Hartford Business Journal

www.HartfordBusiness.com • September 30, 2019 • Hartford Business Journal 11 Harc, which recorded $15.8 million in revenue in fiscal 2017, was one of 38 local nonprofits that completed a series of four workshops from October to January, led by program sponsor No Margin, No Mission, a national consulting firm dedicated to helping nonprofits or foundations increase their earned income and entrepreneurial capacity. Nearly 200 people, from area non- profits including Chrysalis Center Inc., Community Child Guidance Clinic, CRIS Radio, Hartford Public Library and Riverfront Recapture, attended the initial sessions to learn about the fundamentals of earned-in- come ventures, potential sales ideas and other planning and forecasting strategies. Harc is also among 10 of 32 organiza- tions — known as the "Tenacious Ten" — that won additional business-plan development and fundraising coaching from No Margin, No Mission. The Hartford Foundation also of- fered matching gifts of up to $40,000 for each of the 10 organizations, which presented their business plans this summer to current and potential donors at a "fast-pitch" event mirror- ing ABC's "Shark Tank" TV show. While nearly all 10 organiza- tions have since raised the $40,000 threshold, their business ideas vary greatly. For example, Chrysalis is expanding and growing its culinary- arts training program and catering ventures; CRIS Radio is expanding its affordable audio service for indoor and outdoor venues; and the Hartford Public Library is launching a digital library lab that provides digital archiving and photography service for busi- nesses, nonprof- its, government agencies and schools, among other potential users. Mike Oxman, co-founder and man- aging partner of No Margin, No Mis- sion, said his firm has provided simi- lar accelerator programs across the U.S., but few have been as engaged as Greater Hartford's nonprofit sector. "I feel like this program is beloved in your community," said Oxman, who credited the Hartford Founda- tion with thoroughly vetting non- profits before inviting them to the first workshops. "It's fun to see how these nonprofits have run with it, and how they are seeing early wins through their organizations." The Hartford Foundation's accelera- tor was birthed out of the organiza- tion's 20-year-old nonprofit support program, which makes investments in nonprofits in Hartford and 29 sur- rounding communities to support their capacity-building efforts through training and technical assistance. Melanie Tavares, director of the support program, said the accelera- tor gives participants an opportunity to reassess their resources through a different lens, and to learn the language of capital raising that the business community can recognize. "The organizations actually figure out there are a lot of benefits to take an- other look at what they are good at and where their expertise lies, and where there are opportunities," Tavares said. "As revenues get tighter and tougher to access, more and more are interested in finding new ways to diversify." FOCUS Quality Construction + Butler Manufacturing = Repeat Customers www.borghesibuilding.com © 2011 BlueScope Buildings North America, Inc. All rights reserved. Butler Manufacturing™ is a division of BlueScope Buildings North America, Inc. 2155 East Main Street • Torrington, Connecticut 06790 Nufern, East Granby, CT | 1989 | 40,000 sq. ft. 2013 | Addition — 20,000 sq. ft. Contact us at 860-482-7613 or visit us on the web. Hartford Foundation President Jay Williams addresses a crowd of nonprofit leaders looking to start for-profit ventures. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED our donors by our outcomes. When we promise to achieve a goal, when we set a strategy and produce deliver- ables, when we prove that what we do matters, then we are deemed worthy. No organization can survive without passing the worthiness test. And this is also true for the donor. Being worthy of a position on a do- nor roll, of being retained in a board seat or being relied upon to lead in the organization is an earned merit. In addition, being trustworthy is paramount to a nonprofit attracting and retaining support and advocacy. Trustworthiness is the sole outcome of transparency. And transparency to build trustworthiness only works if your organization is making stra- tegic and innovative decisions on mission efforts with care. As a donor, trustworthiness begins and ends with dependability. Have you done what you promised as a board member? Have you been reliable as a donor? For a nonprofit, having trustworthy donors and vol- unteers is an essential pillar of sup- port, one upon which they bank their whole program outcomes. Sondra Lintelmann Dellaripa is the president and principal consultant of Middletown-based Harvest Development Group, a nonprofit consulting firm. Looking to create a custom publication? Let us take care of it for you. ADVERTISING@HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM WWW.HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM/CUSTOMPUBLISHING | 860.236.9998 Whether it's the celebration of a major anniversary or the opening of a new headquarters, Hartford Business Journal's Custom Publishing Division can help you create a custom magazine for your business. Our division's top fl ight team of writers and designers can help you tell your story – and make your business look great! Based on our unique publishing model, it's surprisingly affordable. CALL TODAY!

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