Over the past several months I have been participating in the mentoring program with my local chapter of AFP. The majority of the meetings with my mentee have focused on helping her articulate a case for support and building a philanthropic plan for the organization’s integrated strategic plan.

To extend the value of the work done with my mentee to others looking to improve their strategic planning skills, we will  spend the next several weeks breaking down the parts of a philanthropic plan. The philanthropic plan typically consists of five basic parts. These parts build on one another as your plan progresses to give your strategy clarity. The early sections give detail so that the latter sections can concentrate on providing a concise road-map of actionable items to achieve your development goals.

As with grammar, these parts are listed below to simply to provide structure and a general guideline, but rules are made to be broken (provided you understand the rules and the reason for them). These parts include:

• Organizational Context – mission, vision, history, values
• Philanthropic Environment – fundraising resource audit, SWOT analysis
• Philanthropic Goals – strategic, financial, timetable
• Philanthropic Strategy – cases for support (audience, case, and implementation)
• Benchmarks – staff performance metrics, strategic, financial

Next: Organizational Context

This post is an open request for feedback from people who have never worked for a nonprofit and are inclined to say “philanthropy” is an awkward word.

I remember when I first started working in the nonprofit sector. I entered the third sector workforce thinking of it as a short-term thing… you know, until I found a real job. However, I stuck with that first job for five years. During that time I learned that nonprofit organizations are no less professional than the private sector.

According to my boss at the time, I made important contributions to the organization. He frequently reminded me that the reasons he hired me were because I had the technical ability and personality to do the work, but mostly important – I brought a fresh set of eyes to the organization.

Having spent the better part of the past ten years as a fundraiser, board member, consultant, member of nonprofit professional societies, and student of philanthropy my “fresh eyes” are getting tired. I run the risk of developing tunnel vision. Buzz words and the “body of knowledge” are my blinders.

The following requests are directed to those with questions about nonprofit organizations, philanthropy, or any of the words nonprofit professionals throw around. Since you have the fresh eyes, I need your help.

• I need you to ask what we do, why we do it, and how it impacts the public and private sectors.
• I need you to ask questions that challenge nonprofits to be transparent, accountable, and innovative.
• When request for your philanthropy of time, money, and talent arrive in your mailbox, inbox, or through some other media, tell me what you like.
• If these requests don’t ring true, tell me why.
• When you see a nonprofit do something you like please share and explain what resonates with you.