Pathways is like a personal trainer for your organization. You will receive guidance on what you’re doing well, what you need to improve on, and what practical steps can be taken to advance your ability to serve your mission.
Pathways provides a short consultation - with consultants that have nonprofit expertise - to help you capture the benefits of using our Five Elements of a Healthy Nonprofit Self-Assessment.
How It Works
Pathways provides a short consultation - with consultants that have nonprofit expertise - to help you capture the benefits of using our Five Elements of a Healthy Nonprofit Self-Assessment. You get to decide who within your organization will participate and your Pathways consultants help guide the way.
- Two Pathways consultants meet with your executive director to learn about your organization and set the stage for the program.
- Your designated participants complete a assessment of your operations.
- The consultants facilitate a discussion of the scores among participants to help you chose your final scores.
- After the scores have been submitted and the results received, the consultants meet with the executive director to choose priorities for improvement.
- Finally, the consultants develop recommendations to help the organization address their challenges and present them to the executive director.
Benefits
Pathways creates the opportunity for nonprofit staff to take a step back and reflect on their personal perspectives and those of their colleagues. It frames challenges within the context of solutions and identifies easy steps that can be taken to build upon your strengths. Here is how one organization described the impact of Pathways:
"Our 501 Commons Pathway consultation was useful in that it offered an opportunity to self-assess how our organization is functioning relative to best practices. As such, it was both an opportunity to learn and to strategically think about priorities for improving our effectiveness." ~ Jim Krieger, Healthy Food America
It can be challenging to maintain an objective view of your organization. Organizations using Pathways report that they appreciate the fresh perspective and expertise of our consultants. As a result, new solutions and opportunities can unfold. Another organization said of its consultants:
"The consultants "got us" right away and recognized what was within our capacity. They helped us recognize that we really did have organizational strengths in addition to a valid cause. The consultants were supportive but practical, pragmatic but helpful." ~ Peggy Sturdivant, Seattle Green Spaces
Thanks to support from the Satterberg Foundation, Pathways is only $1200. This service is valued at more than $4,000!
Ready to get started? Contact Jan Burrell at jan@501commons.org to schedule your Pathways consultation.