Florida Nonprofit Alliance (FNA) serves as a central resource and referral center for nonprofits at the local, state and federal level to collaborate and share important sector data. Like many nonprofits, FNA is dependent on grant funding and was looking to diversify its revenue streams. The organization soon realized that replacing grants as its main source of income would require it to double its membership base in just two years. To achieve this ambitious goal, FNA partnered with the JPMorgan Chase Virtual Service Corps and Common Impact to create a new membership development strategy.
The 12-week project began with the JPMorgan Chase volunteer team conducting an assessment of FNA’s work, its membership program offerings and peer state and national membership organizations. After researching the needs and wants of the target member audience, including interviewing existing FNA members, the team provided recommendations for an enhanced membership structure and best practices for membership cultivation to support FNA in building strong relationships with new and current members. The Virtual Service Corps team then leveraged its findings to develop a two-year roadmap that included the impact of different pricing structures on the organization’s revenue goals as well as structured implementation phases and metrics to track its progress towards meeting its membership expansion goals.
The team was ultimately able to help FNA develop a comprehensive membership model with formalized benefits for various membership levels and constituents.
“This project completed a strategic growth plan for our organization at no cost. That alone is a game changer for us,” said FNA Executive Director Sabeen Perwaiz. “Furthermore, all next steps have been categorized by different timelines for implementation, which makes it really easy to execute on this plan.”
The team’s research not only provided Perwaiz with a structured plan of action, it also gave her a strong case for additional support from the board to implement the proposed solutions.
“This project has given FNA new legs and credibility within and outside of our sector. It allows our stakeholders to see that we are serious and intentional about our growth and the services we provide for our members,” Perwaiz remarked.
The JPMorgan Chase employee volunteers also provided several recommendations for FNA’s website, which encouraged Perwaiz to pursue additional pro bono support through JPMorgan Chase’s Technology for Social Good program.
“Our team is proud to be a partner of FNA on this engagement and on the final deliverables produced and presented to FNA,” expressed Virtual Service Corps team lead Syndi Lin. “We’ve accomplished a lot over a short period of time and one team member with consulting background commented that our work would have been done by a much larger team of ten from a management consulting firm.”
Perwaiz conveyed her gratitude in kind stating, “I’m absolutely blown away by this team. The amount of time and effort placed on this project is phenomenal. I haven’t seen this kind of dedication from a volunteer group, especially one that I haven’t met in person.”