Gestation of a New Health-Related Nonprofit Organization

A major learner outcome for taking this course is to give you a start on the planning process for a new health-related nonprofit organization.  As a survey course,

HSAD 331 will expose you to the major foundational, operations and management issues of a nonprofit organization such as governance, personnel issues, volunteer

management, fund raising, marketing and communication, advocacy, fiscal affairs, strategic planning, and legal and other mandates.

Work in complex organizations can be difficult, trying and challenging. Those who have started their own organization, company, or small business report that there is

nothing better than working for yourself, but the work is hard and the days are long. As a health care professional, what new organization would you begin to serve

an unmet need in your community? Wouldn’t it be exciting to start a new nonprofit organization that can make a difference in people’s lives? I posted to Bb examples of

new nonprofit formations from newspaper articles, for your to see. As you will learn from this course, there is a proliferation of nonprofit organizations in this

country and health-related nonprofits certainly are prominent. Not all believe that this growth in nonprofits is good. And in the future, it looks as if government at

all levels will continue to monitor and regulate nonprofits to ensure that they truly serve their purpose, fill an unmet need, and serve the public or a delineated

group; they should not exist for private inurnment.

The major project for this course is for you to develop a proposal (about 15 pages) for a new health-related nonprofit organization. Given the material that you learn

each week, the research that you will conduct, combined with any assistance from your classmates and assistance from me, you should be able to put together a realistic

proposal for a new nonprofit organization that can fill an unmeet health-related need. This summary course project will be challenging and calls for hard work, much

research, persistence, and creativity.

Below is an outline of the major components expected in your new nonprofit proposal. In the for-profit sector, these proposals are called business plans. There are

several types of business plans, such as a brief summary plan (12-15 pages), full business plan (20-40 pages), or an operating plan (40 or more pages). You will be

developing a summary plan proposal.

The reasons for a good business plan are to (a) help entrepreneurs and founders focus their ideas for the purpose of the new organization; (b) provide information to

lenders or investors; (c) identify challenges and opportunities for the new enterprise; (d) identify and organize the core business activities; and (e) set goals and

metrics for success. In the nonprofit world, the reasons for a proposal translate to (a) demonstrate the rationale for the need for existence; (b) demonstrate that

your organization can truly meet that need for its delineated group; (c) convince funders (however defined) that your organization is worthy of support; and (d) show a

plan for building capacity for sustainability.

The major components of the plan as outlined below first and foremost serve as best practice in areas to consider for your proposal’s success. However, I do want to

give each student flexibility to creatively demonstrate his/her ideas and vision, and recognize that there will be some variation depending on the type of nonprofit

chosen and the mission and purpose. As you will learn in this course, while good intentions are important, nonprofits must still demonstrate a reason for their

existence and build the capacity for sustainability€“ all within the current backdrop of a circumspect government and sometimes skeptical public as nonprofits

proliferate.

Problem Statement or Rationale:

This is a most important part of the proposal. What is the health care or health improvement need out there in the community? How can you demonstrate quantitatively,

as well as qualitatively, that there is a need? The reader needs to understand that someone is in need of help or humanity can be improved because your group is

providing something of value. Keep in mind that a program (and the organization that provides programs and services) is a response to a need. In this first section you

are not describing your program or even why you think no body is helping in this area; you are describing the health problem at hand. Describe the nature and extent of

the problem and very specifically for the people served in your geographic area. Have people asked for help? Are there underlying symptoms that you can describe that

demonstrate that there is a problem and there is need for improvement and support? This section should be heavily referenced using American Psychological Association

(APA) in-text and references style.

Description of the Mission, Purpose, and Goals of the Organization:

In this section of the proposal you provide your purpose for existence. You can give the mission statement of your organization and then describe what you aim to

accomplish. What are your goals? How will people relate to or identify your organization? (Make sure you revisit the material that we covered related to these

components.)

Means to Achieve Results (Description of Programs or Services):

At first we have the need. Then a nonprofit organization is formed with a mission to meet that need. This section should describe specifically the programs, services,

etc. that will meet those needs. What is your deliverable? What business, so to speak, are you in? When people contact your organization, what’s the deal?

Market/Service Analysis:
In a business plan, this section is called the market analysis. Potentially how many customers are in need? Who currently is serving them? Is the market growing? Is it

expected to change not only in extent but in nature? Describe the nature and extent of the people being served or not being served. Who are they? Where are they? What

characteristics do they have?

SWOT Analysis:

Why you? Why not someone else, e.g. government, private company? Why at this time? Describe the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats of operating in this

area of improving the human condition. Describe how your organization understands these issues and can work within these conditions.

Funding: Sources and Use of Money Raised

Describe your target funding sources. Give some indication of your start-up funding needs and three-year funding needs. Give a brief description of your plans and

programs for revenue generation. Who will be responsible for raising this money so how will revenue be generated? How will you disburse the money, i.e. give a sense of

costs (personnel, deliverables)

Governance and Staffing:

Describe the governance structure. What profile/composition do you see for the Board of Trustees? What is you start up and three-year plan for staffing? Describe these

positions and functions. Is there a role for volunteers? What collaboratives do you foresee with other organizations? Are these formal or informal? Do they exist, or

will your organization start a new one?

Marketing and Communication

Who will be responsible for marketing? What is your integrated marketing plan? Define your target audience(s), key messages, and marketing communication outlets. Think

about the Product Mix (Product, Promotion, Price, and Place) and the components of a marketing plan. This should be a creative section.

Measures of Success

How do you plan on measuring your success? Number of people reached with a message? Number of people served? People who have a changed behavior or conditions? How do

you know you are making a difference?

Critical Success Factors

Are there any overriding critical success factors for the start up and sustainability of your new health-related nonprofit organization? In other words, what

absolutely needs to take place or needs to be avoided for your new organization to be successful? (Avoid the obvious issues such as funding and being new.) For

example, if you were providing some type of patient support group at a hospital, access to the hospital is a critical success factor.