The Power of Partnerships in the Coming Fundraising Season

by Nathaniel Whittemore

Published November 05, 2009 @ 06:20AM PT

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The end of the year is the biggest part of the fundraising season for many nonprofits, but with the economy continuing to struggle, this year is likely going to be harder than ever on many. Some are trying to address this by participating in contests like America's Giving Challenge; others are sending me direct mail trying to guilt me back into funding (sorry - it's not happening). Others are discovering their DNA as collaborative, 21st century nonprofits who, when times get rough, ask how partnership and the skills of those around them can help.

Catapult Design is a startup nonprofit based out of San Francisco that, in the tradition of leaders like Paul Polak, are using engineering and design solutions to help people out of poverty. Embracing the notion of human-centered design and community partnerships for appropriately designed technology, Catapult is a group that has collaboration at the center of their social mission.

More than that, however, their collaborative DNA extends to their work in the states. Like many collaboration-oriented organizations, they have a fiscal sponsor, share office space with others, work to harness the power of engaged interns, and embrace openness in the form of things like their weekly open sessions where anyone can come and learn more about the organization.

Catapult are not the only example of nonprofits that have real collaboration embedded in their DNA. Creative worldchangers like All Day Buffet, the mobile technology for good folks at organizations like Ushahidi and FrontlineSMS, and the whole new generation of social startup incubators like Unreasonable Institute, GlobeMed, Global Engagement Summit, Starting Bloc, Think Impact, Sparkseed, and a half dozen more I haven't included - all of these groups are programmed for partnership.

As regular readers of this blog know, I am not a collaboration fanboy. I think that many times, the nonprofit sectors infatuation with the idea of collaboration and its general antagonism towards the notion that competition could improve organizations stand in the way of building the most effective groups and achieving the greatest change.

That said, I do think we're going to be in a moment of massive nonprofit consolidation. For the first time in a long time, some organizations are going to be forced to shut their doors, or at least dramatically scale back their work.

An impulse to collaborate often comes from a recognition of one's own imperfections and weaknesses, and an ability to find individuals or groups with complementary needs. I do think that the ability to recognize one's own weakness and plan accordingly is a sign of having a high capacity for resilience. In times of crisis, there is nothing more important than resilience and adaptation.

So does that mean that Catapult will hit its $50,000 year end fundraising goal? That GlobeMed will come from behind to win America's Giving Challenge? That all of these organizations I identified will meet their goals? The hard answer is that partnership and an instinct towards collaboration alone may sometimes not be enough. What I am sure of is that whatever happens, they will learn, those around them will learn, and that they will adapt.