Measurable outcomes is a phrase we hear a lot in nonprofit management. It comes from the practice of outcomes management or performance management – i.e. “What gets measured gets done” – and gets used a lot in planning, grant writing, and evaluation. We want measurable outcomes because they help us set achievable goals (think SMART
Read more »Insights
What is Bennett’s Hierarchy Logic Model?
Bennett’s Hierarchy is a type of logic model tailored for programs that provide information or education. Most of us are familiar with the Kellogg logic model which has buckets for inputs, activities, outputs, short-, medium-, and long-term outcomes. Bennett’s Hierarchy provides more specialized terminology for educational programs. If you’ve ever heard of “KASA,” that’s Bennett’s
Read more »Understanding Nonprofit Strategic Planning
In this full-day workshop, participants will learn the essential questions and components of strategic planning and its implementation, discuss the different purposes and types of strategic planning, and consider who should be involved.
Read more »Working Collaboratively
We’ve never had a client complain that they’re seeing too much of us. However, we often surprise them early on in our relationship with the depth of our collaboration. “Working collaboratively to achieve a common goal” is a core value at Aurora Consulting. In action, it means, all aspects of a project that can involve client participation, do.
Read more »Creating Mission and Vision Statements from a Theory of Change
Writing or updating mission and vision statements can be a frustrating “design by committee” process. A theory of change can help an organization focus on the right ideas to include in their mission and vision statements.
Read more »Mission, Vision, and Values Examples
Writing a mission, vision, and value statement for your organization is hard. Read our article and resource Revising Mission Statements: What good? For Whom? Then come back and take a look at this collection of mission, vision, and value statements for inspiration. We’ve picked organizations that have interesting mission and vision statements (and included value statements when available). See our comments after each one.
Read more »Leading with Honesty, Humility, and Joy
At Aurora, we work hard to lead with honesty, humility, and joy. Of our three core values, we believe this one offers the most insight to who we strive to be in and through our work. We like it because it lets us be us. It reflects our vision for ourselves as leaders and our vision for how we interact with other nonprofit professionals.
Read more »What’s Your Piece of the Puzzle?
Much has changed in the world since 2002. I’m proud of the way people and practices in the nonprofit sector have adapted and grown. The best leaders in this sector are relentlessly generous, and I admire them greatly. It takes a special energy and strength of will to hold onto that spirit of giving and kindness in the face of intractable challenges. If someone asked me to identify essential changes I’ve seen during my career with Aurora, I would point to these shifts:
Read more »Practicing Generosity Inside and Out
Practicing generosity is a core value for Aurora. How can a business be generous? We don’t completely know the answer but we know practicing generosity is right because we feel fulfilled when we do it. In this post, we’ll give you greater insight into ways we practice generosity daily and why generosity is so important to us.
Read more »Revising Mission Statements: What good? For whom?
Updating your organization’s mission statement is important, mundane, rewarding, and painful all at the same time. These are the resources we use to help organizations understand, assess, and update their mission statements.
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