OAS offers its services beyond the NeighborWorks network. Our primary objective is to grow the capacity of community development organizations in every market and at every level. By advancing each individual organization’s effectiveness, we improve the overall community development field’s ability to produce better outcomes and improve conditions for residents of disadvantaged communities. Our assessments are especially beneficial to nonprofits experiencing leadership transition, organizational growth and revised policies and procedures.

Our Process

We often work with a sponsoring agency (funder, intermediary or other stakeholder) that requests assessments of multiple nonprofit organizations. We work collaboratively with the sponsors and the nonprofits to ensure that the assessment directly addresses their needs.

OAS facilitates these improvements by applying a methodical process for gathering information about an organization’s governance, leadership, management, resource base, programs, strategic planning, and policies and procedures. Each assessment results in a complete report with actionable recommendations and may be supplemented by access to training, templates from best practices, and other NeighborWorks resources. The assessment methodology has been refined over the past 30 years through work with hundreds of community-based organizations.

Capacity assessments are provided on a fee-for-service basis for nonprofit organizations, their funders and investors. Assessments are conducted on individual nonprofit organizations and also those that may be part of a network or series of programs. Sponsors and nonprofit organizations of all sizes, from all geographies, with any management structure are invited to improve their organization’s effectiveness and long-term success by investing in an OAS assessment.

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OAS Newsletters:

• Winter 2013