News from Compass March 2016

Strategic Guidance. Stronger Nonprofits.

In This Issue

Client Application for 2016-17

Prospective Client Info Session May 2

Donate to Compass

Join Our List

2015-16 CLIENTS

Greater Philadelphia Classic Clients

After School Activities Partnerships (ASAP)

Center for Advocacy for the Rights and Interests of the Elderly (CARIE)

Delaware Valley Green Building Council

Junior Achievement of Southeastern Pennsylvania

Main Line Art Center

North Light Community Center

Smith Memorial Playground & Playhouse

Welcoming Center for New Pennsylvanians

West Oak Lane Charter School

Women Organized Against Rape

Greater Washington Classic Clients

A Wider Circle

Accokeek Foundation and Alice Ferguson Foundation

Arc of Northern Virginia

Capital Fringe

Charge Up Collaborative

Community Foundation for the National Capital Region

Cornerstone Montgomery

DC Central Kitchen

District Alliance for Safe Housing

Equal Rights Center

Girl Scout Council of the Nation's Capital

Girls on the Run of Montgomery County, MD

Green Door

Joe's Movement Emporium

Lab School of Washington

Marriott Foundation for People with Disabilities

Miriam's Kitchen

Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless

Next Step Public Charter School

Our Daily Bread

Our Military Kids

Reading Partners

Signature Theatre

Sixth & I

SOME

Theatre Lab

Veterans on the Rise

Greater Washington Micro Clients

BEST Kids

Bethesda Green

BUILD Metro DC

Building Futures

Capitol Hill Arts Workshop

Chess Challenge in DC

Cornerstone Community DC

Dana Tai Soon Burgess Dance Company

DC Bar Pro Bono Center

DC Diaper Bank

DC Doors

DC Fiscal Policy Institute

DC Volunteer Lawyers Project

Earth Conservation Corps

Empower DC

Happenstance Theater

Healthy Babies Project

KEYS For The Homeless Foundation

Life Asset

Madison House Autism Foundation

One World Education

Open Arms Housing

Project Create

Reach Incorporated

Spooky Action Theater

STRIVE DC

Synetic Theater

Teaching for Change

U.S. Chess Center

Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless

Wilderness Leadership & Learning

Vol. 13, No. 1

March 2016

FROM THE PRESIDENT

COMPASS AS A TEENAGER

I have three sons. Two have just gotten through their teen years, and one is right in the midst of them at 15 years old. I'm pleased to say that the youngest has just come through a difficult time when he was either yelling at me or not speaking to me. In the past few weeks, he's started talking again, smiling and laughing with me. Nothing changed externally to cause this. As time kept moving, it seemed to move him out of his grumpiness back into his old cheerful self. I know from past experience that all the challenges of teenagerhood are not behind us. Still, for the moment, I am enjoying the joy that has come back to my home.

Interestingly, I am also in the middle of the teen years at Compass. Compass turns 15 this year. Similar to people, organizations live through cycles. Our early years found us trying to stand up and find our balance. We moved into a more steady state as we decided what we wanted to be when we grew up. We experienced some growing pains as we moved toward our dreams. On the way, we added a few programs that let us better serve local nonprofits. We have more board members and staff members now. We even have a new city, and we love Philadelphia!

Like Compass, these cycles happen to other nonprofits as well. That's why the range of Compass projects and services work for almost all nonprofits. Whether in the middle of growing up or having become established and sustainable, nonprofits must continually ask if they are meeting their mission, if they have the right resources to do so, and if the people governing the organization are doing so in the most effective way. Nonprofits can never stop asking questions, because the world doesn't stand still. As it evolves, so must we.

This is the time of year when the Compass client application is about to open. We'll accept applications from nonprofits between April 15 and June 15. That means this is the best time of year to think about how Compass can help your organization. We will offer four strategic services this year - all designed to help nonprofits address challenges and opportunities and think about the best way to move their organization to the next level. Does your organization need to consider whether your mission, programs and resources are aligned (Strategic Alignment)? Is your board the right board for your organization at this time (Board Development)? Is it time to finally diversify your funding or think about how you are communicating with donors (Funding Strategies)? Finally, maybe external changes have left you considering the value of a partnership or merger with another organization (Strategic Partnerships and Collaborations). These are some of the ways a Compass team can help.

We are here to support your nonprofit as you navigate organizational stages and changes. The teen years may be hard (truthfully, growing up is never easy), but we take the lessons learned with us as we move ahead, and we are stronger and more resilient as a result. The same is true for nonprofits that work with Compass. I hope you'll consider how a Compass team can do this for you.

Happy spring!

Suzanne

CLIENT APPLICATION FOR 2016-17

Compass' Client Application for 2016-17 will be open on April 15 for Greater Philadelphia nonprofits. The deadline for applications is June 15 at 5:00 p.m. Clients will be selected in August, and projects will begin in September.

Compass clients must meet the following criteria:

Have 501(c)(3) status
Have a minimum of three full-time paid staff members and a minimum budget of $750,000
Provide services that specifically benefit the Greater Philadelphia community
Not promote a specific religious or political belief
Have an active board of directors

Compass offers pro bono consulting in the following service lines: Board Development, Funding Strategies, Strategic Alignment, and Strategic Partnerships & Collaborations. See descriptions below.

If you have any questions about which project would be most useful for your organization or about the application process, visit our website or contact Executive Director Beth Dahle (bdahle@compassphilly.org; 610-745-3223) to discuss. Or plan to attend our Prospective Client Information session on May 2. See details below.

JOIN US FOR A PROSPECTIVE CLIENT INFO SESSION - Monday, May 2

If you are considering applying for a Compass pro bono consulting project, please join us on May 2 to hear about Compass' client application process. At this optional Information Session for prospective clients, you'll find out:

How the Compass program works
What kind of project would be best for your organization
How to apply for a Compass project and get selected

Date: Monday, May 2

Time: 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.

Location: Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, 200 South Broad Street, Suite 700, Philadelphia, PA 19102

Please RSVP by April 25 to Elizabeth Elliott at eelliott@compassdc.org.

2016-17 SERVICE LINES

Nonprofits can choose from the following type of projects.

Board Development - Board Development projects aim to improve the effectiveness, engagement, and sustainability of nonprofit boards.

Funding Strategies - Compass can assess traditional revenue sources and revenue-generation methods, or support Earned Income Ventures.

Strategic Alignment - Strategic Alignment projects make recommendations for operations based on alignment of mission, programs and resources.

Strategic Partnerships & Collaborations - Compass will help nonprofits assess the value and appropriateness of strategic partnerships or collaborations.

SUPPORT COMPASS, SUPPORT LOCAL NONPROFITS

This year, Compass is connecting over 90 business professionals with 10 nonprofit organizations through our pro bono consulting projects in Greater Philadelphia. Like our nonprofit clients, Compass is a nonprofit that relies on contributions to ensure we can continue bringing business talent to the nonprofit sector to help individual nonprofits.

Every $1 donated to Compass provides $14 of consulting services back to local nonprofits. Compass doesn't charge nonprofits for services, so we rely on funding from generous supporters. If you haven't donated to Compass during this 2015-16 project year, please donate now.

STAY IN TOUCH WITH COMPASS

Please join one or all of these online communities and share your reflections and experiences.

Please "like" us on Facebook and watch for fun announcements, pictures and videos on our page.

Follow us on Twitter, where we tweet messages about our clients and their programs, trends in the nonprofit sector, and other relevant news. Follow us at @Compassprobono.

Compass has a company page on LinkedIn called "Compass Pro Bono."

COMPASS THANKS OUR PARTNERS

Corporations

Accenture

Blank Rome

Brown Brothers Harriman

Mercer

Pew Charitable Trusts

Foundations

Connelly Foundation

Dolfinger-McMahon Foundation

Douty Foundation

Independence Foundation

MKM Foundation

The Philadelphia Foundation

Business School Clubs

We couldn't put together our talented consulting teams without skilled volunteers, and we couldn't recruit our amazing volunteers without the support of the local business school clubs. Thank you to the following clubs that help spread the word about Compass. We are grateful for your continued support!

The University of Chicago Booth School of Business

Columbia Business School

Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell

Fuqua School of Business at Duke

Harvard Business School

Michigan Ross School of Business

MIT Sloan School of Management

Northwestern Kellogg School of Management

NYU Stern School of Business

Stanford Graduate School of Business

Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth

University of Virginia Darden School of Business

The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania

Yale School of Management