Data-driven Consulting for Non-profits

The Peer Yardstick Methodology

Brainstorm with clients what is success (outcomes) and identify organizational activities that drive success. This is especially critical for complex nonprofit organizations with broad missions.
Customize existing software or create tools to help clients capture data articulated in the hypotheses.
Support clients in data collection, addressing which factors are associated with outcomes.
Real-time reports and dashboards allowing clients to benchmark (compare) to their peers, competition, own history, and within customer segments.
Build client capacity to use tools and reports with both management and board in strategic decision making processes.

Our approach enables managers and boards to work more effectively and efficiently by:

Helping management focus limited time on levers most likely to drive success.
Reducing time spent in qualitative strategy (issues are identified by analysis and peer reports).
Demonstrate social return on impact and financial sustainability to donors.
Identifying gaps between current organizational performance and excellence.
Enabling goal setting with staff based on accurate data and benchmarks.
Focusing on measures that management have control over and thus can affect in real time.

Thought leadership

"I honestly wasn’t sure at first why we were asked to spend 6 hours reviewing the results of our survey. But now I understand it was worth every minute. You’ve saved us a year of strategic planning. I am very busy in my work, so as the board chair, this allows me to use my time so much better because I am basing decisions in data instead of sorting out a lot of processes and non-representative opinions or emotions when parents complain to me."

From a Board President

Our Most Recent Monthly Newsletter

Value for the Dollar as a Driver of Participation
As many of our clients suffer losses in membership, enrollment, or donors, the conclusion tends to be that these losses are caused by increased customer price sensitivity in the economic downturn. Read more

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Happenings

11/08 - 11/10 - UJC General Assembly '09