LIFE STAGE & CAPACITY ASSESSMENT

LIFE STAGE & CAPACITY ASSESSMENT

                                                                                                        

Each student will conduct a “life stage and capacity audit” of an operating nonprofit organization and prepare a written summary of the findings.  That is, students will gather, analyze, and report information about the organization’s stage of development and organizational capacity for an operating nonprofit organization with an annual operating budget greater than $300,000.  Information will be gathered by interviewing the Executive Director or one or more other senior executives of the organization and examining reports, publications, and other relevant documents from the organization so that the assessment documents can be completed and a summary report provided.  

 

Following completion of the assessment tools, students will identify and discuss in the written paper the stage of development of the organization and its key capacity subsystems and offer suggestions that the organization might implement to help it develop its capacity for its next generation of service. 

 

Project Objectives:

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Strengthen understanding of the organizational capacity and life stages development concepts and implications of this course through their application to an actual nonprofit organization case.

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Communicate about organization leadership and management concepts in a clear, succinct, and accurate manner.

 

Assessment Workbook

Students will be rating their organization on two primary dimensions: organizational life stage and organizational capacity.  The first part of the instrument focuses on a variety of capacity elements.  These have been grouped into ten types of capacity: Mission, Vision, Strategy and Planning; Program Design and Evaluation; Human Resources; CEO/Senior Management Team Leadership; Information Technology; Financial Management and Financial Systems; Fund Development; Board Leadership; Legal Affairs; and Marketing, Communications, and External Relations. 

 

Ten worksheets – one for each category of capacity – located under the Assessment Workbook section of D2L, comprise the first part of the assessment instrument.  For each capacity element, identify the level of development that best describes the agency’s current situation.  Write the appropriate rating in the space at the right end of the relevant row.  There is space at the end of each section to make any other comments that you wish to make about that category.  Students may find that, for some categories, their organization’s situation will not fully match any of the descriptions.  In these places, please choose the closest rating and note the complications in the comments section of the worksheet. 

 

The second part of the assessment instrument, also located under the Assessment Workbook section of D2L, applies the life stages concepts that Stevens has written about and which we have discussed in class.  The forms in the assessment packet provide the basis for your group to assess the stage of development of the five specific capacity categories, and then to complete the overall summary document to explain which stage of overall development best describes your agency’s current level of development (and its associated capacity challenges).

 

The completed Assessment Workbook accounts for 30% of this assignment’s grade.

 

Audit Summary

Each student will prepare a 1,250 to 2,000 word written document (approximately 5-8 pages) to accompany the completed assessment instrument.  The document will include:

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An overview of the agency and its size, geographic scope and mission,

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A summary and explanation of the agency’s stage of development and your basis for this assessment (based, of course, on the assessment worksheets that have been completed), and

 

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Suggestions and recommendations for the areas of capacity that the agency would be well-advised to develop over the next few years, and the basis and rationale for these recommendations.  (These recommendations should not simply restate the results of the capacity assessment – the purpose is to

recommend where it would make the most sense to invest resources in capacity development in the near future, and this might include either or both of enhancing capacity elements that currently are strong and shoring up certain others that are weak and must be increased.)

 

The Audit Summary accounts for 70% of this assignment and will be evaluated based on:

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The quality of content, including accuracy, thoughtfulness, comprehensiveness, creativity, the development of logical and appropriate conclusions, and relevant and well-reasoned recommendations.

 

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The quality of writing, including organization and presentation of information, clarity of expression, clean and professional presentation and appearance, and appropriate grammar and punctuation.

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