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Nonprofit Services

Nonprofit Services

Strategic direction to build donor trust

At Dawn Franks Strategic Solutions, we prioritize mission as your core purpose – the bedrock of your goals, objectives, and measurable outcomes. With extensive experience in nonprofit leadership, Dawn understands the challenges you face and the strategies needed for success in fulfilling your mission.

We specialize in empowering nonprofits through a donor-centric approach, offering a comprehensive suite of services designed to enhance your organization’s capacity, governance, and strategic direction, ensuring alignment with donor expectations and maximizing impact.

Through customized training, facilitation and one-one-one coaching and mentoring, we partner with you for strategic thinking and planning. Discover why Dawn Franks Strategic Solutions is your best choice for bridging the gap between nonprofit leadership and your donors.

 

In the Words of my Clients

Nonprofit Areas of Focus

Capacity Building for
Sustainability and Change

  • Are your programs effectively driving the mission forward, or are there hidden gaps that need to be addressed?

  • Are your financial resources managed effectively to ensure long-term sustainability in an unpredictable landscape?

  • Are you tracking progress and outcomes effectively to measure success and refine your strategy?

  • Program Evaluation: Assess the impact and alignment of programs with your mission, identifying areas for improvement and innovation.

  • Financial Health Check: Review budgets and financial reports, pinpointing opportunities for better resource management and long-term sustainability.

  • Goal and Outcome Evaluation: Assess goal alignment with your mission, developing systems to track progress and measure success.

MissionStrategic®
Planning

  • How can your nonprofit ensure its strategic plans are actively enbraced by the team?
  • How can long-term financial stability be integrated into your strategic vision?
  •  How can your action plans foster genuine ownership among leadership?

MissionStrategic® Planning is a comprehensive process designed to align your nonprofit’s activities with its mission and long-term vision. We render “MissionStrategic” as one word to emphasize the inseparable link between mission and strategy—a core aspect of Dawn’s unique approach. 

  • Strategic Visioning: Facilitate MissionStrategic® sessions with your board, executive director, and key staff to define a clear vision, aligning your nonprofit’s mission, values, and strategic priorities across the organization.
  • Collaborative Planning: Engage the leadership team in participatory MissionStrategic® planning, gathering input from stakeholders to ensure the plan reflects diverse perspectives and fosters ownership and commitment.
  • Action Planning: Create action plans that outline steps, responsibilities, and timelines, turning broad goals into actionable tasks aligned with your organizational capacity.
  • Operational Goals and Outcomes: Define measurable goals and outcomes to track progress and assess the effectiveness of MissionStrategic® initiatives by establishing benchmarks to monitor implementation and make data-driven adjustments.
  • Sustainability Planning: Integrate strategies for long-term financial stability, resource management, and capacity building into the MissionStrategic® plan. This ensures that your nonprofit can sustain impact over time.


Our proprietary MissionStrategic® approach ensures the creation of functional and sustainable plans that drive organizational success. This organic process encourages ongoing engagement, so plans evolve with your organization.

Effective Governance

  • Is your board equipped to steer your nonprofit through today’s challenges while staying true to its mission?

  • Are your governance practices enhancing your organization’s impact, or are they holding you back?

  • How prepared is your leadership for a smooth transition when change becomes necessary?
  • Tailored Training: Customize sessions to address the unique needs of your board members, covering fiduciary responsibilities, strategic oversight, and effective governance practices that align with your nonprofit mission.

  • Governance Best Practices: Provide guidance on implementing and maintaining best practices, including roles, responsibilities, and board performance evaluation.

 

  • Transition Planning: Support and plan for leadership transitions, ensuring continuity and stability for your organization.
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Program Innovation
and Redesign

  • Are your programs truly innovative, or could they be better aligned with your community’s evolving needs?

  • How confident are you in the successful execution and long-term impact of your current initiatives?

  • Are you effectively demonstrating your program’s impact to strengthen donor trust and secure future support?
  • Program Design: Collaborate to brainstorm and design new programs or refine existing ones, ensuring programs are innovative and responsive to community needs.

  • Implementation Support: Provide guidance on launching and executing programs, including creating detailed implementation plans, setting up monitoring and evaluation systems, and supporting necessary adjustments.

  • Impact Evaluation: Design and implement evaluation strategies to measure your programs’ effectiveness.

Executive Coaching:
The NP-Suite®

  • Who challenges you to push beyond your current limits?

  • How do you navigate the complexities of nonprofit leadership without a sounding board?

  • Are you investing enough in your own development as a leader?
  • The NP-Suite® Explained: The NP-Suite® concept adapts C-Suite best practices to address the unique challenges of non-profit leadership. It fosters a judgment-free space for executives to discuss ideas, challenges, and strategies, while staying true to their mission and values.
  • Why the NP-Suite®? Non-profit CEOs often feel isolated, lacking a trusted network for confiding and brainstorming. The NP-Suite® creates collaborative partnerships within the executive team, providing a safe environment to explore thoughts and express concerns. This approach transcends skill-building, challenging the misconception that seeking practical solutions conflicts with faith or intuition.
  • 6-Month Coaching Plans: Develop critical leadership skills to enhance your effectiveness, manage organizational change, and achieve long-term strategic goals. A comprehensive six-month coaching journey, starting with a complimentary session.
  • FastPass Coaching: Tackle urgent challenges through three focused sessions that deliver actionable solutions for immediate impact.
  • Board + Executive Relations: Improve collaboration and communication between your board and executive team for a cohesive, productive leadership dynamic.

NP-Suite® executive coaching services elevate leadership and strategic excellence, driving growth and fostering a culture of success from the top down.

Strategic Partnerships, Mergers and Alliances

  • Are you maximizing your nonprofit’s potential by leveraging strategic partnerships?

  • Are you overlooking opportunities to expand your impact?

  • Could strategic alliances be the key to enhancing program effectiveness and extending your reach?
  • Partnership Impact Strategy: Identify partners and develop strategies for effective collaboration, including joint programs, resource sharing, and co-hosted events that leverage each organization’s strengths. We assist in negotiating terms, setting clear objectives, and drafting formal agreements, while evaluating the impact on program success and resource utilization.

  • Collaborative and Alliance Development: Establish strategic collaborations and alliances, navigating governance, recruiting members, and setting collaboration goals and strategies focused on shared outcomes.

My Nonprofit Background:

Experienced in Leadership with Impact

Dawn Franks brings decades of experience and a deep passion for the nonprofit sector. Her journey began in college, founding a crisis hotline and shelter for battered women, sparking her commitment to nonprofit work.

As CEO of the East Texas Crisis Center and the first female CEO of the local United Way, she expanded services, achieved record fundraising, and helped launch innovative programs like the Texas 211 Information Line. She also co-founded what became the Children’s Advocacy Center of Smith County.

Dawn’s strategic insight and hands-on expertise help nonprofits navigate challenges, launch impactful programs, and achieve sustainable results.