Chapter Nine
Putting It into Practice
What makes great nonprofits great?
That was the question that prompted us to undertake this ambitious project in 2003. When we first started down this path, we weren’t sure what we would find, and we remained open to the unexpected. We were not disappointed. As some of our initial assumptions proved incorrect, we discovered a new way to understand how great nonprofits have great impact.
Being an extraordinary nonprofit isn’t about building an organization and scaling it up. It’s not about perfect management or outstanding marketing or having a large budget. Rather, it’s about finding ways to leverage other sectors to create extraordinary impact. Great nonprofits are catalysts; they transform the system around ...
