Considering Nonprofit Management Consulting?
Ways to Choose and Engage Effective Nonprofit Consultants
Oct 3, 2009
Consultants come in all shapes and sizes, with specialties ranging from technology to fundraising. Before engaging a consultant, nonprofit organizations should confirm the need for an outside consultant and identify the desired outcomes.
How Can Consultants Help Nonprofits?
Consultants are typically used when:
- Nonprofit organizations require expertise that doesn’t exist within the organization
- An independent perspective is needed
- An organization doesn’t have the resources to support hiring a permanent staff member or the need is sporadic
The list of reasons a nonprofit might engage a consultant is practically endless, but some of the more common projects include:
- Fundraising planning
- Grant writing
- Marketing and public relations
- Board orientation, training and development
- Strategic planning
- Executive coaching
- Event planning
- Government relations/lobbying
- Technology systems
- Program design and implementation
- Change management
- Evaluation/assessment
- Research
Creating a Successful Nonprofit Consulting Project
Though it is commonplace for nonprofits to use consultants, “generating the desired results from such projects isn’t always the typical outcome,” says Kathleen F. Garcia in The Insider’s Guide to Outside Advice: A Toolkit (2006), a publication of the Grand Victoria Foundation.
“To get the most from a consulting project,” says Garcia, a consultant must be “hired to generate a specific outcome or product” and the project “should be expected to build the capacity of the organization to solve similar problems … in the future.”
Take these steps in choosing a consultant, advises Boardsource in its Knowledge Center:
- Determine the project’s scope and be sure a consultant is needed
- Make a list of the tasks the consultant will be expected to perform
- Draft a document with the project’s scope and timetable
- Conduct a search for potential consultants
- Request proposals from consultants
- Evaluate proposals, remembering to check references
- Choose a consultant and sign the contract
Once the consultant is hired, however, it’s important to continue to manage the process. One person – the project manager – should be the consultant’s primary point of contact and should be overseeing the consultant’s work. The consultant should draft a work plan and provide regular updates on her progress. With the consultant, identify milestones to mutually evaluate the work performed. Keep the lines of communication wide open, and immediately address concerns about work performance and strategy.
Conducting a Nonprofit Consultant Search
It may seem difficult to identify the right consultant for the job. One of the best ways to find a consultant is to ask colleagues in other nonprofit organizations. It can also be helpful to check with board members who have experience with other nonprofits, but be careful to avoid conflicts of interest and assumed obligations to use a board member’s recommendation.
Talk to experts in the field. Read a good book or article on the subject? Chances are the author is either a consultant himself or knows someone with the right expertise and availability.
Most consultants – either individuals or consulting firms – have extensive websites, with case studies, client lists and free resources. Dig into the websites of prospective consultants to learn more about consultants’ strengths, experiences and styles.
A nonprofit organization must be clear internally about the reasons for hiring a consultant and what is to be done before searching for the consultant. Once the consultant is selected and hired, the nonprofit must actively manage the relationship and project to ensure success.
Related articles:
- Organizational Change Management for Nonprofits
- Can Nonprofit Board Training Fix Board Problems?
- Making the Most of Nonprofit Volunteers
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