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Note from Valerie
I’m Valerie F. Leonard, Founder of Nonprofit Utopia, LLC. I published this workbook to help
you answer critical questions and flesh out your thoughts before you start any nonprofit
initiative. You will be able to
Identify and prioritize community issues and how you will address them
Identify your target and give a rationale for selecting them
Start to think about how you can help your target
Identify the community-based assets you will need to develop a community-based
initiative.
If you find this workbook to be helpful as you develop strategies to strengthen your organization,
please consider joining the Nonprofit Utopia community at https://nonprofituopia.mn.co.
Valerie F. Leonard
’
Valerie F. Leonard
Founder, Nonprofit Utopia, LLC
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Brainstorming Worksheet
Before You Start: Key Questions You Need to Answer
Before Starting Any Nonprofit Initiative
The following questions are designed to help you to assess the need for an organization that you
are considering opening—before you start. While there are no right or wrong answers, going
through this exercise will help you to determine how you might approach the market; help you
think about programs and services you might offer, and whether or not your idea is feasible for
the community.
The information you provide here can be used as a support to help you respond to your
application for tax exemption, develop a case for support and funding proposals and to develop
your programs. If you have any questions, email me at valeriefleonard@nonprofitutopia.com.
2. If you have a name picked out, or are thinking about a name, what is it?
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4. What community are you considering working in?
5. How would you describe the community? Think of things like its location, the
population, the racial makeup, the income levels, education levels, etc.
6. What is the current situation? (What’s going on? What are some of the current events that
could impact the work you’d like to do?)
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7. Are there other people or organizations in the community that are addressing the issues?
If so, how many? Who are they? How are they addressing the issues?
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9. What is the quality of the services? (Share examples)
11. Given the number of people in the community who may need the services you want to
provide, and the number of organizations providing the services, is there still a need for
you to start a new organization in that community? Why?
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12. What are some of the issues or problems that you would like to address?
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15. Who could be part of your leadership team?
16. Who are your potential clients (who will you serve, who will you target)?
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19. What programs and services will you provide?
21. Will your organization or its members require any licenses, certifications or permits to
offer certain services? If so, list them here, along with the corresponding job title.
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22. What resources do you need? (people, supplies, location, money, etc)
23. How much money will you need to get started? (It may be helpful to list program
components and resources, how much they will cost, and add them up. You may also find
yourself reviewing other questions in order to get to the answer.)
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24. What education levels and skill sets are required among the board and staff to run the
programs that you had in mind? It may be helpful to list positions and requirements
25. What will change for the community and the people you serve as a result of your
programs and services? What outcomes do you expect?
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26. How will you be able to measure the change?
27. What does success look like? (This may also be used to help write your vision statement).
28. How will you evaluate success? (ie, before and after pics, pre- and post-tests, surveys,
etc.)
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29. How will you use the information you gather from the evaluation process to make your
program stronger?
30. Is there a demand for this new initiative? What is the evidence? (You can find out
through surveys, focus groups, interviews, waiting lists, etc.)
31. Given all the work that is involved, are you still committed to going through with this
process? (Don’t be discouraged. The only way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time.)
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