How do you eat an elephant?
…the old quip goes.
One bite at a time
…pipes the punchline.
In the world of nonprofit, the mission statement is the elephant that can't be digested in one bite. A great mission statement sums up the work and purpose of a nonprofit. It communicates to donors and employees alike what the nonprofit agency is all about.
“Changing the way America cares for children, families and communities by providing and promoting an Integrated Continuum of Care® that instills Boys Town values to strengthen body, mind and spirit.” - Boystown
“To build healthier lives free of cardiovascular diseases and stroke.” – American Heart Association
“We help children realize their potential and build their futures. We nurture children and strengthen communities.” - Big Brothers Big Sisters
“To use food as a tool to strengthen bodies, empower minds, and build communities.” – D.C. Central Kitchen
“To equip and empower our community to prevent and end homelessness through advocacy, education and coordination of services.” – One Roof
NONPROFIT SUCCESS
Success in the business world is generally measured by the amount of profit that is reported in the business's financial statements. In the nonprofit world, however, there is no common, easily understood, measure of success. The only measure of success for most nonprofits is statistics related to the agency's purpose as stated in the mission statement.
OUTCOMES
Donors evaluate the success of nonprofits by outcomes. Outcomes measure how much better off the organization's clients are as a result of the organization's activities. How nonprofit agencies benefit their clients, however, has proven very difficult to measure and compile in complex organizations.
SOFTWARE SOLUTION
Measuring outcomes begins with defining exactly what success looks like - one client at a time. Data must be collected throughout the year on hundreds, sometimes thousands, of individual clients in order to compile agency-wide annual outcome statistics. This requires that a data collection system be in place across an entire agency, collecting real-time data from every case worker. More and more – agencies choose FAMCare human services software to improve their focus on tracking the outcomes stated by an agency's mission statement.
3 REASONS AGENCIES CHOOSE FAMCARE- Data
- Platform
- Protection
Through surveys and focus groups, clients tell us that they chose FAMCare because of its ability to collect and present data the way they need it; their ability to personalize and tailor data collection and workflow for caseworkers; and the overall “feeling” of protection they get from not only our support team, but our data centers that breathes the message “you are under our protection and we will not let you fail!”
FAMCare
Depending on the customizable options you employ, FAMCare collects critical data points from every caseworker and client on a real-time basis. Utilizing Microsoft SQL Reporting Server 2008, agencies have the ability to cut, slice, and filter their information allowing them many different perspectives on their data.
What’s Trending…?
FAMCare makes it easy to identify changes in how programs are affecting clients. When used correctly, the real-time intelligence collected by FAMCare transforms how nonprofit agencies receive their data - which is the key to improving the outcomes for their clients.
CONCLUSION
Only accurate data on outcomes count with donors. Non-profit agencies must be able to demonstrate how the goals in their mission statement are being achieved. No other software solution has been designed to compile highly complex real-time data into useable year-end reports to donors. FAMCare not only makes your case workers more efficient but also allows management to collate, evaluate, and communicate data on the agency's mission statement one bite at a time.
