Capacity Building

Wherever you go in the nonprofit world, it seems like everyone is talking about capacity building these days.

We've been doing it at LNY since 1974--albeit without the trendy name.

Basically, we define capacity building as helping our partner agencies better fulfill their missions. This often involves training as well as technical assistance as we help groups develop skills, knowledge, capabilities, and resources to make their work more effective. Ultimately it's about strengthening the organization.

The literacy groups we work with face critical issues with limited resources. Maximizing capacity stretches these resources. We specifically work on a few key areas: leadership development, programs and curriculum, assessment, evaluation and fundraising.

The most important elements of capacity building for us though are that we always keep it contextual, and that we work to develop a deep, trusting relationship with all of our groups.Each partner organization is different, with unique characteristics and needs. We tailor the capacity building to the targeted needs of the agency, and stay with our groups as they grow and implement new processes or techniques.

We expect to be doing a lot more of this work moving forward as it has become such a popular facet of nonprofit work.