Capacity Building

“Building Adaptive Capacity: The Quest for Improved Organizational Performance,” Carl Sussman, research paper, 2003. This paper defines three forms of capacity (programmatic, organizational, and adaptive) and how to balance them. It examines how to build capacity both internally and externally.

“Building Community Capacity to Meet Public Needs,” Lydian Altman-Sauer, Margaret Henderson, and Gordon Whitaker, Popular Government, Winter, 2005. Link to article provided with permission of the School of Government, copyright 2005. This copyrighted material may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the express written permission of the School of Government, CB# 3330 UNC Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599-3330; telephone: 919-966-4119; fax 919-962-2707; Web address: www.sog.unc.edu. This article identifies benefits that local governments receive from working with small community nonprofits, challenges that these nonprofits often face in developing internal strength, reasons that governments help address these challenges, and strategies that governments use to provide such assistance.

“Evaluating Capacity-Building Efforts for Nonprofit Organizations,” Paul Connolly and Peter York, OD Practitioner, Vol. 34, No. 4, 2002. This article explains how nonprofit organizations, consultants, funders, and evaluators can evaluate capacity-building activities.

“Everyday Leaders: Building the Adaptive Capacity of Nonprofit Organizations,” Anne Sherman, TCC Group newsletter, Winter, 2005. This article defines adaptive capacity and adaptive leadership and outlines strategies for building adaptive leadership capacity.