April 2008
In our last update, we told you about our work with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation's Rural People, Rural Policy network. Our friends at the Stanford Social Innovation Review have recently spotlighted the concept of large-scale collaboration and capacity building through networks as the antidote to the self-contained development that limits so many nonprofit organizations.
Most social issues dwarf even the most well-resourced, well-managed nonprofit. And so it is wrongheaded for nonprofit leaders simply to build their organizations. Instead, they must build capacity outside of their organizations. This requires them to focus on their mission, not their organization; on trust, not control; and on being a node, not a hub ...
According to our research, nonprofits that pursue their missions through networks of long-term, trust-based partnerships consistently achieve more sustainable mission impact with fewer resources than do monolithic organizations that try to do everything by themselves.
We have found the same to be true in our work with foundations and community-based organizations of all sizes. It can be truly amazing what is possible when our work ceases to be about the individual, or about the organization, and all efforts serve the cause.