Capacity building for organizational design and development for education non-profits: the need of the hour

Historically, capacity building for education non-profits has usually focused on enhancing the knowledge and skills of teachers and educators, developing curriculum, and improving teaching methodologies and educational governance. The primary objective of capacity building is to improve the quality of education and holistic learning outcomes for students.

However, over the last decade, education NGOs are also participating in a different type of capacity building process. Alongside building their capacities in education related concepts and techniques, they are building and strengthening their internal capacities to become mission-driven, resilient organizations focusing on their people, structures and processes and overall organizational effectiveness. They are developing organizational design and development (OD&D) capabilities.

Non-profits in the education sector face a diverse array of challenges. These include funding instability, changing educational policies, complex pedagogies and curricula, and evolving and emerging community needs. They must respond to contextual requirements and implement a wide range of programs and interventions.

These include direct teaching work in schools, teacher capacity building, and supporting in curriculum development. These also involve building leadership capabilities in principals and working with communities and the government. Philosophically and ideologically, education itself is contested. Organizations working in this domain must deal with these contestations as well.

Strengthening an organization’s OD&D capabilities help non-profits to sense and respond to internal and external organizational tensions and demands more effectively. Research over the years has shown strong connections between organizational capacity building that helps organizations to see the connections between the various internal components of the organization and the impact it seeks to make in the ecosystem.

For example, organizations can learn how teacher motivation is deeply linked to structures and processes that condition teachers’ behaviors at work. They can also learn how to engage with community involvement, as that also shapes an organization’s culture. Leadership mindsets and biases can impact the operational performance of the organization, and need to be factored in as well.

OD&D capacity building initiatives can help develop effective leaders, and improve decision-making processes, accountability and transparency within the organization.2 These help non-profits optimize their resources, reduce waste, and improve overall efficiency. These also enhance the ability of organizations to build and maintain relationships with stakeholders, including donors, partners and the community.

Related processes can lead to increased support, collaborations and funding opportunities. Research shows that organizations with well-developed internal structures and processes are more adaptable. They are better able to navigate challenges such as shifts in funding landscapes and policy changes.

They also tend to become better at building strong, collaborative partnerships within the ecosystem in which they work. This external partnership building is a key criterion for the effectiveness of the organization’s impact.

Additionally, effective capacity building includes developing systems for measuring and evaluating impact. Non-profits with strong internal capacity for impact measurement are better able to demonstrate their effectiveness and attract funding.

This kind of capacity building also promotes better practices in accountability and transparency. Research shows that nonprofits with robust organizational systems are more likely to have effective accountability measures in place. This can enhance trust with stakeholders and funders.

Organizational capacity building helps leaders build strong relational skills that are fundamental for bringing about changes in the system. Through OD&D capacity building engagements, leaders can learn to recognize the power of collaborative work and develop structures internally within the organization that encourage collaboration. These can also help them in building trust, and in working with multiple stakeholders externally.

OD&D approaches focus on developing a systems lens, and on building the capacity of the organization to take on a systems approach. This can foster much greater and more impactful collective impact work.5 Such a perspective also encourages organizations (and leaders) to adopt an experimental mindset.

This enables education organizations to become learning organizations. They start willing to experiment with small changes and learn from the results of these experiments. They also become more willing and open to talk about both successes as well as failures. Such an agile, experimental mindset is necessary to build strong, positive organizational cultures.

Finally, OD&D capacity building enables organizations to create more flourishing workplaces. This can potentially ensure that people feel heard, valued and empowered in the organization. This can lead to increased employee motivation, satisfaction and well-being at work. It also helps in building resilient organizations.

A supportive organizational culture can significantly impact staff morale and productivity. This, in turn, affects overall organizational performance. Research reveals that non-profits that prioritize staff development, including learning to work with each other collaboratively, see higher levels of employee engagement and retention. These are crucial elements in maintaining program quality and organizational stability.

OD&D capacity building for non-profits in the education sector is essential for their sustainability, effectiveness and impact. Research on organizational capacity building, including our own experiences with the OD&D Fellowship Program, shows us the following. Capacity building in education related concepts and techniques focuses on improving the quality of education. However, organizational capacity building ensures that non-profits have the internal strength, cohesion and resilience to deliver their mission effectively.

By investing in both areas, education non-profits can create a motivated and empowered workforce. They can also, thus, develop strong and compassionate leaders. These processes also help non-profits to structure themselves appropriately. All this contributes to the ability to navigate the complexities of the education sector with more confidence, empathy and agility.

Learnings from a year-long OD&D fellowship program for non-profits

Over the last few years, we have worked with over two dozen organizations working in education. We have done this by facilitating a capacity building program focused on their internal organizational design and development. These education NGOs differed from each other in their sizes, the scale of operations, and the number of years of operation. They were also varied in terms of the focus areas of their work, as well as the size of their budgets.

By participating in a year-long OD&D fellowship, these organizations had the opportunity to reflect on their organizational needs. The process allowed them to involve people within the organization on change process. Team members learnt OD&D concepts, methodologies and tools. They worked on building their whole organizational capacities rather than only their programmatic ones.

Organizations often face a common challenge – working in silos. The OD&D Fellowship Program helped tackle these challenges by encouraging a more integrated approach. For example, during the program, an NGO brought together team members from various departments to discuss their individual roles and how these roles impact one another. This process of open dialogue helped employees see beyond their own tasks. They realized that their work in education was not just about teaching. They began to see that it affected community outreach and fundraising efforts. This broader perspective fostered a more unified sense of purpose and improved collaboration across organizations units.

Building trust is another critical area where OD&D made a difference. For example, a nonprofit involved in the OD&D program wanted to create a five-year strategic plan for their organization. Initially, the leadership team felt that communicating the strategic plan to the rest of the organization would be sufficient.

However, through regular, transparent conversations facilitated by OD&D processes, team members were able to express their concerns and confusions about this exercise. This trust building helped the leaders understand that first a common vision building exercise was needed for the whole organization. This transformed the change from a source of anxiety into an opportunity for growth.

The OD&D program addressed the ‘workshop to workplace cliff,’ problem. Here new ideas from training often struggle to be translated into daily work. Rather than attempting a complete overhaul, the organization applied an OD&D approach of small and incremental changes. They started by piloting small changes within the organization in terms of communication and process changes, gathered feedback, and made adjustments. This iterative process made the implementation manageable and allowed the organization to learn and adapt gradually.

Leaders in the program learned to look beyond technical issues. They began to understand the social and cultural dynamics within their organizations. For example, a leader who initially saw the organization as a well-oiled machine began to view it as a living system. This shift in mindset helped them address unconscious biases. It also started fostering a more inclusive culture. The leader’s new approach encouraged more open dialogue and collaboration. This significantly improved team dynamics and overall morale.

NGOs in the program also began to think of more balanced decision-making for their organization. One organization in the program found itself bogged down by immediate funding challenges. They realized that this was making them neglect more long-term, strategic goals. Through OD&D training, the leadership team learned to balance short-term needs with strategic objectives. They involved more team members in the decision-making process and used questions like, “Does this decision align with our core values and long-term vision?” This approach led to more thoughtful decisions. This has ended up supporting the organization’s mission, and has helped reduce the leadership’s stress.

Endnotes

1. Wirtenberg, J., Backer, T. E., Chang, W., Lannan, T., Applegate, B., Conway, M., Abrams, L., and Slepian, J. (2007). “The future of organisation development in the nonprofit sector”. Organisation Development Journal, 25(4), 179-195.
2. Malipatil, A., and Brainard, L. (2023). “Building Nonprofit Capacity, Hand in Hand”. Stanford Social Innovation Review.
3. Grant, H. M. L., and Crutchfield, L. R. (2007). “Creating High-Impact Nonprofits”. Stanford Social Innovation Review, 5(4), 32–41.
4. Grantmakers for Effective Organisations. (2022). The Influence of Nonprofit Accountability and Transparency on Grantmaking Decisions.
5. Milligan, K., Zerda, J., and Kania, J. (2022). “The Relational Work of Systems Change”. Stanford Social Innovation Review.
6. Ma, S., and Murray, P. (2015). “The Promise of Lean Experimentation”. Stanford Social Innovation Review, 13(3), 34–39.
7. Waldron, L.,. Nayak, P., Lanre-Amos, T., and Seeman, J. (2023). “How Nonprofit Leadership Development Sustains Organisations and Their Teams”. Philanthropy News Digest.