One Penny Per Tear

A picture of a malnourished child in southern Sudan flashes across your fourteen inch screen. A soft voice in the background tells the story. A few more pictures, a couple of video clips, a tear here and there. We are done. That’s all. Our program is efficient, effective and necessary to change the world.

Humans are emotional and caring beings. A picture of a suffering child somewhere in southern Sudan will definitely raise emotions, cause a tear here and there, and open wallets. What emotion can’t do however is demand accountability. There are so many problems in the world that we can throw our money at. But in the end, it may be just that; throwing money. Recently I talked with a non profit leader about goals and strategic planning for his non profit. He told me he can’t really do goals because the change he is making cannot be measured in terms of goals and plans. “Wonderful”, I said. “But what about efficiency? How do you measure efficiency if you don’t have goals?

A lot of non profit leaders run away from setting goals because they think that this kind of stuff is for the big guys in for-profit businesses. A friend of mine remarked that passion does not always come with ability. That for sure is true. But we have to remember that we can’t change the world by blowing wind. If we are to change the world, then our non profits, social entrepreneurs, and philanthropists of this world must learn to plan. One man once said that if you are failing to plan then you are planning to fail. I believe that the structural design of any successful nonprofit is no different than a for-profit company. In both cases, management needs to identify goals and mission, develop a focused strategy, and build efficient organizational structures. This is the only way we can measure the change our money is making in the world. Helping orphans in southern Sudan is a noble cause but results can be very difficult to measure unless we have a definite plan. I believe that its high time donors demanded amore strict accountability system within their recipient organizations. Donors must be looked at as shareholders in their nonprofit of choice. And as such, they must demand that their funds be allocated efficiently and effectively.

As we tighten accountability measures in nonprofit organizations, I believe we will achieve so much more than we would by tossing a coin here and there in response to our emotions.