@SUSTAINABILITY

WHAT IS IT AND HOW DO WE ACHIEVE IT?

Sustainability is the systemic and systematic development of program and organizational capacity that produces measurable outcomes, successfully navigates change, and demonstrates rational growth over time. Sustainability planning is the larger strategic conversation that considers not only revenue projections but also the underlying framework and strategy for maintaining and managing organizational growth. Strategic, operational and fundraising planning need to fuse into a single hybrid planning process. Planning for events, building donor databases, and writing grants are important fundraising strategies but fundraising strategies should not be confused with sustainability planning.  Rather than such formula-driven metrics as donor conversion or event “return on investment,” a facilitation process for sustainability planning is strategy driven and anchored to the long-term success of the organization. Forward thinking nonprofit agencies are increasingly investing their limited time and resources thinking beyond fundraising to models of sustainability.

♻️  Knowing Your Long-Term Outcome Goals ♻️

To be sustainable, a nonprofit must articulate the long-term outcomes that they are ultimately trying to accomplish. You cannot hope to be sustainable if you can’t articulate why you exist and what you ultimately want to accomplish as a social change organization.

♻️  Having a Strategy to Achieve Those Goals ♻️ 

And you won’t achieve those outcomes (and be sustainable) if you don’t have a long-term strategy to get there. The strategy doesn’t have to be set in stone — it should be malleable as internal and external circumstances change — but it should ultimately guide your course to achieving those outcome goals.

♻️  Effectively Using Enough Money ♻️

But it's not enough to simply plan for the future, you must then figure out what staff, board, volunteers, systems, technology, marketing, and other resources you need to bring your strategy to fruition. You must articulate the business model you will employ, and the corresponding money required, to realize your long-term outcome goals.

♻️  Attracting the Right Kinds of Money ♻️

But it’s also not enough to figure out what it’s going to cost. You have to figure out the other side of the money equation, which is how to bring that money in the door. A smart financial strategy attracts money that is the right fit for your organization. You have to be strategic (not reactive) about how money flows to the organization (fundraising, government grants, earned income). It might be that you focus solely on private sources, or you may have a mix of government and earned sources. But your financial model must align with your core competencies and your mission.

"NONPROFIT SUSTAINABILITY MEANS THAT A NONPROFIT BOARD AND STAFF KNOW WHAT THEY WANT TO ACCOMPLISH, DEVELOP A SMART STRATEGY AND BUSINESS MODEL, AND USE MONEY DILIGENTLY AS A TOOL TO MAKE IT HAPPEN"

♻️ VISIT OUR FAQ FOR MORE INFORMATION ♻️