Is "Run It Like A Business" overrated?

Recently there is a boom on social media about the Flint water crisis. The town saved over $5 million with this bid; however, the problem does not seem to be the money at all. 

(Read the wrap-up story about the Flint water crisis here)

A few blog articles I've read regarding this very matter pointed the root cause of the crisis is the government was trying to run it like a business. In nonprofits as well, I like to think that many nonprofits should adopt business models to be able to sustain in this environment. This including my nonprofit marketing agency for nonprofit organizations idea posted earlier as well. I believe, many have missed the point!

Run It Like Business?

This does not mean "become" business. It is true for us, nonprofits, our goals and objectives are often subjective, which make it hard for us to measure... really, anything. Numbers are easier in every way to determine the effectiveness of our operation.

NEVER FORGET WHERE WE CAME FROM AND WHY WE ARE HERE

In educational institutions, if you had a chance to take a business program. They teach you, the ultimate goal of all businesses is "to generate shareholders' wealth". This got in my ears for years, and I always have the question, why? Until today, I cannot really figure it out why... of course for more investors, business growth, retain earnings, etc. but why? Yes, many people think I'm naive, maybe I am, but have you ever asked yourself why you do anything you do apart from just knowing "that's how things work".

Credit: Clker

All in all, I'm trying to say that, use business tools to improve your organization but never use business mindset to run your charity. If you don't get it, see this in an extreme way, you use a hammer smashing a nail into wood boards. Great! you are using a tool to make things more efficient. But you don't think to become a hammer, a nail, or wood boards. Of course, that's stupid and it's impossible, well, look at this, I believe we are trying to say, be yourself, use business tools that's it. Don't try to be a business person to use the tools.


A little note I'd like to add. If you are running a business, try to consider your business to run like a charity as well. How? I'll come back to that later.

"Shaping the Future of Business"

Keep in touch:

Twitter - @Rathapat_S

LinkedIn - Rathapat (Moe) Suwanaratana

The Big Idea for Nonprofits Marketing

Each and every year charities in Canada receive less financial supports from the government sector. If this pattern keeps going where would the charities end up? In my prediction, we will see more and more of larger charities 'acquire' the smaller charities forming a larger organization with boarder scope of work. There is no certainty of the circumstances if it happens. “If they are doing exactly the same thing (eg. breast cancer related charities), wouldn’t it be better off to have a single organization to handle the subject?” I do not know the answer to that; what I know is that larger organizations require lots more processes and procedures before one action can take place, smaller organizations have much flexibility to act upon needs. For this reason, I believe the combination of both large and small(er) organizations would be more effective for social needs.

I’m all for the small to medium size nonprofits, not because I do not like the big guys, but I believe thousands of small guys can make a great impact no lesser than a big guy, beyond that, much faster (if integrated well). The idea here is how to make the small guys sustain themselves in this competitive and blood-sucking environment? I say, marketing, market your impact, market your cause, and ma[r]ke[t] the difference. Above other important things needed in the organization, you need marketing.

What Am I Saying?

Here’s the click, marketing is so expensive! Oh, yes, it is. What if there is a nonprofit organization professional in marketing that works for nonprofit organizations? That’s the idea. I am an apprentice in marketing/public relations and I can see this is possible.

How?

By connecting small businesses those depends their revenue from communities with charities those are the centre of communities. Charities have much to learn from the business perspectives and vice versa. That’s the basic concept; however, it will get lots more complicated in term of how the organization runs: revenue model, managements, board governance, etc.

If this is a nonprofit organization, does it mean, it cannot make profit? No, it doesn't mean that it cannot generate profit. Many people misunderstand that a charity cannot make profit. The difference is that charity does not pay dividend (nor have shareholders in this regards). The income is used and the profit is return into the organization. The excess income will be used to train and educate the other nonprofit organizations for self-sustaining as well as to expand. 

I believe the goal of all nonprofit organizations is to solve the social imperfections and cease to exist due to their services are no longer required (very unlikely, but that’s the goal). Once the small guys have the skills to maintain or even better, grow itself with minimum support from the government sector; then, the organization achieve its objective.

I am currently an MBA student working on a research project on effective nonprofits management, partially to find the best way that would make this type of organization works. If you are interested in further detail of the organization I am planning, let me know, maybe we can make an important change for the charities in Vancouver, and perhaps, Canada.

"Shaping the Future of Business"

Keep in touch:

Twitter - @Rathapat_S

LinkedIn - Rathapat (Moe) Suwanaratana

Anyone Can Be A Marketer, Can you?... Really?

As I am writing this, I am constructing another blog for the idea mentioned in the previous post; thus, unfortunately this post is not it. However, to give a quick idea, it is the 'nonprofit marketing agency for nonprofit organizations'. It sounds straightforward and clear, but is it?

Since I was pursuing my bachelor degree I decided to major in Pubic Relations, which I believe many PR skills are interchangeable with marketing (especially in promotion aspect). Many people told me that anyone can be a marketer or public relations practitioner. I agree! and you know what? Every one can be a doctor, a pilot, a scientist, an astronaut, you name it. The only impossibility here would be we cannot be non-human (genetically).

The big idea today is marketing is not for everyone, or you think it's for you, your personality may prevent you from being good at it. And here is the twist, the awesome thing about marketing is the field is so large that it can fit any personality you may have. If you are an introvert person, welcome to marketing analyst. You are a planner / thinker, well, marketing strategist seems to be for you. You enjoy dynamic working environment, then event marketer is sound for you. You get my point. So again, yes, anyone can be a marketer. Let's take an extreme example, leave a comment if you prefer a creative surgeon over the stick-to-the-point kind of surgeon.

Apart from theories, processes, and systems that a marketer needs to know (and yes, anyone who study them can do that). I believe that being a marketer is being a nosy explorer full with curiosities and the why not attitude (what picture popped in your head just now? I was thinking of a Beagle). We take (necessary) risks to see what works and what's not. Are you that type of person?

Credit: Micah Brian Riddle

If you are a marketer and you are not being a Beagle, be one. If you are already being a Beagle, keep going, be there, show up, anywhere your legs can take you.

"Shaping the Future of Business"

Keep in touch:

Twitter - @Rathapat_S

LinkedIn - Rathapat (Moe) Suwanaratana

4 Criteria of Personal Core Competencies

Have you ever wonder how a person get paid so much for their career while you believe the job is not extraordinary? Well, I do sometimes. 

Recently I learned an corporate internal environment analysis in my master and came across the core competency criteria. It was nothing particularly new or unique, but at a closer look, I tried to apply to myself as a person. 

It WORKS! Let's see how...

What is Core Competency?

Following the concept by Coyne, Hall, and Clifford proposed that the core competency is "aggregates of capabilities, where synergy is created that has sustainable value and broad applicability." 

The 4 Criteria

A core competency must be:

• Valuable
• The set of capabilities should help the person in the process of finding opportunities and create value, or preventing threats from surrounding.
• Rare
• The capabilities are possessed by few people, or none.
• Costly to Imitate
• The capabilities should not be easily copied due to 3 main factors:
1. Experience- Rich or extraordinary personal experience
2. Causal ambiguity
   - Unique ways of doing things that no one can understand
3. Social complexity
   - Network and relationship of the person
• Non-substitutable
• The capabilities that is invisible to others; thus, make it difficult to substitute.

Core competencies are the reason behind the differences between individuals which create competitive advantage that makes others perceived you are an important person that cannot be substituted.

I hope after reading this article you can find your capabilities and create your own core competencies.

"Shaping the Future of Business"

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Twitter - @Rathapat_S

LinkedIn - Rathapat (Moe) Suwanaratana

[Part 1] Micro-Econonprofit 101

[Continued: Issues OR Opportunities?]

Merry Christmas! I hope everyone has had a great time with love ones and safe journey. Once again, lots of great things were done over Christmas this year.

Previous post I touched on three major focuses I've found when I was volunteering, working, and studying about nonprofit organizations in BC, particularly Lower Mainland BC. In this post, I would like to expand on the first focus, "Lack of Financial Supports".

There are several ways a nonprofit organization can obtain financial income: donations, sponsors, grants, product or service fees, etc. Many organizations I am aware of, spend lots of time on seeking donations, sponsors, and grant writings; but not many seek to improve its services or products and focus on sustainable income from its own operation. It is true that many organizations are serving to the target with limited income; thus, charging the clients for sustainability would not be feasible, but that does not mean the organization cannot have additional services to generate funds, or even a social enterprise.

The question is probably how to create such thing as social enterprise or provide services that high income population can enjoy because of the perception toward nonprofit organizations' services (eg. private fitness facility versus YMCA).

As many nonprofit organizations will hate me for this, but it is true that we need to operate as if we are a business. This does not mean that we need to pursue maximization of shareholder's wealth. It means, we need to have a organizational (business) plan for both short and long term (click here if you are not sure what is business plan looks like).

Do we really need a organizational plan for a not-for-profit organization? I say yes, because business plan organizes all aspects within an organization and the detailed organizational plan would create a clear single path for staff to follow. Which will likely lead the organizations to the successful result.

Lastly, having products and services that allow organizational sustainability will generate constant cash flow rather than relying on single-time donation. Several organizations is now pursuing sustainability plan by using monthly sign-up which in my opinion, is not sustainable (even though the results proved otherwise).

Next I will discuss about the second topic, "Lack of skilled labors". Generally, it is one of the important reasons preventing nonprofit organizations to grow. Find out in my next post.

"Shaping the Future of Business"

Keep in touch:

Twitter - @Rathapat_S

LinkedIn - Rathapat (Moe) Suwanaratana