This sounds like a silly question, but let me try to define it.
A program is something your organization does for someone.
(An admittedly silly answer.)
Program = Capability + Audience
Here’s the formula:
We do a [capability] on behalf of [an audience].
Here are some examples:
- We provide microloans to refugees
- We provide affordable housing to the unhoused
- We provide free food to the hungry
These are really important capabilities when directed towards the right people! But they ring a little hollow when you substitute the wrong audience:
- We provide microloans to megabanks
- We provide affordable housing to people who want vacation homes
- We provide free food to billionaires
Ridiculous.
Similarly, if you said “we serve refugees” but have no tangible way to actually serve them, then you don’t have a program, just people you’ve identified.
Programs require both: A capability and someone to serve.
Where do programs come from?
We make them, usually out of thin air.
Someone sees an opportunity (usually called an “ideas person” or a “visionary”), and a new program is born. Six programs later, the organization has become a Frankenstein entity that does workforce development for refugees, operates a food pantry, and provides microloans for startups.
Chaos.
I’m convinced that as nonprofits grow, new programs should be an extension of what they already do well, not new creations.
If your organization started with a literacy program for third graders, the next program you add shouldn’t be a food bank for refugees. (New capability and new audience!)
Instead, when you build your next program, you should:
- Extend your literacy program to fourth graders (new audience, same capability)
- Create a new mentorship program for third graders (new capability, same audience)
So many nonprofits go wrong when they add a new capability and audience in one leap!
This is called mission creep.
(Shiny new funding opportunities are usually the culprit.)
How do we avoid mission creep?
Definition makes you stronger.
Start by articulating your capabilities.
What activities are you better at than anyone else in your space? What makes you unique?
Once your capabilities are clear, then articulate who you serve.
What groups have you made the deepest inroads with? What makes you uniquely credible with that population?
These combinations of capabilities and audiences are your bread and butter–your reason for existing!
If, when you finish this exercise, your three-person team has identified 12 capabilities and 8 audiences, you may be overextended. 🙂
(I do free therapy for people who work for "ideas people.")
The more precise you are about both of these, the better your organization will be at justifying your unique purpose when seeking funding. More importantly, this clarity will help you add new capabilities, reach new people groups, and expand your impact.
Remember, progress is always incremental—small steps in the right direction.
Sometimes, the most innovative thing to do is what you already do (but better).
Until next time,
Ted
PS, if you feel like you are drowning in software, I'm doing a webinar to discuss five ways you can become the boss of your software. Next Wednesday at 11 a.m. You can register here.
