working families? What does it mean for your community to have a high rate of child maltreatment? Don’t just spout off facts and figures, explain the why and significance of your data.

    Extra Tip: Know your audience. Know who you are talking to so you can shape your message in a way that relates to the person in front of you. Your data story should be very different for your potential client like a parent versus a potential funder or partner.
  3. Utilize clear graphs and slides. When surveying top executives from large organizations across the county, Duarte found the majority preferred simple visuals to get to the point. They requested a bar graph, pie chart or line graph. We create some pretty fancy data dashboards here at TCG, but we know that the most important data point needs to be the first thing you see. Don’t bury it with too many special features, graphics, or animations.  Also, be mindful of creating clear titles to describe your graphs and charts. Be intentional with the type of chart you have selected, including the colors.
  4. Structure your story. We learn from a young age that a story needs to have 3 components: a beginning, middle, and end. How does that translate when using data? The beginning of your story should highlight the pain point. Set the stage for what is the current reality and need. The “messy middle” as Duarte says, is where you highlight the obstacles or hurdles getting in the way of progress or impact. The end is where you present the solution.
  5. Make the data stick. How do you talk about the magnitude of the data? The data should connect to something familiar if you want your message to stick. If the numbers are great, express that clearly in your message and tone. If the numbers need improvement, then be direct and express disappointment. It is possible to generate emotions from numbers in your delivery. 

At Transform Consulting Group, we are passionate about the many causes our clients represent. We know your work is important. So, what’s next for you? Whether you’re struggling with gathering and analyzing data to inform decision making or struggling to use that data to craft your story of impact – we want to help! Let’s work together to turn your data into action. 

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7 Strategies to Maximize #GivingTuesday

Communities Education Fundraising Strategies Nonprofit

As 2019 comes to an end, we’ve talked a lot about how to end the year with a bang when it comes to your fund development goals. (Find our 10 tips for your year-end giving campaign here). This blog is all about Giving Tuesday – the National Day of Giving.

Screen Shot 2019-11-22 at 10.56.00 AM

Giving Tuesday falls on the Tuesday right after Thanksgiving. The idea is to have a day for giving thanks (Thanksgiving), followed by two days for deals (Black Friday and Cyber Monday), and then there is a day dedicated to giving back (Giving Tuesday!).

Giving Tuesday provides a unique opportunity for your organization to engage with donors, partners, and volunteers – and hopefully raise some money! To get the most out of your Giving Tuesday strategy, we recommend implementing these seven strategies:

  1. Set a giving goal
    Decide how much money your organization wants to raise on Giving Tuesday and what the money raised will go toward funding. Once you decide your goals, share them with your supporters! Donors want to know where their money is going and the difference it will make. This strategy will also help build excitement throughout the day as you creep closer and closer to your day’s goal.
  2. Focus on new donors
    Giving Tuesday is a great opportunity to engage with new donors, no matter the size of the gift! Use messaging that clearly illustrates your mission and work for individuals who may not know much about your organization. Talk about the importance of your services and your impact in the community. Include options for gifts as small as $5 on your donation pages to get new supporters in the door.
  3. Engage millennials Giving Tuesday is a very social and hashtag friendly day of giving. It may not connect with all donors (which is why Giving Tuesday should only be one piece of your year-end giving campaign), but it is a perfect opportunity to get millennials excited about your mission AND sharing your campaign.
  4. Use various communication mediums Videos, pictures, and testimonialsScreen Shot 2018-11-12 at 3.39.46 PM are all great tools for sharing your organization’s story. Since Giving Tuesday is primarily an online campaign, you will need to think of how you’re engaging supporters in a way that stands out in the often-distracting digital world. Check out case studies from Giving Tuesday campaigns in 2017 here. Notice the unique messaging, visuals, and strategies used. You’ll see that not everyone focuses on raising dollars during their campaign. In-kind donations may be just as valuable for your organization. You can frame your entire campaign around your organization’s specific need.
  5. Schedule “pushes”
    Tuesday, December 3, 2019 may be the big giving day, but planning content to promote leading up to Giving Tuesday will really increase your impact. We recommend 1-2 additional communications in the weeks prior to Giving Tuesday. Promote on your social media platforms that your organization is participating in Giving Tuesday, and share what the day is all about. Send an email blast to your contact list to get them excited about participating. It’s not too early to start building excitement!
  6. Implement peer-to-peer fundraising
    Giving Tuesday is the day to rally the troops and get your network engaged in your fundraising goals. Encourage volunteers, board of directors, staff, and partners to share why they support your organization on their own personal social media platforms. Provide your supporters with content and language to share that is consistent with your messaging. Encourage key contacts to create their own fundraisers on your organization’s behalf.
  7. Follow up with donors We know it’s a busy time of year, but don’t neglect your donors. Acknowledge every gift, no matter the size. Have a process in place for depositing gifts in a timely manner and issuing gift receipts for tax purposes.

As the holiday season approaches, our team would love to support your fundraising efforts. Check out our services here, and contact us today for a free consultation!

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Besides an ask, did you say thank you?

Communities Fundraising Strategies Nonprofit

Research shows nearly a third of giving happens at the end of the year, so now is the time to focus on communication and donor stewardship. Hopefully your year-end campaign will bring in new donors as well as repeat donors. Throughout your campaign, don’t forget to circle back to those who give and follow up with your gratitude.

According to Blackbaud’s Charitable Giving Report, retention rates for first time donors are between 25-30%, but for multi-year donors, the retention rate doubles. We know it’s a busy time of year, but at TCG we recommend building in time to thank your donors and begin (or continue) building a relationship that will continue throughout the year and for years to come. Ultimately, this continued engagement will help grow your donor base.

Ways to Stay In Touch

  1. Celebrate your success
    Screen Shot 2018-11-14 at 8.17.13 PM    During the end of the year frenzy, don’t forget to thank your supporters and volunteers! Dedicate one of your emails to celebrating what your organization has achieved this year. Include a list of highlights, pictures from events, or a holiday picture of staff, and start building excitement for the coming year.
  1. Send a thank you
    Once you receive a donation, the job is not done yet. Make sure that each donor receives a receipt with their donation. That is required. But don’t stop there. Send your donors a dedicated thank you email or letter. Sooner than later. Want to really say thank you and engage your board? Have board members call or write major donors to express appreciation for their gifts.
  1. Add another communication check in
    It is also part of good donor stewardship to communicate regularly with your donors. Engage (or reengage) your donors in your nonprofit as it is obviously a cause they care about. After the first of the year, welcome new donors. They might have given because a friend or family member supports the cause without knowing the details of what you do. Create a welcome series of emails to get them better acquainted with your organization. And for all donors, connect with them throughout the year and include a call to action – to sign up for your newsletter, tour the facility, attend a program, or volunteer!

TIMELINE. For Follow-Up

You have your campaign strategy and a plan for following up with donors. Here’s a timeline of how everything works together!

Timeline:

  • Start campaign week of Thanksgiving (11/25)
  • Giving Tuesday outreach (12/3)
  • Touches throughout December until December 31st
  • January-February:  Review the data to see how your campaign performed. How many new donors, recaptured donors, and repeat donors did you have?
  • Keep in touch throughout the year!

Want more ideas for your year-end campaign? Check out our latest blogs on Giving Tuesday and 10 Tips for Year-End Giving Campaign. If you want to learn more about how your campaign performed this year or to improve your organization’s fundraising next year, check out our services and contact us today!  

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10 Tips for Your Year-End Giving Campaign

Communities Fundraising Strategies Nonprofit

2019 is quickly coming to an end! Before you know it, we’ll be saying “Happy New Year” and plans for 2020 will be underway.

We’re heading into the season of giving. It is that time of year where donor dollars increase significantly. Year-end giving trends suggest blog infographic 1that nearly one third of annual giving happens in December.

At Transform Consulting Group, we highlighted tips for ending your fiscal year strong in this blog. One way to finish the year on a high note, is to kick off a year-end campaign with these simple tips (view our video recap of these tips here):

  1. Start Planning Now: You can’t wait until the last few weeks of December to reach out to donors or to make the first “ask.” Get a plan in place today that you can implement over the next few weeks.blog infographic 2
  2. Send Something: Whether it’s a holiday greeting in the mail or an email blast wrapping up the year, your current donors need to hear from you. You can highlight an accomplishment from this year, share a specific need heading into the New Year, or just thank the donor for their past generosity. Most likely your donors are hearing from other organizations too, and you need to be on their radar.
  3. Engage Volunteers: Take the time to appreciate your volunteers this year. Thank them for the time they
    invested in your organization. You may even decide to give a special gift to those who met X amount of service hours. Volunteers are twice as likely to donate to your organization. These are the people who are already engaged in your mission and have seen first-hand the work you do.
  4. Enlist Your Board: Your board of directors can be your biggest asset this time of year. Have board members write personal thank you notes, make phone calls or accompany you to meetings with donors.
  5. Segment Your Contact List: Your strategy should be different for different donors or partners. Organize your contacts into specific lists and plan your approach for each group such as: major donors, once a year donors, volunteers, alumni (past clients if appropriate), board, etc.
  6. Go Visual: Create consistent images and visuals for all aspects of your campaign. Try highlighting major accomplishments or data using infographics (check out our blog series on infographics here). Feature client success stories and quotes with photos (if appropriate). Create images and banners to display on all social media platforms. You can even set up a microsite just for your holiday campaign that clearly showcases your goals and progress over the next few weeks.
  7. Plan A Giving Day: We highlighted tips for implementing your own “Giving Day” in this blog. This can be a unique day that your organization chooses to ramp up efforts or you may decide to take advantage of Giving Tuesday (read our blog with tips here). Regardless of what you choose, make sure you continue promoting your cause until December 31st. Surveys show 12% of funding comes in during the last 3 days of the year, so you shouldn’t just rely on one day for giving, but it can be a great tool to kickstart your efforts.
  8. Make It Easy To Give: Provide your donors with several options for giving and make the options clear! Create a button on your website for donations. Have a link on your social media pages that directs followers to give. Send pre-stamped envelopes for those donors who you know would rather give via check or cash.
  9. Focus On Donor Stewardship: It’s very rare that you can ask a person for money, and they give it to you on the spot. You need to steward a relationship with them first. Build trust and learn about the causes they are interested in. Donor stewardship is important for engaging new donors but also for helping to move current donors to the next level of giving. Don’t expect that your holiday postcard sent in December will be enough to gain significant traction. Make plans to meet up with specific people who you know can give more or should be giving period. Start those conversations today.
  10. Make It Personal: Regardless of what methods you use to ask for gifts (email blast, mailings, one-on-one meetings), you need to bring the focus back to the people you serve and causes you are working to impact. Put a face to your mission and make it personal. Share specific stories of how your programs changed a family’s life. Introduce a donor to that single mom who went back to school. Highlight exactly where the donor’s dollars are going and who will be impacted. Along with the personal anecdotal stories, don’t forget to include your outcome results. Need help with having good data to share? Check out this blog or our services.

At Transform Consulting Group, we understand the many challenges that organizations face and often it begins with funding limitations. We want to work with you on ways to maximize your funding, so that you can move your cause forward. We love thinking outside of the box to come up with unique ways to engage current and new donors. Contact us today and let’s put your year-end campaign into motion!

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Are You Ready for a Federal Grant?

Communities Fundraising Strategies Government Nonprofit Procurement & Contract Management

Receiving a federal grant can be a great way to accelerate your impact. There are many positive attributes in applying for and receiving a federal grant. Federal grants tend to be for larger amounts and are often multi-year funding to name a few. However, federal grant applications are complex and not easy to navigate.

We have successfully helped several organizations apply for and receive multi-million dollar federal grants. These grants have really helped to strengthen the organization’s infrastructure, expand their reach, and impact more individuals. There are some times, however, that we recommend a client not pursue a federal grant opportunity.

Before you invest the time and energy with a federal grant application, make sure these four elements are in place to determine if your organization is ready for a federal grant:grant ready blog


1. Compelling Need

Federal grants are very competitive. When they are national, you can be competing with hundreds of proposals. Nearly every federal grant application will begin with a “Need Section” where the applicant is asked to explain the need for this grant funding and support. One of the ways to stand out is to make sure your geographical community and target population fit the profile of need. Then you will want to pull from various public data sources, using citations, to make the case. Depending on the proposal, we might also include some relevant research and citations  that back up the need and proposed intervention (Check out this blog for our go to data sources!). Treat the writing of this section more like an academic college paper.

2. Program Design

When organizations are ready to apply for a federal grant, they need to have a strong design of their program. Many federal agencies are promoting “research-based” and “evidence-based” programs and services (See this blog for more insight!). If your program does not meet those thresholds, which is not always a requirement, then work to make the case for the program’s rigor and (hopefully) close alignment to evidence-based programs and elements of evidence-based programs.

3. Program Impact

There is an overall trend in grant making where more and more funders are wanting to invest their resources in organizations with sound data and results. They want to see the outcomes and solid data to backup your impact. Make sure your program has outcomes and not just outputs (See this blog for some help with outcomes!). If you are a new program or proposing a new intervention, then it is more difficult since you most likely haven’t proven yourself. This is where having a strong, close alignment to an evidence-based program model is helpful and may serve as a proxy for your impact.

4. Fiscal System and Accountinggrants-gov-logo-lg


Last but certainly not least, your organization needs to have strong fiscal controls in place to account for your federal grant dollars. You never know when the federal government will request an audit of your grant funding, so you want to have good systems in place to be able to account for those specific funds. We had one client go through an audit due to some concerning issues with their federal program officer (not anything they were doing wrong), and it was quite laborious and time consuming since this was their first federal grant. They didn’t have all of the separate accounting systems in place. Make sure you are ready to track, monitor and account for your federal funding.

If your organization can check all four boxes, then it may be time for you to consider a federal grant opportunity that could propel your impact and reach forward. If your organization can’t check all of the boxes yet, then you may need some support to help you get ready. The good news is we can help you in either scenario. Give us a call today to schedule a free consultation and see how federal grants may be a good fit for your organization!

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Learn About Indiana’s Youngest Children with the 2019 ELAC Annual Report!

Communities Education Evaluation Government Research & Analysis

2019-elac-annual-reportIndiana’s Early Learning Advisory Committee (ELAC) released its 2019 Annual Report. Each year, ELAC completes a needs assessment on the state’s early childhood education system and then recommends solutions.

We want to share some quick highlights and key takeaways from this year’s needs assessment.  ELAC focuses on ensuring early childhood education is accessible, high-quality, and affordable to all families. 

Are Children Ages 0-5 Receiving High-Quality Care?

  • Of the 506,257 children in Indiana ages 0-5, 64% need care because all parents are working. This includes both working parents who are single and households where both parents work outside the home. Figure 9
  • Of those children who need care, only 40% are enrolled in known programs. The other three fifths of children receive informal care—from a relative, friend, or neighbor.
  • Of the young children who need care, only 16% are enrolled in high-quality programs. A high-quality early childhood education program not only ensures that children are safe, but also supports their cognitive, physical, and social-emotional development. 

Are Children in Vulnerable Populations Receiving High-Quality Care?

  • Indiana makes funding assistance available for early childhood education for children from low-income families.
  • Indiana does not collect data on children in other vulnerable populations, such as children in foster care and children affected by the opioid epidemic.
  • Overall, due to lack of data, Indiana does not know the kind of care received by children in vulnerable populations.

What Trends Are There in Early Childhood Education?

  • Since 2014, Indiana has made progress by enrolling more of the children who need care in known early childhood education programs. 
  • Over the past 5 years, Indiana has consistently enrolled fewer infants and toddlers than preschoolers in known and high-quality programs. Figure 31
  • Compared to 2012, more early childhood education programs are participating in Paths to QUALITYTM, Indiana’s quality rating and improvement system.
  • In addition, significantly more programs have earned high-quality designations of either Level 3 or Level 4 since 2012.

What Trends Are There in the Early Childhood Education Workforce?

  • Indiana’s early childhood education workforce is more diverse than the K-12 workforce but not as experienced.
  • Nationally, the early childhood education workforce earns $4-$7 less per hour than the average hourly wage of all occupations.

What is the Unmet Need in the Early Childhood Education System?

  • There has been a persistent need in early childhood education programs for more available spots for infants and toddlers.
  • Despite overall improvements, there are still some communities in Indiana with no high-quality early childhood education programs.
  • The tuition cost of high-quality early childhood education programs remains unaffordable, and the available financial assistance for low-income families is insufficient.

How Can I Find Out More?

  • Read the 2019 ELAC Annual Report, which includes statewide data on Indiana.
  • ELAC also publishes an interactive dashboard that allows you to learn more about specific data points. You can also easily present data to stakeholders.
  • The interactive dashboard contains both state- and county-level data. Use the map to select your county, and hover over the data to learn more!

2019-elac-interactive-dashboard

Transform Consulting Group is proud to support ELAC’s work by pulling this needs assessment and interactive report together!

Does your organization, agency, or coalition need to better understand your community or a key issue, but you don’t know how to get started? We are skilled in collecting quantitative data from multiple data sources and pulling it together in a visually-appealing, user-friendly report. Contact us to learn how we can help you complete your next needs assessment!

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4 Steps to Build Your Asset Map

Communities Program Development

Have you ever moved to a new community and wanted to get connected, but didn’t know where to start? Maybe you have had a tangible need presented to you by a friend or family member, but you didn’t know where to direct them to get help? For many communities, an asset map serves as the perfect connection point between individuals and services.

An asset map contains the details of available resources, organizations, clubs, boards, and more. This map can help individuals find specific organizations, such as home assistance or guidance on a committee to join. The map can also serve as a decision-making tool, bringing to light any potential strengths and/ or gaps in the community.

We helped a local United Fund organization create their own asset map focused around their three main areas of service. During our work, we developed a list of steps that can be used to assist other organizations building their own asset map.

Four Steps to Build Your Asset Map

1. Consider the Assets to IncludeAsset Map Focus Areas

Start by determining the purpose of the asset map you’re creating and who the map will serve. Consider the focus area the assets will be framed around. For the United Fund, we built the asset map around their three pillars of focus: health, education, and financial stability.

Once the audience and purpose are identified, begin researching functioning assets. These can include, but are not limited to:

  • Nonprofit organizations
  • Community and individual serving organizations
  • Boards
  • Coalitions
  • Committees
  • Faith-based organizations
  • Other local businesses
2. Determine the Level of Detail for Each Asset

Now that you know what type of assets you want, consider the level of detail that should be included with each asset as you make a list. An asset map serves as a one-stop-shop for people to learn the necessary details about community assets before they pursue options.

Here are categories we included in the United Fund asset map:

  • Contact name, phone number, and email
  • Location
  • Hours of operation or meeting time
  • Eligibility criteria (ages served, genders served, income level accepted, residence, etc.)
  • Service area(s) (health, mental health, early childhood, housing, etc.)
  • Website url

Also consider a process to regularly check the validity of the detailed information. Scheduled maintenance may be necessary to make sure asset information is up to date.

3. Find the Asset Information

Finding accurate information can be time consuming and may require several approaches. Consider calling organizations, performing web searches, and connect with contacts in the community to determine if there are current resource lists to serve as a starting point. For example, the local Community Foundation may have a running list of potential funders. You can also hold a focus group with a local board or committee. These groups make up a variety of members who can bring insight and suggestions to contribute to the asset map. We held a focus group meeting with the United Fund’s board members. We gave them an overview about the purpose of the asset map, then asked them to brainstorm any and all resources benefiting the community. They wrote each one on a sticky note and placed them on a sheet labeled with one of the three service areas. We combined like resources, then this helped us know specifically what resource information to gather.

4. Build and Store the Assets

Once you have your complete list of assets, you’ll need to determine a way to house the information and make it accessible to the community. There are several options to build an asset map depending what fits with your organization, staffing, and budget. At TCG, we love interactive platforms that allow people to easily locate specific resources based on applied filters and criteria. We use Tableau to develop interactive dashboards. Once the workbook is published, the dashboard is embedded onto the host’s website. The United Fund’s Asset Map is built across three main tabs with filters and search boxes to help people navigate to their desired resource. 3 Tabs

Are you ready to start building an asset map to benefit your community? We’d love to hear from you, and walk you through the process!

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3 Strategic Plan Tools to Create

Communities Education Evaluation Fundraising Strategies General Information Nonprofit Program Development Strategic Planning

Congratulations! You have journeyed through the 4 steps of our Strategic Planning Process and you’re ready for the final step: Create. (We covered step 1, step 2, and step 3 in previous blogs).

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The goal of a strategic plan is to develop timely, relevant and action-oriented plans for the future of your organization. Once you have a clear direction, it is time to make sense of the information and package it in a way that is meaningful and possible to implement.  

At TCG, we believe a strategic plan has little value if it is a report that sits on your shelf, never to be seen again. We don’t create long strategic plan reports that you can’t use. We want you to use it, share it and review it on a regular basis.

When working with clients, we recommend and create 3 different strategic plan tools:

1. One-page strategic plan – This is a one-page summary of your goals and top strategies. This tool can be shared externally with partners, funders, and other key stakeholders as well as internally with staff.

When creating a strategic plan for the Wabash County Early Childhood Education Committee, we wanted a one-page overview that highlighted the following key elements:Screen Shot 2018-07-27 at 2.03.33 PM

a. Stakeholders involved (especially since this is a collective impact, multi-sector plan)

b. Goals

c. Strategies

d. Outcomes

Each one-pager for the strategic plan that we create is unique to the client but essentially covers their top goals and strategies.

2. Strategic plan report – This report explains the process of how the strategic plan was completed, the information that was collected, and more details about the goals and strategies. This is typically an internal document that is shared with staff and the board to use when reflecting on the process. It’s especially helpful to document this information for when there are leadership transitions with the staff and board.

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3. Implementation plan – Too often we find that organizations get stuck with figuring out how to take the big picture elements in the strategic plan and make them operational. We create an “implementation plan” to unpack the strategic plan into actionable steps for staff, committees and the board. The main audience for the implementation plan is staff, board and committee members who are most likely responsible for implementation.  Screen Shot 2018-07-27 at 2.04.09 PM


This could be set up like a calendar or a chart that describes who is responsible for each step. We also love using Tableau to create a strategic plan dashboard to track and monitor action items and milestones. The point is that we want all parties involved to have a clear understanding of the timeline, so that they can put the plan in motion.

Is your organization ready to jump into a strategic planning process? Learn more about our strategic planning services here. Contact us today, and we’d love to chat about how our team can meet your needs.

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