This blog is by Quinetha Frasier, who for many years has helped nonprofits and individuals to identify, secure and manage funding needed to realize their goals. She currently hosts a national radio show that showcases the stories relating to corporate/private foundations, nonprofit organizations and service recipients. She gives a voice to the volunteers, leaders, funders, and staff of the organizations that impact our communities. This blog originally appeared here.
When a water project fails, nobody loses a job. Think about that… Water projects fail 30%-50% of the time and directly impacts the lives of millions. While these well-funded projects begin with ambitious intentions to provide quality water and sanitation to billions of people across the globe, you have to ask yourself, “To What End?” I had an interesting conversation with Susan Davis, Executive Director of Improve International, about improving the way that the international development sector does work and measures success. The conversation led to a much needed discussion about sustainability and evidence based philanthropy. Susan did a great job of leading me down a discovery path relating to who maintains and financially supports the wells and sanitation systems that we build in developing countries. She is a creditable source of the content for this conversation. She has evaluated water and other international development projects in 16 countries. Listen to the full interview here.
Whether in context of water projects or homeless assistance, our sector has shifted our conversation to include terms that are typically associated with business: impact; return on investment; scalability; and project effectiveness. Why should these terms be applicable to the sometimes ‘intangible’ contributions of nonprofits?
- We (nonprofits) have to do more with less, and need to justify additional funding;
- Our funders, operating in a scarce resource environment, have a right to demand metrics of effectiveness;
- Our successful work is inextricably tied to social and economic impact in the US
There should be general standards of program effectiveness for nonprofits as it relates to how we produce outcomes for both our donors and target populations. I came across a useful article that provides a great framework for designing these standards for your organization.
Susan Davis 
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