Reformulating a Non-Profit Strategy for sustained success

Description

Many professionals desire a way to “give back” to their communities. While volunteering and assisting a non-profit organization on the front line is very helpful, many of these organizations can benefit from the skills and services that professionals have to offer. This case highlights an industrial engineer’s involvement in a Taproot Foundation pro-bono Strategic Planning Grant to assist a non-profit firm (American Indian Center of Chicago (AIC)) that recently experienced rising costs and shrinking revenue.

Abstract

The Taproot Foundation is a non-profit pro-bono consulting firm that recruits professional seeking to donate their time and skills and matches them with organizations that need their specific skill sets. This case highlights an industrial engineer’s involvement in a Taproot Foundation pro-bono Strategic Planning Grant to assist a non-profit firm (American Indian Center of Chicago (AIC)) that recently experienced rising costs and shrinking revenue. The AIC of Chicago serves the American Indian population in the city and surrounding suburbs of Chicago, IL. The AIC reached out to Taproot for assistance as it has been struggling to fund its staff and programs. Rather than continuing to cut back, the AIC decided to work with a Taproot Consulting team on a strategic planning grant. The goal of the project was to assess the programs, offerings, grant process, volunteer process, and current state of the AIC, and provide recommendations to optimize the strategy and direction of the organization. During the life cycle of this project, an industrial engineering technique (work measurement) was utilized to measure key variables for the non-profit, and will be highlighted in the project review.

Author(s): Joel Brock, West Monroe Partners

Learn more at:Reformulating a Non-Profit Strategy for sustained success