From the ranks of holders of MBA online degrees and MBA degrees from brick-and-mortar schools come professionals who can raise the visibility and credibility of your nonprofit. Organizations increasingly turn to the skills and perspectives of MBAs to satisfy donors, clients and a public that seeks a more business-like approach to charity and social benevolence.
Strategy
MBAs can marshal their appreciation and skills for strategic planning. The process helps your nonprofit establish its goals and priorities, decide who is to be served, determine the actions to meet them, measure performance and define success. Through strategic planning, the MBA examines your strengths, weaknesses and how to allocate people, time, money and other resources.
Say you wish to eradicate illiteracy in the community. With the MBA’s direction, the organization identifies whether to focus on children, youth or adults with literacy challenges. There are decisions about tutoring sessions, the use of hard or digital books and finding volunteers. The benchmarks may consist of how many student clients improve reading levels or adults obtain GEDs or equivalents.
Efficiency
Your organization must exhibit stewardship of donated and often limited resources. The MBAs’ ability to foster efficiency comes from their knowledge of organizational structures and behavior and managing finances.
Under an MBA’s leadership, the organization identifies and eliminates unnecessary or duplicative positions. Consolidating, say, the locations of offices or food banks can reduce your mortgage or rent payments and expenses associated with facilities upkeep. Your organization can reap costs savings through the MBA’s negotiations with suppliers and other vendors. The MBA guides the budgeting and financial planning of the organization.
Managing People Effectively
From their expertise of organizations, MBAs contribute their ability to form and encourage team building and teamwork. Team members, whether paid staff, volunteers, directors or other staff, receive from the MBA understanding on and direction in fulfilling their roles.
As part of their competencies, MBAs must address personnel issues. In addition to reducing excessive staff, MBAs are trained to handle conflicts between employees, assess their performance and establish guidelines and policies for employees.
Marketing and Public Relations
The MBA can bring to you marketing and branding strategies harnessed in the business world. Public relations and name recognition enhance the organization’s ability to connect with potential donors, other agencies or businesses that can partner with the nonprofit and clients who may need services.
Social media drives much of the public relations and marketing in the profit and nonprofit sectors alike. As to the latter, users of social media can read more than numbers of people you help or your mission statement. Posts can put names and faces with those who benefit from your efforts. Approximately 98 percent of small and medium-sized nonprofits opt for Facebook.
Credibility
These benefits of an MBA-trained leader or team member leads to a more transparent organization. From social media comes your ability to display, often with visuals and descriptive language, tangible fruits of your charity. With transparency also comes a greater sense of accountability to your donors, clients and the public. Waste, inefficiency and lack of results cannot hide and will render your organization something to avoid.
Further, the prestige of an MBA may grow your organization’s networking among businesses, governments and others of influence who can support your organization.
Conclusion
If you seek to enhance your nonprofit’s public perception and mission, consider engaging MBAs among your leadership and staff. Their knowledge, competencies and standing can yield a more efficient and focused operation that lifts those you serve.
