Scaling Social Impact: Strategies for the Small Nonprofit
Scott Curran had a dynamic discussion with Joan Garry for the Nonprofits Are Messy podcast, where he discussed practical advice on strengthening an organization’s core, the importance of having a clear strategic vision, and the role of leadership in driving success. The episode serves as a guide for nonprofit leaders looking to ensure their organization’s long-term sustainability and maximize their impact.
Listen below, and scroll on for Nonprofits Are Messy podcast’s great summary of the conversation!
From Nonprofits Are Messy:
I have two sobering facts for you:
One-third of all nonprofits fail within 10 years.
Thirty percent of the 1.5 million nonprofits in the US have budgets under $100,000.
$100,000 is not a lot of money. Not if you want to scale your impact and reach. While there is not always a direct correlation between the size of the budget and the magnitude of the impact an organization can have, there is a correlation between organizations with budgets under $100,000 and their risk of failure.
I wanted to discover the key levers that can immunize at-risk organizations and to explore how these organizations can scale in size and scope in service to smashing success. That is why I brought in this episode’s guest, Scott Curran, CEO of Beyond Advisors, whose sweet spot of expertise is in working with growth-stage social impact enterprises. You’ll learn that like me, Scott is deeply invested in the world of social impact.
Together, we explore:
Success at scale 101. What is in the way of scaling for many nonprofit organizations?
Owning your unique value. What is uniquely yours to bring to the world? Why do you need to be clear about the answer to that question to scale successfully?
The 4 main areas where nonprofits must grow. What are they? How can your organization grow in each area?
Scott Curran offers practical advice on how to strengthen an organization’s core, the importance of having a clear strategic vision, and the role of leadership in driving success. The episode serves as a guide for nonprofit leaders looking to ensure their organization’s long-term sustainability and maximize their impact.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
Strengthen the Core: A weak organizational core is a major barrier to scaling. Scott Curran emphasizes that organizations must first ensure their core operations, leadership, and mission alignment are strong. Without a solid foundation, scaling efforts are likely to falter as the organization struggles with internal weaknesses.
Know What You Don’t Know: Many organizations face “analysis paralysis” due to a lack of knowledge or clarity on the next steps. Curran highlights the importance of identifying gaps in understanding and having a clear, predictable path forward. This involves recognizing potential pitfalls and actively seeking the expertise or tools necessary to navigate them.
Focus on Your Unique Strengths: Curran stresses the importance of understanding and leveraging what the organization does uniquely well. This unique value proposition should guide all scaling efforts, from board decisions to program execution, ensuring that growth is aligned with the organization’s core mission and strengths.
QUOTES:
“Success leaves clues”. – Scott Curran
“Nonprofits need to be more like businesses, businesses need to be more like nonprofits…” – Scott Curran
“Everybody has to be able to explain very simply in one or two lines or less: what is uniquely ours to give and what pulls us forward?” – Scott Curran
ABOUT SCOTT CURRAN:
Scott M. Curran is a corporate attorney and social impact lawyer. He is also an adviser to global brands and leaders of nonprofits and cross-sector social impact initiatives. He teaches a law school course called “Lawyers as Social Innovators” at Chicago-Kent College of Law which Crain’s Chicago Business called “one of the coolest courses of law students.” He holds the nation’s first Master’s Degree in Public Service from the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service.
Scott is the CEO of Beyond Advisers, a social impact consulting firm that specializes in simplifying and scaling impact, with cross-sector clients spanning philanthropy, the private sector, and social enterprise. Current and former clients include the Clinton Global Initiative, the UN Foundation’s Clean Cooking Alliance, The Starbucks Foundation, the Tent Foundation, the Marguerite Casey Foundation, the MIT Media Lab, Emerson Collective, Sean Penn’s CORE, and the Will & Jada Smith Family Foundation.
Prior to founding Beyond Advisers, Scott served as General Counsel for the Clinton Foundation. Additionally, Scott serves on the Social Innovation Leadership Council, the Board of Directors for Two Bit Circus Foundation; the Advisory Board of the Walt Disney Birthplace; the Chicago Leadership Council of the U.S. Soccer Foundation, and the Alumni Board of the Chicago-Kent College of Law.