Converting from Non-profit to For-profit Status 
Social Edge, February 9, 2007
Should you consider changing your organization's status from non-profit to for-profit? Patrick O'Heffernan lays out the five key questions to ask before you make the decision.
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Nonprofit Enterprise and Self-Sustainability Team (NESsT) Publications
NESsT, 2006
From NESst website “Designed to further the theory and practice of social enterprise by providing useful analyses and tools to donors, practitioners, researchers and students. The SET documents experiences from around the world and examines the recurring challenges organizations face when attempting to develop social enterprise. The series also provides CSO practitioners the necessary tools to determine how or whether to implement social enterprise strategies.”
>> More Details | created on: 02/21/2006
Nonprofit World Magazine
Nonprofit World Magazine, 2006
A bi-monthly magazine focused on nonprofit leadership, management, and governance. It has several articles about earned income activities, mainly under “Entrepreneurial Spirit” section. Subscription is required but some are free.
>> More Details | created on: 02/21/2006
The Process of Social Entreprenurship: Creating Opportunities Worthy of Serious Pursuit
By Aysey Guclu & J. Gregory Dees and Beth Battle Anderson, Center for the Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship, November, 2005
From CASE website “All acts of entrepreneurship start with the vision of an attractive opportunity. For social entrepreneurs, an "attractive" opportunity is one that has sufficient potential for positive social impact to justify the investment of time, energy, and money required to pursue it seriously. This note provides a framework to guide social entrepreneurs through the process of creating a worthwhile opportunity. It is designed to help increase the chances of success for anyone contemplating the journey of social entrepreneurship, and it may also be helpful for those considering investing in new social ventures.”
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Should Nonprofits Seek Profits
By William Foster & Jeffrey Bradach, Harvard Business Review, February, 2005
Analyzes the experiences with earned-income ventures of nonprofits in United States. Argues that, contrary to the general perception and excluding nonprofits in education, healthcare and arts, such as universities, hospitals and theater groups, the increasing number of business ventures launched by nonprofits represent only a small share of their funding and financial success is an exception not a rule. In addition, explains several nonprofits’ characteristics that reduce their chances of running business ventures with financial success, and highlights the risks of compromising the organization mission.
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Population Services International
Population Services International, 2005
According to PSI’s website, “PSI is a non-profit organization that harnesses the viability of the private, commercial sector to address health problems, with programs in safe water, malaria, micronutrients, family planning and HIV/AIDS in more than 70 countries. PSI collaborates with some of the world’s largest corporations to implement workplace health programs. For example, Coca-Cola transports condoms in South Africa. ChevronTexaco, ExxonMobile, Esso, BP, Marathon Oil Company, and Pfizer have been instrumental in increasing HIV/AIDS awareness.”
>> More Details | created on: 02/22/2006
International Center for Not-For-Profit Law
ICNL, 2005
The ICNL’s mission states: “The International Center for Not-For-Profit Law is an international not-for-profit organization that promotes an enabling legal environment for civil society, freedom of association, and public participation around the world.” They work in the areas of: Legal Framework for Civil Society, Civil Society Sustainability, Good Governance & Accountability, Public-Private Partnerships, Self-Regulation, Public Participation & Advocacy, Educational Initiatives, and The ICNL Knowledge Center. Their
online library is free but requires registration.
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NESsT's Legal Advocacy Working Group
NESsT, 2005
The Legal Advocacy Working (LAW) Group is the result of NESsT's increasing interest in securing enabling environments for NGO income generation. The LAW Group has published a series of country social enterprise legal briefs, including Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, Chile, Colombia, and soon Croatia.
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Arias Foundation for Peace and Human Progress
Center for Organized Participation, 2005
The Arias Foundation was created by former Costa Rican president and Nobel Peace Prize winner Oscar Arias. The Foundation’s Law and Civil Society Program began in 1993, when it produced case studies of the legal environment for NGOs in each Central American country. Next, the foundation began to advocate for a positive enabling environment for NGOs through public awareness campaigns. They are currently working to implement draft laws written by the country working groups in five Central American countries.
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Columbia Law School Public Interest Law Initiative
Columbia Law School, 2005 (Subscription Required)
PILI’s mission is to “advance human rights principles by stimulating the development of a public interest law infrastructure,” with a particular focus on Central and Eastern Europe. The organization has published numerous country reports in the region assessing the public interest legal climate in the country. Their NGO Advocacy Training program trains lawyers affiliated with NGOs in workshops designed to help them hone their public interest advocacy skills.
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Partnership on Nonprofit Ventures - Yale School of Management
The Goldman Sachs Foundation, 2005
Provides an interesting bibliography under Resource Center – Public/Private Partnerships.
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Helping Nonprofits Do Business
By Heinz-Peter Elstrodt & Anamaria Schindler and Andrea C. Waslander., The McKinsey Quarterly, Web exclusive, December, 2004
Highlights the importance of conducting business plan competitions for nonprofits in emerging markets. Describes the experiences of the Social Entrepreneur Award and its key factors of success. 1 Provides free access to some articles, but previous registration is required.
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The Pitfalls of Profits
By Burton A. Weisbrod, Stanford Social Innovation Review, December, 2004 (Subscription required)
Argues that nonprofits should avoid commercial activities given the legal, and reputational risks involved as well as the possibility of distracting from their social goals. The author supports this argument with examples in United States, and recommends a more favorable tax incentive environment to encourage more donations.
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Business Approaches for the Reproductive Health NGO
By Anna Benton, Commercial Market Strategies (CMS) Paper, February, 2004
Addresses the public-private partnerships between the Commercial Market Strategies (CMS) and a number of NGOs working in the reproductive health sector. CMS provides sustainability assistance to NGOs in 12 countries and holds regional sustainability workshops in Africa, Latin America, and the Arab world, and is considered a leader in private-sector approaches to reproductive health.
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Generating and Sustaining Nonprofit Earned Income. A Guide to Successful Enterprise Strategies
By Sharon Oster & Cynthia Massarsky, Jossey-Bass, 2004
Presents key issues for nonprofits interested in starting business ventures. It is divided in three sections: how to develop a business plan, find an attract capital, and implement the business plan. The fist part of this book starts with a presentation o
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Social Enterprise Typology
By Sutia Kim Alter, Virtue Ventures, 2004
Presents an overview of the place of Social Enterprise in the spectrum of different organizations, from philanthropic to commercial oriented. Proposes different typologies to analyze social enterprises, and key operational aspects that affect the success of these ventures. Finally, it illustrates some models of social enterprise with case studies in Latin America.
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USAID Europe and Asia The NGO Sustainability Index
USAID - Europe and Eurasia, 2004
This index measures the strength and viability of the NGO sector in the region. It includes a legal environment analysis, a financial viability assessment and a general description of NGOs’ commercial activities. It is available for several countries and on the web since 1998.
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Alexandria Small Business Association (ABA)
UNESCO, 2004
UNESCO, the Management of Social Transformation Program -MOST- Clearing House Best Practices.
This database documents the case of ABA, an NGO that provides lending to small and medium enterprises in Egypt, and the methods ABA used to cover its operation costs.
Additional information can be found at
The Microfinance Network.
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Powering Social Change - Lessons on Community Wealth Generation for Nonprofit Sustainability
Community Wealth Ventures, 2003
Many of the country’s most innovative nonprofit leaders are transforming their organizations by creating new, unrestricted sources of funding. Through business ventures, cause-related marketing partnerships, and licensing agreements, nonprofits are generating revenue to support their services and grow to scale.
>> More Details | created on: 07/06/2006
Sustainable Expansion Strategies, Case Studies of 18 Regional Leaders in Microfinance
Microfinance Center for Central and Eastern Europe and the New Independent States, 2003
Central and Eastern Europe and the Newly Independent States (CEE & the NIS) are the newest frontier in microfinance. While a few microfinance institutions (MFIs) have existed for nearly ten years, the average MFI in the region is three years old. A key di
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The Best of Both Worlds
By David Yanovich, Poder, October, 2002
The concept of venture philanthropy is proving to be one of the most efficient means of financing non-profit organizations.
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Case Study: Adriadna and the International Education Center for Youth
By Sutia Kim Alter, In Case Studies in Social Enterprise Counterpart International’s Experience, September, 2002
Case Studies in Social Enterprise: Counterpart International's Experience explains: (1) social enterprise, (2) its importance as a developmental tool in emerging economies around the world, and (3) through four in-depth case studies in Ukraine, highlights
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Case Studies in Social Enterprise: Counterpart International Experience
By Sutia Kim Alter, Counterpart International, Inc, 2002
Documents case studies of four nonprofit business ventures in Ukraine, which were part of the Counterpart Alliance for Partnership Social Enterprise Program. The cases highlight challenges, social impact, business results, and key success factor of these social enterprises.
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Ensuring Impact: Reaching the Poorest While Building Financially Self-Sufficient Institutions, and Showing Improvement in the Lives of the Poorest Families
By Anton Simanowitz & Alice F. Walter. Chapter one, Pathways Out of Poverty. Innovations in Microfinance for the Poorest Families. Kummarian Press, 2002
Explores the trade-offs between reaching the poorest and achieving financial self-sufficiency, and how microfinance institutions can overcome them. Presents case studies of two nonprofit organizations, SHARE and CRECER.
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Strategic Tools for Social Entrepreneurs
By J Gregory Dees & Peter Economy and Jed Emerson, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2002
This is a complementary book to “Enterprising Nonprofits: a Toolkit for Social Entrepreneurs.” It covers additional critical issues organized in two topics: (1) value creation and performance, and (2) addressing growth, change and earned income strategies. The first offers insights to identify the service value that an organization can provide, and explanations, practical examples and deep analysis of how to develop a strategic vision, to position the organization’s value, to compete and/or to cooperate with other nonprofits and corporations, to recruit and motivate employees, establish relationships with donors and community, to implement a performance evaluation system. The second topic explores various earned income strategies their risks and challenges, strategic alternatives to scaling up, and how to successfully implement changes in an organization.
>> More Details | created on: 06/13/2006
Enterprising Nonprofits: A Toolkit for Social Entrepreneurs
By J. Gregory Dees & Peter Economy, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2001
Provides practical tools to help nonprofits to become social enterprises through the adoption of entrepreneurial behaviors and business techniques. Covers important concepts of effective social entrepreneurship such as defining the organization mission.
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The Microcredit Summit’s Challenge: Working Towards Institutional Financial Self-Sufficiency while Maintaining a Commitment to Serving the Poorest Families
By David S. Gibbons & Jennifer Meehan, June, 2000
Studies the cases of CARD, CRECER and FINCA Uganda, microfinance institutions that have reached institutional financial self-sufficiency and also serve large numbers of the poorest households. Identifies lessons in key areas that can be learned from these experiences.
>> More Details | created on: 02/21/2006
PRIDE/Finance Linking an African Microfinance Institution to a Formal US Banking Structure
USAID, News Stories. The Virtual library of Microcredit, 2000
Describes the efforts of USAID and the government of Guinea to help PRIDE/Finance to become financially self-sustainable, by implementing performance-based standards and linking the institution to a formal banking system.
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The Evolution of Nongovernmental Organizations Toward Financial Intermediation
By Otero, Maria.Chapter five & Rhyne, Elizabeth (eds)., The New World of Microenterprise Finance: Building Healthy Financial Institutions for the Poor. Part I No.5, 1994
Identifies the characteristics that NGOs should display in order to engage in financial intermediation. This transformation is considered one effective way for NGOs to achieve significant expansions in a sustainable way.
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Enterprising Nonprofits
By Greg Dees, Harvard Business Review, January, 1988
Analyses several options to raise additional funds available to nonprofits in United States. Hightlights its advantages, risks and challenges, in particular in terms of fulfill the organization social mission.
>> More Details | created on: 06/13/2006