Founded in 1971, Maternal and Family Health Services, Inc. (MFHS), has been meeting the needs of the community through information, education, and quality of care. The organization serves women, children, and families in 16 Northeastern Pennsylvania counties.
For the past 20 years, until this past October, Bette Saxton was the president and CEO of the organization. Under her leadership, the organization has continued to grow, serving 90,000 individuals through various programs, such as its Reproductive Health Family program, Healthy Beginnings Plus Maternity Care program, and the Nurse-Family Partnership program.
So, when Saxton decided it was time to step down from her role, the process to find a new President and CEO began – a difficult task to be sure.
“Hiring a new CEO is probably the most important decision a nonprofit board will face during its tenure.”
Bette Saxton, President and CEO of Maternal and Family Health Services, Inc.
Not all board members – with their various responsibilities, time constraints, and limited areas of expertise – “are equipped to identify and pursue top talent,” Saxton said. With that in mind, MFHS decided to apply to Moses Taylor Foundation for a capacity-building grant that would retain a professional recruitment firm to conduct a nationwide search.
“The recruitment firm will do the due diligence that’s needed behind the scenes to guide and move the process along, and help the board members in an objective review process,” Saxton said. “Managing the hiring and transition of a new CEO is often a very pivotal point in the organization’s lifecycle.”
To get the process moving, the MFHS search committee was tasked with identifying a qualified firm to head the search. Some of the criteria included experience recruiting for the nonprofit and healthcare industries.
After narrowing the field down to four potential firms, the MFHS search committee decided to hire Kittleman & Associates, LLC, located in Philadelphia, PA. Saxton said that she, the search committee, and the Board of Trustees believed the firm would conduct a successful and timely search for a new president and CEO. Kittleman & Associates committed to a benchmark calendar that outlined milestones and touch points throughout the hiring process. This is the best approach, Saxton said, because the recruitment firm has a record of success and the right expertise to make the best selection.
“Maternal and Family Health Services is a very vital and relevant organization in Northeastern Pennsylvania,” she said. “And Moses Taylor Foundation’s support for [executive recruiting] is going to guarantee the success of the process. We are grateful, and it will ensure a successful outcome.”
Since the interview with Saxton, MFHS did appoint Maria Montoro Edwards, PhD, as president and chief executive officer.
“With her extensive administrative experience in the nonprofit sector, her outstanding skill sets, and familiarity with MFHS and the Northeastern Pennsylvania community, Dr. Montoro Edwards emerged as the top candidate after a very thorough, comprehensive, and competitive nationwide search process,” said Kathy Finsterbusch, chair of the MFHS Board of Directors.
“We’re very confident Dr. Maria Montoro Edwards will follow in the footsteps of her predecessor and take the organization to new heights, and achieve new and important successes in caring for the tens of thousands of underserved women, children, and families who rely upon us every day.”
Kathy Finsterbusch, Chair of the MFHS Board of Directors
Maria Montoro Edwards, PhD President and CEO Material & Family Health Services, Inc.
Capacity Building Update: Understanding and Learning Impact
When we launched our grantmaking in 2012, we did not anticipate capacity building would be a central part of our work. Our board, most of whom transitioned from the board of Moses Taylor Hospital following its 2012 sale, was primarily interested in directly investing in the health of people in Northeastern Pennsylvania. Yet very quickly we came to appreciate that our success was dependent upon building effective partnerships with resilient, well-resourced nonprofits. Some nonprofit partners had the resources and tools required to operate effectively, but many others needed support in key areas like strategic planning, fundraising, program evaluation, and board development. Few were regularly utilizing external data to inform their decision-making or engaging with policymakers to inform the legislation that undergirds their work. By and large, our local funding colleagues were not investing in this work.
We initiated relationships with Scranton Area Community Foundation (SAF) and The Institute for Public Policy and Economic Development (The Institute) to explore how we might build community interest and investment in nonprofit capacity building. SAF’s Center for Community Leadership and Nonprofit Excellence had previously sponsored programs on strategic planning that provided a roadmap for expanded programming.
The Institute’s annual community indicators reports provided annual data on key community indicators that diverse stakeholders used to monitor trends. Through annual program grants to SAF and The Institute, we aimed to expand that existing work and gauge community appetite, partner capacity, and the long-term potential for broader nonprofit capacity-building programming in our region.
As community interest grew and our board’s understanding of capacity building increased, we began talking about capacity building as an area of investment for Moses Taylor Foundation. Eventually, we prioritized capacity building as one of our five 2019-2023 strategic plan priorities. With this increased commitment, we contracted with Putnam Consulting to evaluate the impact of our capacity-building investments to date and make recommendations for next steps.
We look forward to releasing this finished report and conducting a webinar on how capacity building has taken root in Northeastern Pennsylvania this fall.
When the COVID-19 virus suddenly hit the United States in March 2020, it took everyone by surprise. Among the many concerns raised was, “How will businesses and non-profits adapt in these uncertain times?” The global pandemic presented many challenges, but it also presented some hidden opportunities.
Goodwill Industries of Northeastern Pennsylvania has been serving the community in its various capacities for more than 75 years. But in that long history, Goodwill has never faced anything quite like the coronavirus, according to Ann Gillerlane, Chief Operating Officer.
“We needed to reduce face-to-face contact and set things up remotely,” she said.
But until the COVID-19 pandemic struck, there was one problem: The organization did not yet have an online digital portal for its staff. Gillerlane and Kate Dempsey Jones, CEO of Goodwill Industries of Northeastern Pennsylvania, reached out to Moses Taylor Foundation for assistance.
“Late March is when we reached out and asked if they would support the addition of this employee portal,” Jones explained. “It was fortuitous because we had just redone our website”, making implementation even easier.
Since Goodwill Industries operates many scattered site group home residences, the employee portal allows leadership of the organization to quickly relay information during a crisis or emergency, and also keeps employees updated in real-time with any additional health department or state regulation updates. Some other advantages of the employee portal include allowing employees to submit electronic time sheets, maintenance and supply requests, and other paperwork.
When asked about the importance of having an online employee portal, Jones explained: “In any organization communication is key, and realtime communication is key. It also allowed us the opportunity for every employee to finally have a Goodwill email address.”
With regard to the latter, Jones said that having an organization email address is important because it helps build employee morale and a feeling of connectedness among the Goodwill community, and while working remotely, that can’t be overstated.
Moses Taylor Foundation awarded Goodwill a $7,200 capacity building grant in April, and as of Summer 2020 the portal is up and running smoothly.
“The portal will continue to support our employees,” said Gillerlane. “All employees have access to it, and it’s growing, and we are learning from it every day.”
One of the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic is that when working remotely, communication is important, but having an employee portal will also keep the employees and residents of Goodwill Industries safer, Jones explained. The new portal has reduced the need for staff to leave their work site to travel to other locations, helping staff adhere to physical distancing guidelines.
Finally, when asked what she’s foresees in the future, Jones explained how the organization can build its technological infrastructure further.
“I see this being a companion to other modules that we will eventually implement,” she said. “I think the more folks use it, the more comfortable they will be with it. It may be a gateway for the use of more technology for our direct care staff.” She continued: “It further helps connect our mission with our operations. It helps employees understand that they are part of a larger agency rather than being part of one department.”
Capacity Building Update: Visualize your Organization's Impact and Sustainability
I hope you were able to attend the 2nd Annual NEPA Learning Conference earlier this month and take part in The Matrix Map: Visualize Your Organization’s Impact and Sustainability.
A matrix map plots all of your organization’s activities – not just it’s client-facing programs – into a single image. It’s a great tool that you can use with your leadership and board of directors to begin the strategic conversations of which programs and activities to keep, to grow, and to close or give away.
The process of creating a matrix map for your organization includes:
Identifying the programs and activities your organization conducts: An activity is anything that requires effort – as mentioned before, it’s not just client-facing programs but also includes things like fundraising events, electronic newsletters, and direct mail solicitations.
Assessing the impact of these activities and how it relates to your mission: How closely does each activity align with the goals of your organization? Does your organization have the right skillset and/or financial resources to operate this program – with excellence?
Determining the expenses and the profitability of each activity: Is this activity generating a surplus for your organization, or are you forced to supplement it with unrestricted funds? How much are you spending (expenses) in relation to how much you’re generating (profitability)?
Generating the map using Excel: Entering this data into an Excel spreadsheet will generate a chart that visually lays out all of the activities done by your organization, taking into account mission impact, profitability, and expenses.
You’ll end up with a chart illustrating which activities are your organization’s Stars (high impact, high profitability), Hearts (high impact, low profitability), Money Trees (low impact, high profitability), and Stop Signs (low impact, low profitability).
The matrix map helps to visualize how your organization’s activities relate to and complement each other – much easier than line items on a budget spreadsheet. As we continue to battle COVID-19 and organizations have been forced to modify programming and create new ways of fundraising, this is a great tool to start the conversation around your own organization’s mission and sustainability - both financial sustainability and program sustainability.
Nonprofit Sustainability: Making Strategic Decisions for Financial Viability covers each of these steps in detail. If you’re interested in this topic, I encourage you to read the book. I’m also happy to talk with you more about matrix maps and how you can utilize this tool in conversations around your own organization’s sustainability.
As we all adapt to the ever-changing environment that the COVID-19 pandemic has created, board members are asking what they can do to best support the organizations they work with. Many responsibilities remain the same – but during this difficult time, I think some of those responsibilities are becoming even more critical. For example, the board is always responsible for supporting the CEO – but this may be more important now than ever. The board should continually be monitoring and evaluating the organization's strategy – but as we prepare for an uncertain future, these evaluations may require added scrutiny and some tough decisions.
As a BoardSource certified Nonprofit Board Consultant, you’ll see that many of my links lead you to their site. BoardSource is the recognized leader in nonprofit board leadership and continually publishes quality board resources around board development. But there are a great many other quality resources out there, and I hope that some of these are helpful to you in encouraging additional dialogue with your board.
Resources
What Nonprofit Board Members Should Be Doing Right Now to Address the COVID-19 Situation A blog post by Joy Folkedal and Lindsay Tallman of BoardSource. This article highlights a few areas where board leadership is critical, including risk assessment, budgeting, and safety.
The Role of the CEO and Board Chair in a Crisis (video) An Ask-an-Expert webinar hosted by BoardSource. BoardSource President & CEO Anne Wallestad and Board President Cathy Trower joined Andy Davis for a Facebook live event to discuss the role of the CEO and board chair during a crisis.
How to Build a Culture of Inquiry During the COVID-19 Crisis A blog post by Joy Folkedal, a senior project manager of governance programs at BoardSource. Joy defines “culture of inquiry” and provides a framework for starting to build one at your organization.
Boards in the Time of Coronavirus A blog post written by senior staff of McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm. This article offers guidance on what role board members should play during a crisis, and as well as assessing the organization for future operating challenges.
Show Up: Your Role as a Board Member During a Pandemic A great blog post from Dr. Laura Zumdahl, President and CEO of New Moms. Dr. Zumdahl discusses what board members can do to best support the CEO and the organization during this time of emergency response.
If you see any topics that you’d like
additional information on, feel free to reach out and I’ll be happy to share
any resources that I have.
Capacity Building: Community Health Planning Grant
As the region continues the transition to managed care for health, behavioral and waiver services, Lisa Durkin, Chief Executive Officer of United Neighborhood Centers of Northeastern Pennsylvania (UNC), and her team decided to ask some important questions:
How can we improve service delivery in light of
this new transition?
How do we develop a strong plan before
implementing a program change?
Who can help us to achieve our objectives?
An outside consultant, Durkin decided, would be best suited to helping the organization address these questions. Durkin and her team applied for a community health planning grant for $42,150 from Moses Taylor Foundation to partner with a consulting agency for guidance.
After enlisting the services of XtraGlobex, UNC's Community Health Department, which provides care coordination services, facilitates free screenings, and offers health education programs to the community, began building upon its service coordination role. Working with XtraGlobex is helping UNC prepare for credentialing with three Pennsylvania managed care organizations (MCOs): AmeriHealth Caritas, PA Health and Wellness and UPMC.
“It’s been going wonderfully,” Durkin said. “With the help of our consultant, we hope to create a product to sell to the MCOs in early 2020, and that way, the program will be self-sustaining.”
The consultant has helped UNC revise and restructure existing policies; support development of communication strategies within the community regarding waiver services; and identify training opportunities for service coordinators.
“We are at a crossroads with the program now,” she said. “We never questioned the value of it and what it does, but we need to know that these MCOs feel it is valuable enough to partner with us.”
While the outcome
remains to be seen, Jessica Wallo, Vice President of Programs and Services, believes
preparation and planning around this initiative has already paid off.
“The process has really brought us together even further,” Wallo said, adding that the agency’s department directors now feel more professionally connected to their colleagues, more aware of the impact that each department has on the community and more involved in holistic service delivery.
Looking ahead, Durkin, Wallo and the rest of their team hope to schedule multiple meetings with MCOs. If all goes well, they expect UNC to be contracted to begin new services in mid to later 2020.
THINKING ABOUT HIRING A CONSULTANT FOR EVALUATING ONE OF YOUR ORGANIZATION'S PROGRAMS?
Working with Consultants: A great set of resources from S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation to help nonprofits successfully engage and work with consultants.
Capacity Building: What is Capacity Building?
As part of our 2019-2023 strategic plan, we have codified Capacity
Building as one of our four focus areas over the next five years. As Program Officer of the Foundation’s
Community Responsive Grants, I’m also tasked with overseeing our Capacity
Building Investments – and I’m often asked, “what does capacity building mean?”
If you Googled “what is nonprofit capacity building” you’d find a
number of different answers – “an investment in the effectiveness and future
sustainability of a nonprofit” (National Council of Nonprofits); “the process
of developing an organization's strength and sustainability” (MissionBox); “improving
effectiveness, often at the organizational level” (GrantCraft); “building the
competency, the capability, the bandwidth of organizations and their staffs”
(The Nonprofit Center at LaSalle University).
Even though these answers are all different, they highlight some of the
same aspects – effectiveness and sustainability.
Capacity building grants usually cover one-time expenses aimed at strengthening an organization’s operations, management, or governance to further enhance its effectiveness or sustainability.
Capacity building grants don’t have to be large dollar amounts. We’ve supported opportunities for strategic planning, program evaluation, and board development, each with a grant for under $10,000.
At the Foundation we recognize that our work relies on partnerships with strong local organizations. We believe investing in an organization to improve its internal operations is two-fold: it enhances that organization’s ability to offer high-quality programs and services to the people we all care about, and it helps the Foundation to advance our mission of the improving health of people in Northeastern Pennsylvania.
If you’d like to talk about any capacity building needs your organization may have, please don’t be afraid to reach out to me.
other well-defined projects that invest in an
organization’s ability to effectively and sustainably fulfill its mission
Capacity building “is not just about the capacity of a nonprofit today — it’s about the nonprofit’s ability to deliver its mission effectively now and in the future. Capacity building is an investment in the effectiveness and future sustainability of a nonprofit.”
The National Council of Nonprofits
Capacity Building: Evaluating and Enhancing Program Effectiveness
In its 28 years as a non-profit organization operating in Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Northeast Regional Cancer Institute (NRCI) has spearheaded a number of initiatives that have helped ease the burden of cancer in the region. The Community Based Cancer Screening Navigation Program, initiated in 2012, is an evidence-based screening initiative that has been utilized by individuals from Lackawanna to Luzerne to Wayne Counties—and beyond. Recently, the NRCI applied for a grant from Moses Taylor Foundation to bring in an outside consultant who will assess the existing process and system for reaching patients, discuss possible enhancements, and make recommendations for strengthening patient engagement. The idea to bring in an outside evaluator first began when Laura Toole, LCSW, Executive Vice President of NRCI, had a conversation with Moses Taylor Foundation, which led to the suggestion.
“The Foundation will often ask about the kind of support we need,” Toole said, as she explained how the evaluation process got off the ground. “Not only did they help cover the costs for the consultant, but they helped us find a qualified person who would work well with us.”
As Toole explained, although her organization does continuous internal evaluations, the time seemed right to bring in an outside evaluator to look at its Community Based Cancer Screening Navigation Program. This, she said, will improve their process and services.
Although the consultant’s work is not yet complete, Toole said that the process had been going wonderfully—even though there may have been some reservations, at least in the beginning.
“To invite an open evaluation can sometimes make people feel a little vulnerable professionally,” Toole explained. “We are going to get good feedback to tweak our program and make it stronger,” she said, adding: “So far, we have gotten good suggestions about what we are doing well and can build on.”
Specifically, some of the areas the consultant is evaluating include:
Assessing the existing process and systems for reaching patients and discussing possible enhancements
Developing an understanding of the navigator role and making recommendations based on current evidence based approaches for enhancing patient engagement
Call and outcome measuring to determine effectiveness and efficacy
Analyzing program promotion, marketing, and community outreach
“Going through a process like this, your organization needs to trust the outcome of the evaluation and the information that it includes,” she said.
