Strategy Statements and Creating a Culture of Philanthropy

In “Can You Say What Your Strategy Is?”, Collins and Rukstad discuss the importance of clearly defining a strategy statement that can be understood across an organization. In my past work experiences, a clear strategy statement would have assisted me in more effectively prioritizing my work, and it would have saved time in planning meetings. In these meetings, there were power struggles between departments, with each person articulating a different set of priorities and goals. If everyone had instead been aligned around the same goal, that would save a tremendous amount of conflict and backtracking when developing and implementing project plans.

I also believe that understanding this concept would help nonprofits to develop a “culture of philanthropy”. In “UnderDeveloped”, a study conducted by CompassPoint about common barriers to nonprofit growth, “culture of philanthropy” is defined as “a set of organizational values and practices that support and nurture development within a nonprofit organization”. Often, this means embracing fundraising across the organization, from board members to junior staff, as a critical component of achieving the organization’s mission.

Culture and strategy are two separate things, but I believe they both influence each other. In her article for the Nonprofit Quarterly, Simone Joyaux describes strategy as being largely “unwritten” and “implicit” and distinguishes between culture and strategy, writing, “First focus on culture, not strategy.” However, I believe that a clearly-defined, explicitly-stated strategy objective is a key tool for developing a more aligned, motivated, and conflict-free work culture. If everyone is working toward a shared, measurable goal, that can create excitement and incentives to help raise the money needed to achieve that goal.  

Additionally, sharing aspects of a nonprofit’s strategy statement can help create a sense of urgency with donors. While Collins and Rukstad discussed strategy statements as related to internal use, I believe that a clear understanding of strategy objectives gives board members and staff the tools to articulate specific and measurable needs instead of asking for money to support a more general mission. The strategy statement can also help differentiate one organization from others with similar missions, helping to bolster their value proposition to donors and stakeholders. Thus, by defining an organization’s key objectives, scope, and advantage, staff and board members can connect fundraising goals to strategy in a manner that creates cohesion and alignment throughout the organization.

Works Cited

Bell, Jeanne and Marla Cornelius. “UnderDeveloped: A National Study of Challenges Facing 

Nonprofit Fundraising.” CompassPoint Nonprofit Services, Jan. 2013, www.compasspoint.org/sites/default/files/documents/UnderDeveloped_CompassPoint_HaasJrFund_January%202013.pdf. Accessed 2 Oct 2018.

Collins, David J. and Michael G. Rukstad. “Can You Say What Your Strategy Is?”. Harvard Business Review, Apr. 2008.

Joyaux, Simone. “Building a Culture of Philanthropy in Your Organization.” Nonprofit Quarterly, 27 Mar. 2015, nonprofitquarterly.org/2015/03/27/culture-of-philanthropy-define-philanthropy. Accessed 2 Oct. 2018.