One thing I love about working with non-profits is their grit. They are scrappy and roll up their sleeves to get the job done. They often have tiny operating budgets, inconsistent staffing models (volunteers), and inconsistent financial forecasts (donations). As a result, non-profits must constantly innovate and create new ways to meet their objectives. These are three things any team or organization can take into the company to help drive their own innovation

Spend Like It's Yours

Back in 2013, a couple students wanted to help change the food landscape in St. Louis. They wanted to address the needs of residents living in food deserts, on the North side of town. Colin Dowling, Jeremy Goss and Tej Azad started from nothing and through the selection as a Clinton Global Initiative Commitment to Action, the donation of a retired bus from the city of St. Louis, and a grant from the Incarnate Word Foundation, Metro Market and the Turnip 1 were born. Turnip 1 is the first mobile grocery store for Metro Market, serving the areas most in need of fresh and nutritious foods. The vision, grit and scrappiness now brings a Farmers’ Market experience, with a locally sourced fresh and organic bounty, to the areas most in need. The food is sold at cost to Northside residents. To help meet operational costs, Metro Market works in partnership with corporations, providing a valuable revenue stream. Metro Market continues to operate in a lean and innovative way, always thinking about how to serve more, while operating in a constrained financial and operational environment. To learn more about the Metro Market story, visit the story here. 

Non-profits understand small budgets better than anyone, but corporations can learn from their small-budget mindset. MTV provides a great story of how companies can think like a non-profit and innovate with a tiny budget.  In the early 90s, MTV planned to launch a new drama series, but stopped at the last minute because the cost of a scripted show would be too high. Producers and writers brainstormed how to create a drama on a shoestring budget. The solution was to assemble a group of aspiring actors paid primarily with exposure and a free place to live. What resulted was a simple show called "The Real World," and it marked the beginning of the reality show format we know today. Even though MTV was a for-profit corporation, this team had to think like a non-profit to solve a big challenge with a tiny budget.

Whose Job Is It Anyway?

Non-Profits largely operate with volunteers, meaning workers can be inconsistent. To cope, non-profits are experts at mobilizing social and professional networks. You might already be thinking like a non-profit when you buy or sell Girl Scout Cookies. This is the power of the non-profit at work, but why don't we bring this into our corporate work lives?

Several years ago I had to make a training video. Great! Wait, I have no idea how to make a video and I don't love being on camera. I remembered my friend's daughters enjoyed acting, so I called them up and asked if they would be interested in helping me. They jumped at the chance. I wrote a script, we practiced and recorded it on my phone. I had another colleague help me with video editing and voila! The video was a hit and it didn't cost me thousands of dollars. Was it Oscar material? No, but the outcome was the same. We thought like a non-profit and knocked it out of the park. It won't always be this easy, but if you are thoughtful, you can learn a great deal from those outside your typical group.

Funding Not Guaranteed

Non-profits understand funding is not guaranteed. They constantly seek ways to future-proof their organization, in case things change dramatically or they have a tough year. Take this lesson into for-profits by future-proofing your innovations. If we assume there will be no future budget for our innovations, we work harder to make them self-sustaining. People become wildly creative when they risk losing something important.

When I moved into my first apartment, I knew daily breakfast runs were unsustainable, because, rent. If I wanted daily tacos, I had to find ways to support my taco habit. I began cooking dinner at home. I did not assume I would make more money or get a bonus, to subsidize my taco habit. Obviously, tacos are not the same as corporations, but I had to use those same mental muscles to protect my taco future. Apply these same principles at work and get the creative juices flowing. When we aren't complacent, it's much easier to rediscover creativity.

So What Can I Do?

Look around at the problems you are trying to solve. How you would approach the problem if you were in the same position as a non-profit. If budget is your problem, see what others do and leverage their experience. Don't have staffing? Maybe someone in another department has some free time and is up for a challenge, or wants to learn something new. Maybe you have interns to help solve a problem, or can break the solution into smaller pieces to help meet your short term goals, while seeking longer term solutions. Solve for long-term sustainability in the moment. Don't take for granted how things may change in the future and if you do a little risk planning, you will be rewarded.  

Learn more about Salesforce for Nonprofits here!

Cathy Kading, Program Executive, Expeditions Team