Learn more about our capacity building opportunities below. Ready to apply? Apply here. 

SVP Denver provides social impact organizations with free training and pro bono consulting services to increase their capacity and expand their impact. Here’s what we offer:

TRAINING COHORTS

We run training cohorts several times a year on a variety of topics to help groups of 4-6 social impact organizations level up. Each cohort is facilitated by a subject matter expert and social impact organizations are matched with an experienced SVP Partner who will act as their coach, providing additional support and third-party feedback on deliverables. 

Timing and Commitment: Each cohort lasts 8-10 weeks. Participants will attend 4-5 live workshops with the expert facilitator (1-2 hours each) and work with their internal team on off-weeks to complete homework assignments.  Expect to commit about 5 hours per week to the program.

Benefits: Organizations will finish each cohort experience with final deliverables they can immediately put to use. Participants benefit from working and learning alongside peer community-led organizations; getting input from their Partner-coaches and individualized feedback from the expert facilitator. 

Current Cohorts Topics and Dates: 

• Refine Your Evaluation Processes  |  5/6-7/1/21  |  FULL       

Develop an evaluation plan and associated processes that will help you better manage programs and improve their effectiveness. You’ll revisit your key learning questions and identify the key indicators you want to measure to achieve your goals. View a more detailed description here.

• Refine Your Organization’s Pitch to Attract Funding  |  8/26 – 10/7/21  |  ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS

Refine how you tell the story of your impact, including better articulating how your work leads to meaningful change and how to request funds (investments and/or grants) to support your work. You’ll develop a new pitch presentation throughout the cohort and present it to your peers/coaches at the final session. You’ll walk away with a new deck + valuable feedback to continue improving. View a more detailed description here.

• Create a Theory of Change to Demonstrate Your Impact  | 9/8 – 10/20/21  |  ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS

Develop a product that tells the story of who you serve, what you do and the impact you have. You will create a narrative and graphic of your Theory of Change to leverage immediately with key stakeholders including potential funders. View a more detailed description here.

What participants are saying about our cohorts

• 100% of participants would recommend the cohort experience to a colleague
• 100% of nonprofits plan to use their pitch deck or Theory of Change in the future

“We gained more alignment and clarity on our work and how we articulate the activities and impact of our programs. –Colorado Young Leaders, Theory of Change cohort participant”

“We appreciated getting access to expertise to receive guidance and feedback including a 1:1 approach to deep dive into a particular ask for the organization as well as valuable networking opportunities. – Forward Steps, Pitch cohort participant”

INDIVIDUAL STRATEGIC PROJECTS:

Leadership and staff from your organization will work directly with SVP Denver partners rather than in a group cohort setting. Examples of projects include:

• Improving your financial management system
• Guiding you through a merger of two nonprofit organizations
• Supporting improvement of board of director governance processes
• Developing a business plan to guide your organization’s growth
• Tapping into masterminds by assembling a group of SVP Denver experts on a specific need (real estate, mergers/acquisitions, fundraising, etc.) to share expertise and solve problems.

APPLICATION AND ELIGIBILITY

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis from organizations focused on basic human needs or economic mobility (e.g. housing, food security, education, job training, etc). Selected organizations will participate in a one-on-one virtual discussion to better understand your goals. If you are selected to become a capacity-building investee, we will begin the matchmaking process of finding SVP Denver partners who have relevant skills and a passion for your mission.

What SVP Denver Will Bring to the Table:

• Targeted investments.  Our SVP Denver partners’ (members) time, professional expertise and resources include dedicated pro-bono consulting teams with relevant skill sets.
• Skilled volunteers. Our dedicated and passionate SVP partners roll up their sleeves and help build your organization’s capacity in areas that are keeping you from reaching your full potential.
• Commitment to working in partnership. Often there’s a power dynamic in capacity- building relationships; we do our best to mitigate that. We invite honest feedback, own up to our mistakes and strive to find a path forward that works for all. SVP Denver partners may have specific expertise and skills that can help you, but you’re the expert in your mission. Thus, we see our investee engagements as peer-learning opportunities where we can learn from each other while working towards goals.

What We Will Ask of You:

•  Willingness to take a hard look at what’s holding your organization back, and share those weaknesses openly. After honest conversations, we can get to work – together.
• Flexibility and openness to working with our SVP Denver partners who have busy schedules, varied professional backgrounds and joined our organization to give back strategically to yours.
• A commitment to calling us out when something’s not working for you. That may be uncomfortable, but our best results come from honest relationships.
• Identifying the capacity-building areas you want to work on with us and how they relate to your mission.
• Be open to metrics/assessments throughout the process. We want to understand what impact our work together has so we can track our progress.
• Employ a work plan that follows a logic model framework as outlined in this resource.
• Develop impact metrics for each change project, both at the end of our engagement and one year later.

A. Qualified Nonprofit Organization = your organization is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is operating under a fiscal agent or is a social venture (public benefit corporation).

B. Operating in the Denver Metro Region = you are located within and/or providing 51% or more of your services within Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas, and/or Jefferson counties.

C. Mission and Impact = you understand how your services are meeting a clear community need.

D. Leadership Readiness = your executive director is a champion for change; and your board of directors both supports your application and will be active in our engagement. All of you have the desire to “get to the next level” in your organization’s evolution. Armed with a willingness to self-reflect and accept external input, you have an appetite for change, hard work and fun.

E. Capacity to Work with SVP Denver = your organization is ready for a collaborative relationship with passionate volunteers and has strong interest in a peer-learning relationship. Your staff/board will dedicate time to assessing current systems, strategizing their desired future state and work to get there on top of day-to-day operations.

F. Alignment = your organization offers interesting opportunities for SVP Denver partners and your needs are aligned with our ability to help.

G. Financial Stability = over the past three years, your organization has shown consistent financial stability, or you have a credible plan demonstrating continued operations as well as growth.

H. Inclusiveness and Equity = your organization embodies values, policies and practices that ensure all stakeholders are engaged equitably.

If you have any questions, please send an email to hello@svpdenver.org and we will get back to you within a few business days.