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Charity Navigator Expands Nonprofit Performance Metrics
By Sarah Brierley, Account Coordinator
March 2011

Adding to its current current transparency and accountability metrics, Charity Navigator (CN) recently announced a new development for the nonprofit community that has an impact on both organizations and individuals. CN has partnered with GreatNonprofits to help improve and expand the charity evaluation process.

The new metric provides an outlet for passionate contributors to voice their opinions about an organization and how it interacts with its supporters.

The performance of nonprofits can now be seen through the eyes of constituents who are directly engaged with the organizations. Instead of looking only at the cost per dollar raised or cost per thousand pieces mailed, individuals can speak up on behalf of their favorite – and not so favorite – charities.

Using this new system for measuring performance, donors will be able to make more informed decisions about the charities they support. Think of it as a nonprofit version of Yelp.com – the consumer website whose slogan is: “Real People. Real Reviews.” Consumers (donors) who are ready and willing to share their opinions and experiences, both positive and negative, with the online community now have a platform.

This new metric through Charity Navigator and GreatNonprofits combines standard industry financial benchmarks with genuine individual perspectives, providing a refreshing, donor-centric method of evaluating an organization’s performance.

How does this initiative affect nonprofits? It emphasizes that the relationship with the donor has never been more important than it is today. As always, communication is key and organizations need to ensure their donors know that they are listening.

Schultz & Williams is a national consulting firm based in Philadelphia providing management, fundraising and marketing consulting for nonprofit organizations, along with full-service direct marketing, database and creative/production services.