Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County Agency Conference Capacity Building for Partner Agencies

My Background Based in Chicago, IL 4+ years at Feeding America –Fundraising –Grant-Making –Compliance and Capability Before Feeding America –Fundraising for a large regional human services organization in Chicago –Legal Aid attorney for more than 8 years © 2010 Feeding America

Founded in 1967 when a Phoenix, AZ man, John van Hengel, discovered a woman sorting through a dumpster for food He started asking local grocers to donate excess food to community feeding sites rather than throwing it away Network started with 13 food banks distributing 2.5 million pounds of food Feeding America History

The Feeding America Network Today More than 200 member food banks  All 50 states and Puerto Rico  3 billion pounds distributed annually  19 member food banks serve the state of California Feeding America National Office  Nearly 190 employees  Main office in Chicago  Washington, D.C. office

Vision and Mission Vision: A hunger-free America Our mission is to feed America’s hungry through a nationwide network of member food banks and engage our country in the fight to end hunger.

The Feeding America Network 61,000 Partner agencies such as soup kitchens, food pantries, and shelters

Feeding America Food and Fund Partners

Your Community Partner Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County 1 county served 948 square miles in service area Poverty population = 296,846 Food insecure population = 390,880 Unemployed as of October 2011 = 142, member agency partners Distribution to agencies in CY 2011 = 17,514,607 lbs Produce = 26.8% / Retail Stores = 15.5%

Capacity Building

What is Capacity Building? Activities that strengthen a nonprofit organization and help it better fulfill its mission. Activities that strengthen performance and impact.

Landscape of Constant Change million individuals in food insecure homes (12.1%) million individuals in food insecure homes (16.4%) Need Food manufacturing donations declining Push for zero waste Government feeding programs at risk Resources The network feeds 37 million people Move from periodic to chronic use of emergency food system Activity Ongoing recession, especially for those in need National conversation about obesity and health Increasing attention on non-profit accountability External Factors © 2010 Feeding America

Delivering Excellence Stepping it up Meeting demand Being the best organization you can be Knowing what you need Asking for what you need

Organizational Capacity & Effectiveness Organizational Capacity: The capabilities, knowledge, processes, and resources that enable an organization to achieve its goals Organizational Effectiveness: An effective organization establishes and acts upon mission- based priorities, has a clear vision, sets direction, innovates, and adapts to change

Components of Organizational Capacity Six interdependent components, all of which interact with the external environment. “Strengthening Nonprofit Performance: A Funder’s Guide to Capacity Building”

Capacity Building Activities Aspirations & Strategy Organizational assessment Strategic planning Governance and Leadership Board development Leadership development Program Delivery and Impact Program development Evaluation Strategic Relationships Collaborations Marketing and communications Finance and Fundraising Fund development Financial management Operations and Management Technology and information systems Volunteer recruitment Facility planning

Capacity Building Questions Aspirations & Strategy Does your organization have a written mission? A written vision? Written values? Is there an overall long-term plan for the organization? Have you ever gone through a strategic planning process? If so, do you follow the plan? Governance and Leadership Who are your organization’s leaders? Is there anyone the organization could not do without? What would happen if they were not around? Are you able to successfully recruit, and retrain capable staff and/or volunteers? Have you identified your next generation of leaders? Do you have a board of directors? Are they active in governing the organization?

Capacity Building Questions Program Delivery and Impact Does your organization conduct activities and/or programs that demonstrate tangible results? Who are your clients? Has your client base changed? Does your organization understand the needs of your community, and do your activities/programs address those needs? Can you measure the impact of your work? Strategic Relationships If you don’t already, would you be willing to work with other agencies on similar problems and issues? How can you leverage their expertise? Who are your partners? Who are your competitors? Do you publicize information about your agency and programs?

Capacity Building Questions Finance and Fundraising Do you have a set annual budget? Who has input on budgeting? Do you have a written plan about how to meet revenue needs? What happens if you do not meet your revenue needs? Does your organization have fundraising/grant-writing experience? Operations and Management Do you have adequate dry/cold storage space? Does your staff/volunteers have food safety training? Do you have adequate transportation to safely transport food? Do you have adequate equipment? (anything from shelving to computers)

Tackle one thing at a time © 2010 Feeding America Identify short term and long term projects Determine what actions will give you quick wins – and the motivation to do more

Capacity Building Methods & Providers Methods Referrals Research Publications Trainings / education Peer exchanges Convenings Consulting Network, network, network Providers YOUR FOOD BANK! State associations and networks Academic institutions Retired executives Local foundations Community support organizations (e.g., United Way) Consulting firms

Transition questions into actions What would an ideal situation look like? What resources do you need to get there? What results would come out of the ideal situation? Has another organization already achieved your ideal situation? Who needs to be involved internally/externally to make it happen? © 2010 Feeding America Develop a written plan Set a timeframe Involve the right people Set goals for your results Celebrate success!

Motivation Remember why you started doing this work Know you are an integral part of the emergency food distribution system Consider how to increase access to food and help feed and nurture more people

Capacity Building: THE CHALLENGE By March 1, 2013 Identify one area of organizational capacity building and make it a priority for your program Identify people to work on the project and set a timeline Think big! Visualize where you want to be and what changes you want to make.

Takeaways Capacity building will be different for every organization Tackle a reasonable amount of short-term and long-term projects Meeting client needs should be a primary consideration in building capacity

Questions Feedback? How can we help you be successful?

Thank You Mary Callaghan Manager, Compliance & Capability Feeding America