Resources in this section provide strategies, tools, and research related to building capacity in nonprofit organizations.
Building Leaderful Organizations: Succession Planning for Nonprofits (PDF - 244 KB)
Annie E. Casey Foundation (2008)
Presents emergency succession planning tools, offers executive directors guidance for knowing when and how to leave an organization, and includes suggestions for boards in ensuring the sustainability of the organizations they administer.
Building Organization Capacity
Hudson (2005)
In Managing at the Leading Edge: New Challenges in Managing Nonprofit Organizations
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Discusses the need for nonprofits to invest in people, systems, and infrastructures to have the organizational capacity to deliver greatest impact.
Capacity Benchmarking Tool for Faith- and Community-Based Organizations
Branch Associates, Inc. (2006)
Helps newly established organizations work toward greater stability and effectiveness, establish priorities for strengthening infrastructure, and identify the steps needed to build capacity.
Generating Self-Organizing Capacity: Leadership Practices and Training Needs in Non-Profits
Allen & Morton
Journal of Extension, 44(6), 2006
Proposes a self-organizing capacity framework and links it to 18 leadership and organizational practices that build capacity within organizations.
A Guidebook for Building Organizational Effectiveness Capacity: A Training System Example (PDF - 720 KB)
American Public Human Service Association (2010)
Discusses the application of different organizational effectiveness strategy development approaches to help plan and implement improvements to organizational effectiveness capacity.The Guidebook also provides an example of how a training system can use these guiding principles to build its own capacity to provide strategic support.
Investing in Capacity Building: A Guide to High-Impact Approaches
Blumenthal (2003)
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Identifies the strategies that are - and are not - effective in helping nonprofit organizations improve their performance. The book is based on interviews with more than 100 grantmakers, intermediaries, and consultants; 30 evaluations of capacity building programs; and a review of research on capacity building.
Promising Practices for Improving the Capacity of Faith- and Community-Based Organizations (PDF - 358 KB)
Fink & Branch (2005)
Documents a range of services that intermediaries provide to their constituent organizations, and highlights the services that show potential for producing successful outcomes and improving the organizational capacity of faith-based and community organizations.
Sustaining Your Child & Family Services Organization in Lean Times (PDF - 113 KB)
National Abandoned Infants Assistance Resource Center (2006)
Discusses strategies nonprofits can use to sustain their organization and services.
Capacity Building Toolkits for Faith-Based and Community Organizations
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Community Services
Provides a collection of links to guidebooks, studies, tools, and other resources focusing on building organizational capacity.