ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN

Draft 7/22/15

Mission Statement

NAI’s mission is to inspire leadership and excellence to advance heritage interpretation as a profession.

Introduction and Background

NAI celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2013. It has grown from the original 100 Founders in 1988 to almost 5,500 members today. The organization has changed over time, as all organizations do. Some of the financial milestones include:the development of the certification program in 2001 which contributes approximately 27% of NAI’s total revenue; the purchase and remodel of a building to house the organization and provide some rental income in 2004; and the assimilation of the accounts of the regions and sections in 2008.

The current financial status of the organization is sound but with little in the way of reserves to protect the organization in times of economic difficulty. Reliance on a line of credit has diminished, but is still necessary in times of cash flow imbalance. Long-term financial goals include growth of membership and program revenue, building of reserves, paying off the mortgage on the NAI building, and maintaining positive cash flow in the organizational unit accounts. Financial concerns include

The board of directors worked for over a year to develop a comprehensive strategic plan. A five-year strategic plan was finalized and adopted in November 2014 and contains four focus areas, one of which is a focus on organizational viabilityby ensuring financial sustainability. To accomplish this, a key strategy involves the creation of a development planand its implementation. Concurrently, a Development Task Force was set up to develop a plan of action for NAI’s development needs. This body submitted its report to the board (also at the November 2014 meeting). It recommended five goals for the organization:

  • Establish a permanent development committee of the board
  • Create an annual development plan
  • Membership assessment and development
  • Establish an annual giving program
  • Establish a planned giving program

Following the spring 2015 NAI board meeting the recently created Development Committee of the board began working to pull together thoughts and priorities for this year and next. It was determined that the top priority was the creation and adoption of a development plan for 2015/2016 that would include training and orientation at the August board meeting, planning and implementation of a planned giving promotion, and planning and implementation of a modest annual giving campaign in late 2015.

Elements of the Development Plan

There are many potential elements of a development plan, and a comprehensive plan should include all significant revenue-generating activities of the organization. For the purposes of this plan, we have divided the focus between on-going earned revenue efforts and new initiatives for contributed revenue. The new initiatives are all related to Public Support, which has been a relatively under-represented part of normal, on-going NAI’s revenue mix.

Earned Revenue

  1. Membership– This is a significant revenue generator for NAI and also the area with the most growth potential as we explore opportunities for expanding membership outside of the natural heritage area (cultural, historic, tourism).

GOAL: NAI will develop and implement membership growth and retention strategies that will yield 10% increases in membership in years 2015 and 2016.

Objective 1.1: Conduct a membership survey and use this information to refine benefits and services

Objective 1.2: Devise membership recruitment and retention campaign

Objective 1.3: Analyze causes for member loss

  1. Program – Expanding program services comes with the greatest need for a concomitant increase in expenses to support it. Programs are also the most closely allied revenue source to NAI’s mission.

GOAL: NAI will increase program attendance and resulting income by 10% on average.

Objective 2.1: Prepare for growth in CIT courses and resultant increase in CIG/CIH courses and certifications by implementing Master Trainer structure

Objective 2.2: Examine frequency and revisit shared income in order to increase income from NAI training opportunities

Objective 2.3: Implement new coaching course in 2016

Objective 2.4: Develop a marketing campaign to boost attendance at the national conference

  1. Commercial Marketing Opportunities – This area of revenue has not been aggressively pursued in the past. While there may be room for expansion this is also an area where NAI faces significant competition from sister organizations who are competing for the marketing dollars of vendors to the field.

GOAL: NAI will increase the income from our commercial partners.

Objective 3.1: Restructure commercial memberships with more benefits

Objective 3.2: Develop strategies for recruiting exhibitors and sponsors

Objective 3.3: Develop new advertising opportunities (and strengthen marketing of current options

  1. Store Income–Income is stagnantor trending downward as NAI can’t compete with Amazon on price point for books. Clothing is sold primarily during the national conference and infrequently during training sessions held at the national office. Sales online are insignificant.

GOAL: NAI will determine the sustainability of the store by 2017.

Objective 4.1: Revisit price structure with an eye to reducing inventory

Objective 4.2: New online store with better look, functionality, user friendliness

Contributed Revenue

  1. Annual Giving and Short-Term Campaigns - These are common with many organizations, and have enjoyed some degree of success with NAI as long as the right approach to membershipis used. An annual fund (and other short term campaigns that may be implemented) will need the widespread support and individual participation of leadership.

GOAL: NAI will develop an annual giving campaign to provide unrestricted funds to meet organization needs on a consistent basis, with a modest goal of $3,000 in 2015.

Objective 5.1: Develop a case statement for annual giving including an annual fund goal

Objective 5.2: Segment various constituencies for separate appeals

Objective 5.3: Create appropriate fundraising materials and share with board members

Objective 5.4: Develop a donor acknowledgement and reporting system to build loyalty and encourage repeat annual contributions

Objective 5.5: Launch campaign

  1. Scholarship Fund Augmentation – Scholarships have been identified as a priority by the NAI board. While a committee is currently looking at how to structure an expanded scholarship program, additional funding mechanisms are sure to be needed. Helping both students and nonstudents gain access to training and professional development directly meets mission intent of advancing the profession.

GOAL: NAI will develop an integrated plan to raise scholarship funds from multiple sources to meet an increased need for assistance with an annual goal of $15,000.

Objective 6.1: Increase amount raised at the annual conference auction(s)

Objective 6.2: Develop opportunities for corporate support of scholarship fund

Objective 6.3: Develop opportunities for individual giving to scholarship fund

  1. Planned Giving–NAI has had several bequests in its past, but there is no structured attempt to secure long-term gifts from those supportive of NAI and its mission. With many senior members of the profession retired or nearing retirement, NAI should be more active in providing opportunities for lasting impact on the profession. Every board member, officer, and leader in NAI should play a major role in this process.

GOAL: Enhance NAI’s long-term sustainability by providing multiple mechanisms for planned giving on the part of its members and others in the interpretation profession.

Objective 7.1: Investigate vehicles for planned giving (gifts, bequests, insurance beneficiary designation)

Objective 7.2: Develop a sensitive plan for promoting these opportunities

Objective 7.3: Create a case statement and fundraising materials

Objective 7.4: Develop an appropriate way to recognize and reinforce those who set up bequests and other larger gifts

  1. Grants and Other Outside Funding – NAI has had some success securing federal grants for programs and foundation support for capital campaigns (building). Foundation grantpotential is on the rise, but government grant funding is drying up in many areas.While NAI could benefit greatly from additional funds for operations, operational support is often a poor candidate for outside funding. However, the strategic plan calls for enhancing certification and other training programs which may be attractive to granting organizations.

GOAL: NAI will pursue outside funding from foundations and other granting organizations for identified purposes.

Objective 8.1: Assess funding needs

Objective 8.2: Conduct prospect research to determine appropriate funding sources

Objective 8.3: Develop staff grant writing capability

Objective 8.4: Develop fundable packages with budgets, case statements and matching resources

Role of the Board

All board members are expected to participate in fundraising for the organization at some level. This includes an ongoing awareness of gift and revenue-generating opportunities and an obligation to bring those opportunities to the board and NAI leadership for further consideration/action. Board members should work to expand public awareness of the organization at every opportunity. It is also expected that NAI board members will consider NAI a philanthropic priority and make annual gifts that reflect that priority. So that NAI can credibly solicit contributions from foundations, organizations, and individuals, NAI expects to have 100 percent of Board Members make an annual contribution that is commensurate with their capacity.

Additional Considerations

NAI might consider a way to search for, explore and evaluate additional lines of business that are compatible with our charter and mission. What would expand our reach to shoulder audiences? What would add to our ability to support the profession of interpretation? What strategic alliances or partnerships should we consider with outside organizations or agencies? What things do we need to be careful to avoid? What additional staff time and other resources would be required for an additional line of business? Where would those resources come from? Is there a clear and predictable advantage for NAI?

ADDENDUM: Current Sources of Funding

SOURCE / 2014 REVENUE / % OF TOTAL / 2015 PROJECTED / % OF TOTAL
Membership / $256,625 / 22% / $300,050 / 26%
Certification / $304.244 / 27% / $346,535 / 30%
Other Training / $27,891 / 2% / $24,700 / 2%
National Conference / $377,832 / 33% / $274,108 / 23%
International Conference / $5,400 / 0.5% / $91,775 / 8%
Publications/Merchandise / $75,558 / 6.5% / $34,920 / 3%
Advertising / $46,168 / 4% / $52,990 / 4%
Public Support / $21,097 / 2% / $13,000 / 1%
Other Revenue / $32,525 / 3% / $32,400 / 3%
TOTALS / $1,147,249 / 100% / $1,170,478 / 100%

NOTE: Reflects gross revenue

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