BIG IDEA
Inquiry and Research are both about gathering information. Inquiry involves asking and answering questions, while research is an investigation and review of content and data to reach a conclusion.
Information gathering is an essential part of the nonprofit development process. As we are positioning ourselves to solve problems in our communities, we want to be able to demonstrate knowledge of our cause and readiness to take on the challenge.
We have to be able to answer the ‘Who, What, Where, When, Why and How’ questions easily and consistently when writing proposals and sharing our story with stakeholders.
Who do we serve? Demographics: age, race, sex, economic status, education, employment, other unique characteristics.
What are the needs of this population? What is already being done to address this need? What are the gaps in service? What will happen if we don’t take further action to address the need?
Where does this problem exist? Where will our organization do the most good? Is it on the local, state, regional, national level?
When will we take action? Will the program take place over a number of weeks, months or years?
Why was this nonprofit started? Why are you the best person to lead the organization?
How will we accomplish the mission? How will we develop and deliver programs that make an impact? How will we run operations and fundraising?
Collecting data that supports your position and problem statement will help validate the need and guide decision making. Use this guide to find statistics that fit your population and cause.
Finding Statistics for Your Nonprofit Proposals
KEY CONCEPTS
Hypothesis: a proposed explanation or best guess for something being experienced
Evidence: facts or information that validate a claim
Inquiry: Seeking information or knowledge through questioning
Research: an investigation and examination of content and data to establish facts and draw conclusions
Report: to provide an account of observations, experiences, data and/or research
Innovation: new products, ideas or methods that provide value or solve a problem
PROMPTS
Write as little or as much as you like
How do you know that the problem your nonprofit solves, is actually a problem?
What evidence is there to support your problem statement. Evidence can be personal experience, statistical data, events as examples, or a credible source.How will you know when you are making progress or achieving your nonprofits mission?
What are the indicators of success for your program, and are they directly connected to the problem your organization intends to solve?What other organizations are working to solve the same problem as you?
How familiar are you with the solutions provided by others? Are these organizations competition or collaborators?What is unique about the solution your organization offers?
How are your programs and services unlike those that are offered by other organizations?
TASK
Develop a Letter of Inquiry: Use the "‘who, what, where, when, why and how'‘ model, and the template here to create a letter of inquiry that you will use to introduce your organization to funders. Letter of Inquiry Template
RESOURCES