Browse strategic planning Resources
-
Immunization Advocacy Goals Civil society has now rallied around a new Immunization Advocacy Goals framework, presenting a menu of advocacy options to improve access to vaccines around the world.
The framework’s five goals unite civil society – from implementers in Afghanistan, to research and development advocates in Australia – under shared goals that provide an intellectual underpinning for local, regional, and global advocacy on immunizations.Author: GAVI Alliance Civil Society Constituency Type: Workbooks & Guides Date: Dec 1, 2012
Download (675.19 KB) -
Introduction to Before and After Action Reviews (BARs and AARs) The Before and After Action Review is a simple, straightforward set of questions to ask before and after an important piece of work — whether it is preparing for a meeting, engaging with board members or launching into a new initiative.Author: Fourth Quadrant Partners, LLC Type: Workbooks & Guides Date: Sep 16, 2020
Download (251.85 KB) -
Introduction to Program Evaluation for Public Health Programs: A Self-Study Guide This document is a “how to” guide for planning and implementing evaluation activities. The manual is based on CDC’s Framework for Program Evaluation in Public Health, and is intended to assist state, local, and community managers and staff of public health programs in planning, designing, implementing, and using the results of comprehensive evaluations in a practical way. Author: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Type: Workbooks & Guides Date: Jan 1, 2005
Download (138.94 KB) -
Key Questions for Developing Your Objectives Advocacy Institute offers four questions that advocates or organizations should ask themselves before developing strategic objectives:
- Who are we?
- What is the problem?
- What is our vision of change?
- What objectives--or piece of our vision--are we focusing on?
Author: Advocacy Institute Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Jan 1, 2004 Be the first to review this resource! Web Link -
Keystone's Feedback App This free and easy web-based tool from Keystone Accountability is a simple way of getting anonymous feedback from your partners on what they really think about your work. The application starts by asking you to choose from a standard list of questions, such as "How strongly would you recommend [your organization] to a colleague or friend?" Answers are on a scale of 1 to 10 or open-ended. You can also add questions. Next, you provide a list of respondents to receive the short survey. Keystone keeps data anonymous and confidential. Author: Keystone Accountability Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Oct 31, 2009 Point K Pick Be the first to review this resource! Web Link -
Learn Foundation Law The legal staff at the Packard Foundation, Gates Foundation, Hewlett Foundation and Moore Foundation developed this free, first-of-its-kind resource, which covers the basic legal rules around what staff are allowed to fund and engage in at a private foundation. It takes less than an hour to complete and features “Maya,” a new program officer that leads participants through the course. Participants can also return to the training at any time for a refresher and click on the individual modules to refer back to specific topics.
Author: Legal staff at the Packard Foundation, Gates Foundation, Hewlett Foundation, and Moore Foundation Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Jan 1, 2010 Be the first to review this resource! Web Link -
LearnPhilanthropy LearnPhilanthropy's Knowledge Library is a resource for people who are new to grantmaking or those seeking new ideas and tools to improve their grantmaking practice. Here you will find essential learning and new research on a range of common issues and key challenges in philanthropy. Working with leading organizations across the field, LearnPhilanthropy regularly updates this centralized library with reports, tools, and other resources. Author: LearnPhilanthropy Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Sep 23, 2014 Point K Pick Be the first to review this resource! Web Link -
Looking Through the Right End of the Telescope An evolving dialogue has emerged over the past few years between advocates, evaluation professionals, and funders concerned with evaluating advocacy. An earlier focus on questions regarding whether it is possible to evaluate advocacy has given rise more recently to a concern with producing innovations aimed at responding to the real and perceived unique challenges to evaluating advocacy.
Author: Jim Coe & Rhonda Schlangen Type: Research & Reports Date: Jun 1, 2011 Be the first to review this resource! Download (102.56 KB) -
Measuring Impact in Practice: A Case Study of The Humane Society of the United States The Humane Society of the United States (The HSUS) is the nation’s largest animal protection organization. Just like all nonprofits, The HSUS is accountable—to the thousands of animals it helps or protects each year, and to the thousands of individual, corporate, and foundation donors who enable The HSUS to fulfill its mission of celebrating animals and confronting cruelty.
Author: Beth Rosen Cohen Type: Research & Reports Date: Aug 1, 2010 Be the first to review this resource! Download (97.59 KB) -
MEASURING SOCIAL CAPITAL: AN EXPLORATION IN COMMUNITY– RESEARCH PARTNERSHIP Large numbers of social policy initiatives and community organizations are currently engaged in “community building” efforts that seek, in part, to strengthen informal relationships and the organizational infrastructure of communities and to build the capacity of communities to manage and foster community change. One critical requirement for improving such practice is for communities to have greater access and capacity to use information for planning, advocacy, and assessment. Author: Robert J. Chaskin, Robert M. Goerge, Ada Skyles, and Shannon Guiltinan Type: Newsletters & Periodicals Date: Oct 1, 2006 Be the first to review this resource! Download (308.28 KB) -
Movement Building Indicators This tool supports organizations in their strategic thinking around planning and assessing movement building work. It rejects the notion that there is a one-size-fits-all approach to assessing change strategies, and pays attention to the processes that need to be put in place and the contributions of groups who are working deeply rather than at a scale of mass mobilization.
Four key areas of movement building are addressed:
- Policy Change
- Leadership Development
- Communications
- Relationship Building.Author: Maria Nakae, Moira Cowman, and Eveline Shen Type: Tipsheets & Paper Tools Date: Dec 31, 2009 Be the first to review this resource! Download (10.59 MB) -
Nonprofit Genie Nonprofit Genie is a searchable collection of online resources operated by CompassPoint Nonprofit Services. Topics include:
Author: CompassPoint Nonprofit Services Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Jan 18, 2008 Be the first to review this resource! Web Link -
NPower Network NPower's website offers resources on many different aspects of technology planning. The site features:
- Guides (on topics including business continuity and disaster recovery, technology literacy benchmarks, and program-area specific technology guides for nonprofit leaders);
- Links; and
- Tools, including TechAtlas (a technology planning tool), a Total Cost of Ownership Calculator, and a Return on Investment Calculator.
Author: NPower Network Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Jan 18, 2008 Be the first to review this resource! Web Link -
Objectifs de plaidoyer en faveur de l’accès à l’immunisation Le Groupement de la société civile partenaire de GAVI a identifié cinq objectifs comme éléments essentiels du plaidoyer en faveur d’un meilleur accès à l’immunisation au niveau national. En tant que communauté, nous comptons structurer notre plaidoyer autour de ces priorités et encourager d’autres acteurs, instances nationales et défenseurs mondiaux à les utiliser. Bien que notre groupe partage ces objectifs, il va de soi que chacune des organisations et communautés qui le composent pourra emprunter d’autres voies pour les atteindre.
Author: GAVI Alliance Civil Society Constituency Type: Workbooks & Guides Date: Jul 16, 2012 Be the first to review this resource! Download (1.54 MB) -
Organizational Capacity Checklist This is a brief list of questions to help guide thinking about organizational development. It is intended for use with the Advocacy Institute's other tools such as the "Identify an Issue's Life Cycle Stage" checklist, q.v. Author: Advocacy Institute Type: Tipsheets & Paper Tools Date: Jan 1, 2004
Download (111 KB) -
Orientation to Theory of Change Organizational Research Services produced this document to introduce its clients to Theory of Change and the "Layer Cake" model. Author: Organizational Research Services Type: Tipsheets & Paper Tools Date: Jan 1, 2008 Be the first to review this resource! Download (110.1 KB) -
Program Evaluation Guide A general introduction to Evaluation, this guide walks the reader through the process of answering the following seven basic questions
1. What do we want to evaluate?
2. What is the purpose of the evaluation?
3. What type of evaluation do we want to use?
4. What information do we need to answer our questions?
5. How do we get the information?
6. How will we analyze the information?
7. How will we use and share the results?Author: Katie Cangemi and Maggie Litgen Type: Workbooks & Guides Date: Dec 31, 2011 Be the first to review this resource! Download (195.46 KB) -
ProPack III - The CRS Project Package: A Guide to Creating a SMILER M&E System The approach to M&E described in this guide is called SMILER. It is a comprehensive and practical approach to developing a project monitoring system that incorporates processes for learning based on robust evidence. It has been written for CRS project managers, technical, and M&E staff to guide their work with partners and communities by describing how to develop an M&E system in which data are systematically collected, reported and used to make project decisions.
Author: Susan Hahn, Guy Sharrock Type: Workbooks & Guides Date: Jun 15, 2010 Be the first to review this resource! Download (1.18 MB) -
Public Will Building: What it Means and How to Evaluate It [Handout] Strategic Partner Julia Coffman (of the Center for Evaluation Innovation) and Innovation Network Director Ehren Reed led a discussion on Public Will Building for The Connecticut Health Foundation's Leadership Fellows. Author: Julia Coffman and Ehren Reed Type: Research & Reports Date: Dec 14, 2011 Be the first to review this resource! Web Link -
Putting the system back into systems change: A framework for understanding and changing organizational and community systems This paper provides one framework—grounded in systems thinking and change literatures—for understanding and identifying the fundamental system parts and interdependencies that can help to explain system functioning and leverage systems change. The proposed framework highlights the importance of attending to both the deep and apparent structures within a system as well as the interactions and interdependencies among these system parts. Author: Pennie G. Foster-Fishman, Branda Nowell, Huilan Yang Type: Research & Reports Date: May 18, 2007 Be the first to review this resource! Download (381.29 KB) -
Report: "What Makes an Effective Advocacy Organization? A Framework for Determining Advocacy Capacity" TCC Group's Jared Raynor, Peter York and Shao-Chee Sim authored "What Makes an Effective Advocacy Organization? A Framework for Determining Advocacy Capacity" based on TCC's evaluation of a cohort of advocacy groups funded by The California Endowment. Author: TCC Group Type: Research & Reports Date: Jan 1, 2009 Be the first to review this resource! Download (5.81 MB) -
Sample Size Calculator This online sample size calculator can help you rapidly estimate how large your sample needs to be to compensate for different margins of error and confidence levels. Free and easy to use, the page also includes good introductory information on how to apply the resource. Author: Raosoft Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Jan 1, 2004 Be the first to review this resource! Web Link -
Smart Chart 3.0 Spitfire Strategies produced Smart Chart (now in version 3.0) as "a tool to help nonprofits make smart communications choices." This free online tool is built around a chart with five "strategic decision sections":
Author: Spitfire Strategies Type: Websites & Online Tools Date: Feb 1, 2004
Web Link -
Social Movements and Philanthropy: How Foundations Can Support Movement Building Building on research conducted for the California Endowment, this article describes five core movement-building elements and provides a framework for activities that foundations can support to foster movement building. Movement building presents unique challenges to foundations. Because movements, by definition, must be driven by the people who are most affected, foundations cannot determine the goals and timetables of a movement. Foundation investments in movements are just that – investments for the long term. Author: Barbara Masters, M.A., and Torie Osborn, M.B.A. Type: Newsletters & Periodicals Date: Oct 2, 2010 Be the first to review this resource! Download (326.55 KB) -
State of Evaluation - Russian translation The Project: Nonprofits hear a lot of talk about evaluation these days—metrics and measurements, indicators and impact, efficiency and effectiveness. Everyone, from donors to board members, seems to want evaluation results. But there was a big knowledge gap around evaluation practice: What are nonprofits really doing to evaluate their work? How are they really using evaluation results? What support are they getting? What else do they need?
Author: Innovation Network Type: Research & Reports Date: Feb 3, 2011 Be the first to review this resource! Download (6.78 MB)