CAP Brainstorms Application

CAP Overview

Community Action Partners (CAP) is a volunteer organization of Harvard Business School (HBS) alumni helping Boston-area nonprofits apply management skills to their business challenges. Founded in 1993, CAP operates under the aegis of the HBS Association of Boston. Since inception, more than 1,000 CAP volunteers have served nearly 200 nonprofit clients in areas such as: strategic planning, market research and marketing strategy, financial planning and analysis, board development and governance, and organizational development.

CAP Brainstorms are 3-hour sessions focused on a discrete issue or challenge faced by a client. These one-time roundtable sessions bring together 4-6 CAP volunteers with relevant expertise to help clients generate ideas or solutions enabling them to move forward more productively.

Client Criteria

Potential clients must meet the following criteria:

•Charitable nonprofit organization with IRS 501(c)(3) status

•Located in Greater Boston

•A mission which benefits the community

•An engaged board of directors

•Stable leadership in the organization

•Capacity/resources in hand to act on ideas generated during Brainstorming Session

Project Criteria

Potential projects must meet the following criteria:

•Deal with business or management-related issues in the organization, such as strategic planning,organizational development, finance, or marketing

•Not focus on development / fundraising strategy or implementation

•Have goals which are well-defined and achievable by a volunteer team of four to six consultants during a two-hour brainstorming session

•Have the sponsorship of the organization's leadership

Timeline

•Client applications areaccepted on a rolling basis

•Phone interview will be conducted if application is selected to move to the next step in the process

•A mutually agreeable brainstorming session date and location will be determined by CAP and client ED if the application is accepted

Application Questions:

  1. Name of organization:
  2. Address:
  3. Website:
  4. Contact Name and Title:
  5. Contact Email:
  6. Contact Telephone:
  7. Executive Director(if different):
  8. Mission description:
  1. How many paid staff do you employ?
  1. Funding
  2. Annual Budget:
  3. Sources of Funds (by %):
  1. Please briefly describe the issue or challenge you would like addressed in the CAP Brainstorming Session. Keep in mind that these sessions are most likely to be productive when the topic is well defined and actionable, and when in-depth knowledge of your organization is not required.
  1. What outcome(s) would you want from a Brainstorming Session? Please be as specific as possible.
  2. What 2-3 people would represent your organization at the Brainstorming Session? (Note: One senior manager must be present, along with someone who can take notes for your organization.)
  1. Additional comments:
  1. How did you hear about Community Action Partners?

Background Materials:

CAP will ask Brainstorming Session volunteers to spend up to one hour preparing for this session. Please direct us to the most relevant background materials, either on your website or as an attachment(s). In addition, please be prepared to provide a brief 1-2 page summary description of the topic, desired outcomes, and key questions you would like addressed, three weeks prior to the scheduled session.