How A Consultant & Coach Can Help Improve a Nonprofit
Hello, I am Sabrina. I am a certified consultant, coach, and facilitator that helps small nonprofit Staff & Board build relationships that convert into more donations. Are you looking to identify how to increase your fundraising or how to engage your board in fundraising but don’t know where to begin?
While all of the content on my blog, in the VIP Resource Library, and the Nonprofit Professionals Exchange Facebook group are all free, I do have services that I offer. You can check out my online store to learn more.
Do Nonprofits Hire Consultants?
Yes, nonprofits hire consultants for a variety of reasons. The nonprofit may need to hire a consultant for a special project, such as a capital building campaign. If the development staff does not have the time or expertise for a capital building campaign, then a consultant can be contracted for a specific amount of time and a set fee. No need to hire additional development staff that will go to waste beyond the capital campaign.
A Consultant Can Help Re-frame A Nonprofit’s Processes.
A nonprofit consultant can help a nonprofit’s organizational leadership re-frame its current processes. Nonprofit leaders need to have resources to improve cumbersome tasks. A consultant can identify the technologies and resources to reduce staff burdens.
Sabrina has over 20+ years in the nonprofit sector. She has a vast library of resources that can improve workflows for nonprofit leaders. Her nonprofit coaching services help nonprofit leaders develop communication strategies, improve internal problem-solving skills, and provide guidance on increasing fundraising capacity.
What Are The 10 Ways A Nonprofit Consultant Can Help A Nonprofit?
- Help formulate or revise the mission, vision, and purpose statements.
- Identify if an idea for a nonprofit has sustainability within a community.
- Quantitatively identify the impact your nonprofit will have on a community through in-depth research.
- Assist with finding the right board members to serve.
- A nonprofit consultant can help work through any challenges by researching the causes of the problem the nonprofit will address.
- The nonprofit consultant can also help find solutions to the problem (whether through research, programs identical to your idea, etc.)
- A nonprofit consultant can help with filing state incorporation paperwork, in Texas only.
- A nonprofit consultant can file for tax-exempt status for the nonprofit, in Texas only.
- A nonprofit consultant can help develop funding and fundraising strategies.
- A nonprofit consultant can work with the board of directors on strategic planning for the organization.
Benefits of A Hiring Fundraising Facilitation/Training Services:
Sabrina has a track record of fundraising $12 million for a nonprofit.
A nonprofit consultant can augment staff for critical fundraising projects.
Facilitate changes within your nonprofit that can help build a stronger foundation for growth.
Get an objective perspective for your nonprofit’s fundraising and development program.
Board members and staff can gain valuable knowledge about the principles of professional fundraising.
Breathe life into your fundraising programs.
Capital For Nonprofits– Understanding the Grant Process Getting Donors and Granters To Donate
Mission-Focused Fundraising Consultant
As a seasoned professional fundraiser, Sabrina has contributed to a multi-million-dollar expansion of the local Boys and Girls Club. Her mission-based fundraising practices ensure that nonprofit leaders and board members focus on finding the right mixture of funding sources for a nonprofit organization. Campaigns are tough because you need to take a multi-pronged initiative spanning many stakeholders or sponsors with varying opinions to create something brand new. A nonprofit consultant can help facilitate difficult conversations between all stakeholders.
Nonprofit fundraising strategies must focus on multiple areas -grants, corporate partnerships, sponsorship, and donations from your supporters.
Resources For Nonprofit Leaders
Fundraising Coaching
A talented, trained, and confident staff and board are essential to your fundraising success. Supporting World Hope provides both training and ongoing coaching of individuals and teams engaged in every aspect of resource development. Sabrina works closely with you to develop a highly tailored and continually adaptive program built around the needs of your staff and board members. Whatever challenges you face, Sabrina has been there and can help those committed to your mission to great fundraising levels.
Whether you are a novice, intermediate, or expert who needs help with board fundraising, getting board members motivated, or finding additional fundraising revenue streams, Sabrina can help you on your fundraising journey.
Leadership Learning
Serving as a leader in philanthropy is no easy task. Whether you are a chief executive, development professional, or volunteer leader, I can support you in this important role. Whether conducting a deeper development program review or coaching key team members, you are not alone. Need help and support in your new leadership role, your team needs coaching through challenging situations, or do your volunteers, board members, and nonprofit leaders need to be trained to successfully participate in philanthropy? I am your trusted partner.
Sabrina specializes in leading workshops and retreats on fundraising best practices. Throughout fundraising, board and staff alike will ask questions like the ones listed below. Through personalized training or coaching for your board and staff, these questions can be answered.
- What is my role in fundraising?
- How can we grow our annual fundraising capacity?
- How do I select the “right” solicitation amount?
- What is expected of me as a board member during a campaign?
- What are the keys to an effective board?
Sabrina’s extensive experience with nonprofits has reinforced her belief that staff and board must work together and in support of one another to achieve the mission.
A customized solution targeting the specific concerns, questions, and issues facing your organization is provided – whether your board requires a simple, stand-alone session to cover the basics of the board’s roles and responsibilities, or a comprehensive sequence of training sessions to help your staff better understand the cultivation and solicitation process.
Through coaching sessions and retreats, I will help your organization reach greater levels of understanding, consensus, and engagement.
Annual Fund Direction
Supporting World Hope has a proven track record of increasing annual fund revenue for our client partners. Through our hands-on approach, Sabrina is prepared to develop customized solutions to enhance your organization’s annual fund, engage new donors and audiences, and grow your prospect pipeline.
Strategic Planning
Do you need help developing a visionary strategic plan? Supporting World Hope believes in strong, sequential, and customized planning – grounded in solid communication and enhanced by consensus building, both with internal and external constituents. When Supporting World Hope enters a strategic planning process, Sabrina is a partner in your organization’s ultimate success.
You will be guided along each step of the strategic planning process. You will get help taking stock of where you are as an organization, define and refine your mission and vision, outline your goals, and develop an action plan to help you achieve them. Sabrina will work with you hands-on to conduct interviews with stakeholders and constituents, benchmark and evaluate your environment, and coordinate board retreats. By engaging key leaders and stakeholders from the board and staff, your organization will strengthen its mission and have transformational change.
Board Member Development
A 2015 study by the Stanford Graduate School of Business in conjunction with BoardSource and GuideStar found the skills, resources, and experience of directors are not sufficient to meet the needs of most nonprofit organizations. Board processes fall short. The study also noted that nonprofit directors and board members do not have sufficient knowledge of the nonprofit’s mission and strategy of the nonprofit (1).
Does this sound like your board of directors?
- Board members lack the skill set to help improve the nonprofit.
- Board members’ understanding of nonprofit management is lacking.
- Board members have low to no engagement with the nonprofit or in board meetings.
If this read those 3 questions and answered YES to just one, then it’s probably time to hire a nonprofit consultant. A nonprofit coach can inject life into the board, thereby driving growth for the organization. Change does not happen overnight and could cause resistance or push back from the board.
A strong board is an organization’s biggest asset. Supporting World Hope works to help you develop healthy board practices that maximize board effectiveness and fundraising capacity.
Sabrina can assess your board and its by-laws, work with you to recruit and retain members, help you establish effective structures, and train volunteer board fundraisers. With strong board practices in place, your organization will be positioned for growth in the future.
My board members need to be trained!
If you are frustrated or at odds with your board, it can have a huge impact on the nonprofit. Opposition trickles down to staff which will impact working conditions for staff. If you are at this point, it’s time to take a step back. Contact Sabrina Now.
Board Education Plan
Board members assist with outlining the strategic vision of the nonprofit organization. The strategic visions flow from the nonprofit’s mission. If the board has not been oriented to the nonprofit, they may disconnect from the nonprofit. What does this disconnect look like? Absentee board members. Board members providing the wrong strategic vision for the nonprofit. Board members who do not understand their fiduciary responsibilities as stakeholders to the nonprofit.
New board member orientation has proven to increase engagement by 75% if done within the first 3 months of election to a nonprofit organization. Nonprofit leadership teams work closely with board members to fulfill your nonprofit’s mission.
The board needs to understand what the nonprofit does to be a great advocate and ambassador. Contact Sabrina Now.
Engage The Nonprofit’s Board of Directors
Board members play a significant role in guiding nonprofits by contributing to the organization’s culture, strategic focus, effectiveness, and financial sustainability. Creating a board of directors that serve as ambassadors and advocates requires past board members to motivate new board members. Beyond fulfilling legal duties, board members can be important resources for the organization in multiple ways.
If your board members have become disengaged, it’s time to get them reinvigorated. Contact Sabrina Now.
Train Board Members on Collaboration
Your board of directors more than likely are not trained for the work required of nonprofit organizations. Board members must learn techniques to help the organization collaborate. Partnerships for nonprofits start with the right introductions.
Provide appropriate training to board members
- Board Roles & Responsibilities
- Engaging Board in Resource Development
- Recruiting, Engaging & Maintaining Board Members
- Shifting the Board Fundraising Mindset
- Three keys to the Board Fundraising Partnership
- The Board’s Role in Fundraising & Resource Development
- Board and Staff Roles in Fundraising
- Board Recruitment for Fundraising
- Strategic Planning for Nonprofits
- Board and Staff Partnership: Effective Leadership Takes A Team
- Board Operations – Education, Evaluation, and Exit
- Building Better Board Dynamics and Better Relationships with Staff
- Creating a Generative Board Culture
A Board Member’s Video Testimonial
More Testimonials
We hired Sabrina as a consultant to advise our non-profit organization during our search for an Executive Director. Sabrina is an extremely knowledgeable, professional, and organized individual. She provided us with a clear and achievable timeline based on our needs and resources. She provided samples of contracts and other important documents that we were able to tailor to our needs. Our meetings were very productive. Her weekly reports allowed us to stay on top of tasks and provided clear details on the next steps required to ensure the successful completion of hiring. Sabrina also sat on our interview panel and provided useful insight on candidates. We ended up with a very qualified Executive Director who was the perfect fit for our organization. I highly recommend Sabrina as a non-profit consultant. She is a pleasure to work with and worth the investment.
– Melanie Watson, President, Board of Directors Capable Kids Foundation
When we brought Sabrina Walker Hernandez on board to help coordinate our non-profit’s major annual fundraiser Puppy Love, she took our event to a whole new level of organization and confidence. Within a few days, she had schedules and specific responsibilities for everyone to make sure we were on target for success. Along the way, she was a joy to work with. Her vast experience navigating non-profit challenges really paid off, with this year’s event making more than ever before! I highly recommend making Sabrina and Supporting World Hope part of any team striving for success.
-Keely Lewis, Board President, Palm Valley Animal Society
What workshop participants are saying:
“I loved the creative, collaborative environment, the interactive activities…”
“I strongly recommend training with Ms. Sabrina. I loved her energy.”
“Sabrina was a wealth of information. The ‘workshop’ was very easy to follow along and I learned a lot.”
What board members are saying:
“The ‘board training’ will have great impact on our business because some changes were made immediately after workshop.”
“Get off or go on over the fence but Sabrina will definitely get you where you need to be.”
Are you ready for more?
Are you looking to identify how to increase your fundraising or how to engage your board in fundraising but don’t know where to begin? Schedule your one-time no-cost 60-minute consultation call with Sabrina to get you clear on your next steps. There is no obligation. I am here to support you and your nonprofit.