We’ve put together this list of workshops offered at the Nonprofit Learning Lab available this month to make sure you don’t miss a thing! To register and find out more about each workshop, click the workshop titles of your choice to head to the workshop page for more details. Our memberships provide discounts to all our paid trainings and many other benefits. Learn more about our memberships here. Not seeing a topic you'd be interested in learning more about? Let us know via email at info@nonprofitlearninglab.org.
Too often strategic planning happens in a vacuum, visions casted, momentum built, plans written -- yet the people directly impacted by the plan (clients, donors, staff, volunteers, community) are left out. This process has led to plans that have failed to meet its full potential. Community engagement, though at times unwieldy and time-consuming, is critical to truly propel all variables towards a common goal. You’ll see that when done well, a snowball effect happens, where the impossible becomes possible. Learn strategies for engaging community stakeholders while balancing organizational/group needs (ie. strategy, mission, resources). Explore ways to leverage your leadership to build a collaborative and sound planning process.
Do you rely on volunteers? Are you finding it difficult to recruit new volunteers in 2022? This live webinar covers strategies on how to recruit, train and engage volunteers whether your organization offers in-person, virtual, or hybrid volunteer opportunities. During this hour session, we will review strategies to manage, recruit, interview, and train new and returning volunteers. Being able to effectively manage your volunteers will help you better operate your programs and services. In the past few years, many organizations have gone through change whether it is leadership or implementation of programs. It is important that your volunteers are trained and have the framing to understand their volunteer roles within your organization.
Lapsed donors are individuals that have given to your nonprofit but for some reason have stopped. Perhaps they need to be re-engaged, asked or cultivated again. Your lapsed donors are more likely to donate than an individual that doesn't know your organization. Your lapsed donors have invested in your mission at least once!
Corporate sponsors can be key partners in aiding nonprofits to raise more funds. Join us for this webinar to learn strategies on how to not just secure, but maintain these often vital partnerships. Corporate sponsorship support can help your nonprofit enhance its reputation, reach new audiences and communities, raise funds, attract new board members and volunteers, and build your brand and programs. We'll dive into understanding what corporate sponsors want and expect, two key components for ensuring a healthy working relationship with your corporate sponsor. Take an hour out of your day for this webinar to learn the best tips, tricks, and practices to score your next corporate sponsorship.
Corporate sponsors can be key partners in aiding nonprofits to raise more funds. Join us for this webinar to learn strategies on how to not just secure, but maintain these often vital partnerships. Corporate sponsorship support can help your nonprofit enhance its reputation, reach new audiences and communities, raise funds, attract new board members and volunteers, and build your brand and programs. We'll dive into understanding what corporate sponsors want and expect, two key components for ensuring a healthy working relationship with your corporate sponsor. Take an hour out of your day for this webinar to learn the best tips, tricks, and practices to score your next corporate sponsorship.
Fundraising officers burn out when they work alone but creating relationships with donors isn’t an exhausting chore when it is a shared expectation among the board, staff, and leadership. Nonprofits that encourage, celebrate, and support advocacy from all participants are not dealing with nearly as much turnover because they maintain a Culture of Philanthropy. And it’s easier than you think.
No More Dusty Strategic Plans: Using Strategic Learning to Create Progress, Action and Adaptability July 20
Do you have a strategic plan that sits on the shelf, only to be pulled out occasionally? Are you unsure how to understand progress towards your strategic priorities? Or maybe you are just starting on a strategic planning process and are unsure where to start? Purposeful learning can be a powerful tool in developing and implementing your strategic plan. In this session, we will explore a process for incorporating learning into your strategic planning to ensure your strategic plan (1) is grounded in evidence and curiosity, (2) is actionable and adaptable to changing contexts, and (3) includes how to understand the progress you are making.
Program Planning, Scaling and Building: How to Re-Imagine and Scale Your Existing Programs to Reach Your Goals July 20 & 27
Managing nonprofit programs requires planning and flexibility. Simultaneously launching new nonprofit programs while managing an existing program takes even more creativity, time and effort. Creating and expanding programs and services in a nonprofit helps lead to growth, innovation, and delivery of services. Are you looking to expand or scale a program in your organization, agency, or nonprofit? Need some guidance before dedicating a lot of resources, capacity and staff time? Program development, expansion and scaling is a process and takes time for staff, board members and volunteers. Scaling could mean launching a program in a new school, city or state or alternatively serving more clients in a more in depth or enriching way.
This workshop will explore methods and strategies to brainstorm and create ideas for the purpose of program development, scalability, sustainability, and expansion. This workshop will explore three important elements in program expansion and scaling including; the how of expanding and scaling programs, who to involve such as internal and external partners, and methods to ensure program quality. This session will incorporate opportunities for brainstorming, feedback, and an opportunity to develop an action plan to expand and scale your own programs. We will also cover strategies for nonprofit program management. Attendees will leave the workshop with actionable steps to follow in scaling their programs.
Every nonprofit leader deals with difficult committee members, volunteers, or board members. Difficult volunteers can prevent nonprofits leaders from effectively pursuing their mission and programs and can negatively impact staff and other volunteers. In this training, we will review common issues that arise and offer step-by-step solutions to mitigate these issues. Volunteer issues covered in the workshop will include social media policies, interpersonal conflicts among volunteers and with staff, alignment of volunteer expectations, volunteer engagement, and volunteer retention. Participants in this workshop will leave with strategies and tools to immediately implement in their own organizations to more effectively manage their volunteer force.
Smooth Staff Transitions: Leadership Planning & Onboarding to Secure your Organization's Future July 25
Transitions create disruption whether it is the role of a development director, executive director, program, or communications staff. In the past year, organizations learned the term "the great resignation" and saw many employees depart for new positions. Your organization needs to be prepared for smooth staff transitions and onboarding, whether it is the role of a development director, executive director, program, or communications staff. Smooth transitions and onboarding are key to the continued successful delivery of programs and services. In this workshop, we will dive deep into the processes from creating systems to knowing what employees do in their day-to-day tasks to building your own leadership pipeline and a successful onboarding process for new employees.
How to Create a Case Statement For Funding Support: Templates & Methods to Develop a Case Statement July 28
A fully developed case statement is crucial to a grant proposal, capital campaign, end-of-year campaign, or one-on-one donor solicitation. A case statement illustrates the work of a nonprofit. The core components of a case statement should serve as an inspiration to funders whether during a 1:1 solicitation or a grant application. Staff, board members, and volunteers can use information from a case statement to convey important information to the community, funders, foundations, and key stakeholders. Do you have an old case statement that needs to be updated? Or have never created a case statement that makes grant writing a challenge? Join us for this workshop to review the core components of a case statement using a template provided and get started writing, updating, or revising your organization's case statement.
After writing, updating or revising your case statement comes the need to find grants that align with your organization's mission and programs. We will cover different databases you can use to find grants and how you can also utilize your board members to help you build relationships with foundations. There will be opportunities for feedback, development, and writing in this workshop!
Whether your role is CEO, Development Director, Chief Program Officer, or Marketing Manager, we often have to manage large projects. Sometimes in our role, we have the idea, and other times, we are handed the project to build and launch. Whether the project is a fundraising campaign, website revisions, a new program, or a large community initiative, there are essential steps of project management that you need to implement to ensure successful completion. Managing and completing large projects can be stressful especially when strapped for time and resources. In this workshop, you will learn strategies to implement to successfully manage a project with deadlines. Come to this workshop thinking about a project that you are currently or will be soon managing.