Partnership Options for Nonprofits

La Piana Consulting is dedicated to helping nonprofits become stronger and more effective through collaboration. “Strategic restructuring” brings to mind the old adage, “together we stand, divided we fall,” offering nonprofits the opportunity to leverage the talents of their own and other organizations by working together in an increasingly competitive environment.

Every organization strives to anticipate or respond proactively to market challenges and opportunities. Strategic restructuring refers to a continuum of collaborative partnerships, from informal partnerships and joint programming to mergers and shared back-office administration. La Piana Consulting, through its foundation-sponsored Strategic Solutions project, was the nation's first resource on all aspects of nonprofit strategic restructuring.

More than a decade later, the economic landscape is forcing many nonprofit organizations to consider strategic restructuring for the first time. For lasting success, nonprofit mergers should not be approached as a last ditch survival tactic during an economic downturn but a strategic opportunity for compatible organizations to join forces for greater social impact.

We are proud to continue to lead the nonprofit sector in strategic restructuring. One of our best selling works, The Nonprofit Mergers Workbook, originally published in 2000 was updated in 2008 by Bob Harrington, Partner.

The Partnership Matrix

Supporting Successful Nonprofit Partnerships

We have developed unique consultation services for organizations interested in considering a merger or other form of strategic alliance. We can provide:

• Informational presentations to nonprofit boards and staff regarding strategic restructuring options and the negotiation process
• Facilitation of the negotiation process, and assistance with specific tasks such as due diligence, financial analysis, and human resources analysis
• Marketing, public relations, and communications planning

After negotiations are complete, we can help you fully implement your new partnership and lead you through the integration process. Such services include:

• Design of an overall integration plan and leadership structure
• Design of and/or training for the senior management team
• Board integration and development
• Cultural integration
• Integration of existing departments
• Financial and information systems integration
• Determination of benefits and salaries
• Facilitation of staff meetings
• Conflict resolution
• Web-based application design and integration of websites
• Implementation of marketing, public relations, and communications plans
• Business planning

La Piana Consulting can also help grantmakers to understand the basics of strategic restructuring, and provide a framework to use in evaluating partnership options. We can suggest appropriate and helpful ways to encourage closer working relationships among grantees and/or contract agencies, promoting collaborative relationships and less duplication (an area where grantmaker intervention often backfires).

Other ways we can be of assistance to grantmakers include:

• Providing guidance to groups of funders to develop joint ventures or other collaborative relationships;
• Helping small foundations to gain administrative efficiencies through consolidation of services, freeing up trustees and staff to focus on grantmaking; and
• Conducting research and making presentations at grantmaker gatherings on topics ranging from organizational change to strategic restructuring.

Read more about what grantmakers can do to support strategic partnerships.