10 Insights to Increase Nonprofit Fundraising and Relevance

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Mar 09, 2023, 09:00 ET


New Case Study from BBB Wise Giving Alliance shares CHC's successful organizational transformation to help nonprofits strengthen missions, diversify revenue and increase effectiveness

ALEXANDRIA, Va., March 9, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Today, the BBB Wise Giving Alliance released an independent case study, "10 Lessons in Organizational Transformation" featuring CHC: Creating Healthier Communities. This new case study shares insights about CHC's successful evolution, pivoting from a 65-year-old workplace giving federation to a health equity organization, adopting new strategies and attracting new partners, plus diversifying revenue, and increasing relevance, effectiveness and impact.

"CHC has gone through a purposeful transformation, from focusing on collecting and redistributing resources to bringing groups together to address important issues," said Art Taylor, president and CEO of the BBB Wise Giving Alliance (BBB WGA), who led the case study research.

In the case study, BBB WGA outlines CHC's multi-year, methodical approach, sharing strategies for transformation which are especially relevant for legacy nonprofits who need to reimagine their missions to increase fundraising and effectiveness.

"With many nonprofits, there's a strong and understandable need for self-perpetuation. But once we made the decision that self-perpetuation was not our mission, the board had the freedom to examine the mission," said Thomas G. Bognanno, retiring president and CEO of CHC. "This change was risky. There was no track record for success," said Bognanno. "Kevin Clayton always counseled me that we had to change the culture before we change people's hearts. Then, we had to make a solid, defensible business case for the change. And he did."

In just a few years, CHC went from a few hundred thousand dollars invested in health equity programs to tens of millions, successfully diversifying the organization's work, impact, staff expertise, partners and funding.

"We were servants of the mission," said Kevin Clayton, past CHC board chair and SVP and head of social impact at the Cleveland Cavaliers. "We understood what was at stake and we had a vision of where we wanted to be – health equity and underserved communities – we had the destination but there was no map." Clayton was a powerful voice for CHC through this transition, leveraging his influence to bring people together.

CHC's evolution was years in the making, starting with an intentional shift from chronic disease to the social determinants of health, the broader factors impacting health. Then in 2020, the organization changed its name from Community Health Charities to CHC: Creating Healthier Communities to emphasize the evolution in mission and work: to create healthier communities for all people, breaking down barriers to health and equity.

"The journey that we've gone on has been significant and is important," said Adam Rothschild, CHC board chair. "Moving from a definition of health as chronic illness to the underlying causes of illness was perhaps the most important decision made during the transformation. It was the biggest step because it put us on a different path."

CHC's Board of Directors was pivotal throughout the transformation process, sharing expertise, serving on a special Health Equity Committee and working with CHC staff on the strategy and steps needed.

"CHC had always worked to drive resources to organizations that were fighting the toughest health challenges," said Charleeda Redman, board secretary and vice president of strategy integration at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. "To have a more substantial impact, CHC would now leverage its resources and partnerships to advance health equity."

"It's not enough to have a few healthy people in a sick community," said Sandra Nichols, CHC board member. "What I love about CHC: Creating Healthier Communities is that we're not only in the community but we're helping to resolve some of the major challenges that exist in the community."

To learn more about the case study:

ABOUT CHC: CREATING HEALTHIER COMMUNITIES
CHC: Creating Healthier Communities brings nonprofits, businesses and communities together to improve community health. Our focus is health equity, addressing underlying issues and removing barriers so everyone can thrive. Our work is driven by community need, and we direct programs, resources and support where they have the greatest impact. Together with partners, we've been creating healthier communities for more than 65 years. Join us at chcimpact.org or @chcimpact.

ABOUT BBB WISE GIVING ALLIANCE:
BBB Wise Giving Alliance (BBB's Give.org) is a standards-based charity evaluator that seeks to verify the trustworthiness of nationally soliciting charities by completing rigorous evaluations based on 20 holistic standards that address charity governance, results reporting, finances, fundraising, appeal accuracy and other issues. National charity reports are produced by BBB's Give.org and local charity reports are produced by local Better Business Bureaus – all reports are available at Give.org.

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Amanda Ponzar, CHC, 571.302.9171, [email protected]

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SOURCE CHC