What we mean by "ready"
Is an organization "ready" to engage a consultant for a capacity-building project?
There is no absolute, black and white, ready or not.
Instead, we view readiness as a continuum. Also, an organization can be quite "ready" for a particular capacity-building project one day, and then the next day, something significant in their organization or environment changes, which requires them to rethink their plan (e.g. loss of a particular leader or funder, an unexpected new opportunity that arises that's too good to pass up but requires lots of time... etc.!)
Here are the things we are looking for to asses the degree of "readiness" of an organization to engage a consultant for a capacity-building project (please see our definitions of those terms too!)
1. Does the organization have a clear sense of the outcomes they are hoping to achieve (vs. activity they want to do) by hiring a consultant?
2. Have they done an organizational assessment to identify their priorities?
3. Have they considered their time and capacity to engage in a project, including setting aside some existing commitments or day-to-day activities?
4. How aligned are they around this project?
5. If the capacity-building plan is focused on fundraising, are other elements of the organization set up to support this? (E.g. is the board ready? Do they have alignment around current mission/direction? Is fundraising a stated part of board activities? Is there infrastructure in place to accept an influx of donations appropriately? etc.)
5. Have they identified an organizational point person to work with the consultant and keep the project moving forward?
6. Are they prepared to do their own due diligence to select among the consultants we suggest?
7. Have they set aside a budget for matching funds? If not, do they have a realistic plan for raising these funds? What about funding for follow-up and implementation?
8. Have they considered the organization’s ability to absorb, implement, or take on new tasks or changes based on the results of the project?
Adapted from ImpactRising.org
There is no absolute, black and white, ready or not.
Instead, we view readiness as a continuum. Also, an organization can be quite "ready" for a particular capacity-building project one day, and then the next day, something significant in their organization or environment changes, which requires them to rethink their plan (e.g. loss of a particular leader or funder, an unexpected new opportunity that arises that's too good to pass up but requires lots of time... etc.!)
Here are the things we are looking for to asses the degree of "readiness" of an organization to engage a consultant for a capacity-building project (please see our definitions of those terms too!)
1. Does the organization have a clear sense of the outcomes they are hoping to achieve (vs. activity they want to do) by hiring a consultant?
2. Have they done an organizational assessment to identify their priorities?
3. Have they considered their time and capacity to engage in a project, including setting aside some existing commitments or day-to-day activities?
4. How aligned are they around this project?
5. If the capacity-building plan is focused on fundraising, are other elements of the organization set up to support this? (E.g. is the board ready? Do they have alignment around current mission/direction? Is fundraising a stated part of board activities? Is there infrastructure in place to accept an influx of donations appropriately? etc.)
5. Have they identified an organizational point person to work with the consultant and keep the project moving forward?
6. Are they prepared to do their own due diligence to select among the consultants we suggest?
7. Have they set aside a budget for matching funds? If not, do they have a realistic plan for raising these funds? What about funding for follow-up and implementation?
8. Have they considered the organization’s ability to absorb, implement, or take on new tasks or changes based on the results of the project?
Adapted from ImpactRising.org
