Building Sustainable Organizations
Lupus Foundation of America: one five-year plan across a national office and nearly 20 chapters
SECTOR
Nonprofit
SERVICE
Strategic Planning
FORMAT
In person
The situation
A federated nonprofit can have as many agendas as it has chapters. The Lupus Foundation of America has almost 20 chapters in its network, each an independent nonprofit with its own governance and, often, priorities that pull against the national office. LFA came to us for help developing an integrated strategic plan the whole organization could stand behind.
What we did
Over 12 months we worked with the national office management team, the national board, chapter CEOs, and national office staff to identify the critical strategic areas of focus, build consensus across the organization for the new five-year plan, and set specific annual goals and tactics. We also created a scorecard so the Foundation could track progress against the plan and report to the board and other stakeholders.
What changed
The plan has wide adoption, aligns the entire organization, and gave the Foundation momentum toward new strategic outcomes. LFA published its vision, mission, values, and strategic objectives on its website as part of a larger branding initiative, wrote a set of operating principles for the management team's meetings, and developed the questions it asks before decisions to keep them aligned to strategy.
Every staff member received a padfolio with the plan, an alignment checklist, and more. The plan is in the room every time they decide.
THE SERVICE BEHIND THIS WORK
Strategic Planning
Part of Building Sustainable Organizations.
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