Nonprofit consultant offers free strategic advice online
THE Bridgespan Group, which provides management consulting services to philanthropic and nonprofit organizations, has launched a website that will make a wide range of its resources available for free online.
The site, bridgespan.org, is organized into six interactive sections called Learning Centers. Each learning center focuses on one area of nonprofit organization and management such as strategy, recruiting, hiring, and funding. The material includes articles, videos, podcasts, and Q&A series.
Are there what Bridgespan calls conversation starters ?? essays on the major policy issues facing the nonprofit sector. And there is a library of case studies, drawn from the consultancy work done by Bridgespan since its founding in 2000. On another site, Bridgestar.org, there is a job board for those looking for a job. in non-profit management.
Bridgespan aims to be a “trusted source of knowledge and best practices,” said Jeff Bradach, its managing partner. To this end, it includes not only its own documents, but also links to content related to the management of other groups.
The goal is “a one-stop-shop for management, leadership and strategy issues for nonprofit sector organizations and philanthropies,” Bradach said.
Bridgespan was started by Bain & Company, a Boston-based consulting firm that wanted to offer its professional employees a way of working that they saw as more engaging than standard consulting activities. It provides non-profit management consulting, executive search and philanthropy consulting services at discounted rates.
This year, Bridgespan plans to work with some 59 clients on strategy and philanthropy and 40 on executive search, although Katie Smith Milway, partner at Bridgespan, said the numbers did not account for “multiple engagements” or overlapping assignments for the same organization. .
Ms Milway said the costs of developing bridgespan.org were funded by grants from foundations such as the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Atlantic Philanthropies and the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation. She said the site was initially expected to attract 30,000 to 50,000 visitors per month among the 85,000 nonprofits that work in education, environment, youth services and other areas of Bridgespan focus. .
“The website and most importantly the content and research are very helpful,” said JB Schramm, executive director of College Summit, which helps school districts in 12 states increase university enrollment rates. “This site will make this material much more accessible to organizations that do not have great search functions or direct access to Bridgespan.”
Mr Bradach said bridgespan.org would help fill the gap in the availability of management advice for nonprofit groups.
“If you go to the business section of Barnes & Noble, you will see hundreds of books on management and strategy,” he said. “But if you go to the nonprofit section of the bookstore, you might see a book or two on management strategy. But association leaders are looking for the same type of information ?? information that can move their organization forward.