April 29 - May 1, 2015

Mapping a Route to Community Impact for a Smaller United Way

Agenda

• Welcome and Introduction

• Overview of Community Impact Concepts

• Presentation: United Way of Hunterdon County

• Presentation: United Way of Westmoreland County

• Q&A

Presenters

Caroline Scutt, Community Impact Director

United Way of Hunterdon County

Flemington, NJ

 

Bobbi Watt Geer, President & CEO

United Way of Westmoreland County

Greensburg, PA

 

Alyssa Cholodofsky, Director of Community Impact

United Way of Westmoreland County

Greensburg, PA

Why We Exist and the Value We Add

Mission

To improve lives by mobilizing the caring power of communities around the world to advance the common good.

Value Proposition

We galvanize and connect a diverse set of individuals and institutions, and mobilize resources, to create long-term change.

CREATE STRONGER COMMUNITIES

0 - 8Children are prepared for success in school.

9 - 24Youth graduate high

school ready for college, work, and life.

IMPROVE LIVES via Education, Financial Stability and Health GoalsImplement Program Solutions, Impact Initiatives, and Community Solutions

ENGAGE COMMUNITY STAKEHOLDERS – WORK TOGETHER

Impact Model – Change We Seek to Create

Many problems in our communities keep getting worse

Low-birth weight babies

Disparities in school readiness, school achievement

Lack of affordable housing

Children and families in poverty

Personal debt and bankruptcy

Child and adult obesity

Lack of access to health care

• Bring organizations, people and resources together to focus on pressing issues

• Target underlying causes

• Aim for lasting, system-level impact

• Develop holistic, research-based strategies

• Implement through coordinated, collaborative efforts

• Mobilize individuals and institutions to create change

Communities need new ways of solving problems

Impact Solutions Continuum

Diversify and Grow Revenue

Community Solutions

Broad-based, multi-sector efforts to improve underlying community

conditionsImpact Initiatives Aligned set of programs and

services to increase efficiency and effectiveness

Program Solutions Direct services for individuals and families with measurable

results

Program Solutions

Direct services for individuals and families with measurable results

How a United Way Supports PROGRAM SOLUTIONS:

Funds agency operations

Funds agencies to provide direct services

Requires and collects data on aggregate outputs and outcomes from funded service providers

Reports to investors, individuals donors, partners, and other key stakeholders on aggregate outputs and outcomes from discrete service providers

Builds the capacity of agencies/providers (e.g. in program outcome measurement) Investing in program outcomes

Supports individual agencies to ensure operational

excellence and their capacity to deliver results

Impact Initiatives

Aligned set of programs and services to increase efficiency and

effectiveness

How a United Way Supports IMPACT INITIATIVES: Serves as a community catalyst on a specific issue (e.g. attendance awareness)

Invests in an aligned set of program activities and related outcomes

Leads or informs the creation of shared goals/outcomes and tracking and

measuring initiative results

Defines roles, responsibilities, accountabilities of all organizations/agencies

participating in the initiative

Provides some backbone operations/management/coordination functions

to support the work of the initiative;

Builds the capacity of the non-profit sector to deliver results (e.g. through

coordinated quality improvements technical assistance, sharing of best practices,

etc. that to support all partners in the initiative)

Leads planning efforts to sustain and scale the work to provide more services and

supports to a greater number of individuals and families

Uses national research and local data to inform and refine the work of the initiative

 

Community Solutions

Broad-based, multi-sector efforts to improve underlying community

conditions

How a United Way Supports COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS:

Helps lead partnerships in agreeing to common community outcomes, developing multi-faceted strategies to improve underlying conditions in the community

Serves as a community catalyst to spur action that includes providing and/or supporting others in providing core backbone functions

Engages community residents to identify shared aspirations, barriers and to articulate solutions to community challenges

Offers meaningful and sustained opportunities for community participation in identified solutions (i.e. Give, Advocate, Volunteer)

Enhances existing partnerships to create long-term vision, common priorities, and goals, strategies, actions and metrics

Focuses the coalition/partners on long-term planning and community solutions

Invests in community outcomes

 

Business Model – Impact and Revenue MixD

iver

sify

and

Gro

w Im

pact

and

Rev

enue

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Community Impact ...

Is not just about improving lives of clients of United Way-funded programs

Is about improving lives of people affected by pressing community issues

Is not just about influencing the health and human services sector

Is about influencing whatever sectors, systems, networks, groups, or environments can play a role in improving lives in our communities

Is not just the job of certain United Way functions (e.g., fund distribution, community building)

Is the business of the entire organization

Some implications for our work

•New skills – change management leadership, grassroots organizing, issues management, strategic communications, advocacy, relationship management, social media

•New content expertise – education, income, and health

•Executing according to value proposition – conveners, “mobilizers”, “aligners” of efforts toward lasting community change

•Diversification of revenue streams – include foundation and government grants, targeted sponsorships, planned gifts, etc.

•Technology – new relationship-management tools; new platforms to enable individual giving, advocacy, and volunteering; back office/financial systems for a new era

•Full organizational integration – functional teams must work seamlessly

•Network collaboration – we must operate as a truly interdependent network that coordinates appropriately

Small size not necessarily a disadvantage

Smaller size often means:

• Greater agility

• Quicker buy-in

• Stronger connections to community resources

• Closer relationships with stakeholders

What will it take to become a United Way mobilizing for community impact?

A deeper focus on certain elements of the Standards of Excellence

If we wish to be effective, we will need to:

Executing on the United Way Business Model

Operate as an integrated

and aligned organization

Have the right skills,

competencies & leadership

Create & deepen

relationships with

individuals &institutions

Measure, evaluate &

communicate results

Engage and align with the community

Develop strategies and focus

actions

Mobilize resources

Align and execute on plans and strategies

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The Pathway to Achieving Community Impact