Organizational Development

31 Jul

Posted at 12:48h in Competency Three, Competency Two, Culture, Funding, Grant Reporting, Grants Management, Organizational Development, Roxanne Jensen, ED. SPEC.

Nonprofits and not-for-profits share many similarities and, in practice, the terms are often used interchangeably. The key similarities and differences between these types of organizations are nuanced. Nonprofits and not-for-profits are mission-driven organizations with a shared purpose of serving the public or charitable needs. They are...

11 Jun

Posted at 13:15h in Competency One, Competency Two, Industry News, Kellie Brunguard, Organizational Development, Research
In our increasingly interconnected world, the rapid growth of technology has brought numerous benefits and opportunities. However, it has also opened the door to a darker side of the internet: scammers. These individuals or groups employ deceitful tactics to exploit unsuspecting individuals, leading to financial loss, identity theft, and emotional distress. In 2023, we find ourselves facing an alarming surge in scamming activities, with perpetrators becoming increasingly sophisticated in their approaches. The Federal Trade Commission reported $660 million in losses due to business imposters, a significant increase from $196 million in 2020. This article aims to shed light on the specific ways scamming has grown in 2023 and offers practical tips to help you stay vigilant and protect yourself in this rapidly evolving digital landscape.

19 Feb

Posted at 17:08h in Competency Seven, Equity, Kellie Brunguard, Organizational Development, Program Design
Every February, the U.S. honors the cultural heritage, adversities, and African American leaders and movements that have shaped the nation. President Gerald R. Ford officially recognized Black History Month in 1976, calling the nation to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of Black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history," History.com reports. As part of a series throughout Black History Month, Assel Grant Services will provide various resources on racial equity to help grant professionals become better equipped to guide their organizations towards more equitable services, find funding, and better articulate into grant proposals the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) work their organizations are already doing. Topics include writing with an equity lens, resources for your toolbox, measuring progress, and funding opportunities. In this blog, we will dig deeper into how you can measure progress toward increasing racial equity in your organization. These tools will enhance your DEI knowledge and how it relates to your organization and community served.

05 Sep

Posted at 19:00h in Competency Four, Competency Seven, Grant Reporting, Grants Management, Organizational Development, Program Development, Thomas Assel, GPC, Tracey Diefenbach, GPC
Are you laboring too much over grants? Grants are great to have, and they’re often crucial to an organization’s mission, but there are only so many hours in the day to apply for and manage those grants. Grant professionals are susceptible to burn out from the heavy responsibility and high-pressure, deadline-driven work, which continues day in and day out in our profession. Grant applications and management can even get in the way of your organization’s mission. I was recently on a call with a client who was looking for help managing their grant portfolio. When I asked why they were seeking support, the client shared a striking comment: “We are so busy trying to get the money that we struggle to actually carry out the work.” I understood completely because I’ve seen this state of affairs before.

10 May

Posted at 16:35h in AGS Staff, Competency Three, Competency Two, Funder Relations, Organizational Development, Program Design, Relationships
As grant professionals, we all know that one way to boost our proposals is to include collaboration. Funders like to see partnerships for a number of reasons. But too often, the partnerships we include might not be very substantive. Maybe we worked together on one event or they refer a few clients to our organization. But funders emphasize collaboration for good reason and it might be time to truly give those partnerships a chance to GROW! So, how do you go about helping your partnerships blossom? Begin by taking stock of all of your current partners, big or small. Partners could include other nonprofit organizations, funders, businesses, or individuals. Assess the ways in which you currently partner and begin thinking outside of the box to explore other ways in which both parties could benefit from expanded collaboration. One way the levels of partnership are often framed is through the 3C Model, which came from the for-profit sector. Its tiers include cooperation, coordination, and collaboration (moving from simple to complex). Here are a few ideas of ways to expand from surface-level partnership to meaningful relationships that benefit everyone involved:

31 Jan

Posted at 19:00h in AGS Staff, Competency Two, Funder Relations, Organizational Development, Relationships, Strategy
To kick off the month of love, we’d like to talk about relationships. In our personal lives, we know that nurturing relationships with our families, friends, and partners is important. Strong relationships provide mutual benefits; we give support to our loved ones as they make steps toward their personal goals, and we hope they do the same for us. As nonprofit leaders and grant professionals, we all know how crucial it is to build solid relationships in order to succeed in reaching our organizational goals, as well. We build relationships with our beneficiaries to make sure our program strategies match their strengths, needs, and solutions. And we build relationships with funders to ensure we have a strong financial foundation to continue offering those programs. Just as every relationship in our personal lives is unique, so are the approaches we must take with funders, depending on whether they are a foundation, corporation, or federal agency. So, let’s talk about the distinct “love language” and which approach to take in building relationships with each of the funders listed below.

16 Mar

Posted at 20:53h in Competency Two, Organizational Development, Strategy, Tracey Diefenbach, GPC
I will never forget the day I took a grant approval form to the vice president of programs I worked with at the time. She took one look at it and said, “We are back to using this thing again?” The form required the team’s signatures on a statement of whether we decided to pursue a grant. At the time, I was fairly new to the position and while I thought what she said was cynical, a part of me agreed and questioned how a piece of paper could serve as full consensus and buy-in. I went with it and started using the form.

01 Mar

Posted at 21:43h in AGS Staff, Competency Two, Organizational Development, Organizational Readiness, Research, Strategy
There are lots of activities that can help a nonprofit organization become grant ready, and one of them is their internal roadmap of tasks that define their grants program. The purpose of these practices is to help ensure staff have a documented process that covers the A to Zs of a comprehensive grant program.

03 Dec

Posted at 21:28h in Competency Five, Competency Four, Federal Grants, Organizational Development, Program Design, Thomas Assel, GPC
My wife, Julie Assel, likes writing federal grants. I’ve been told that’s odd, and I guess I can understand why. Consider your average small-to-medium foundation grant. It might be a 2-3-page letter with an attached organizational budget, maybe your 501c3 letter and a board roster, but nothing you haven’t seen ten or a hundred times before. On the more complex end of what we normally experience, you’ve got agencies like the Health Forward Foundation in Kansas City asking for all that plus a logic model and theory of change indicator chart, with a 15-page narrative limit on certain grants. Fifteen single-spaced pages is nothing to sneeze at. Federal grants can have even higher page limits and even more attachments. The SF-424 alone can take more time to fill out than some grants can take to write.