Forces for Good: The Six Practices of High-Impact Nonprofits by Heather McLeod Grant, Leslie Crutchfield

Synopsis

An innovative guide to how great nonprofits achieve extraordinary social impact.
What makes great nonprofits great? Authors Crutchfield and McLeod Grant searched for the answer over several years, employing a rigorous research methodology which derived from books on for-profits like Built to Last. They studied 12 nonprofits that have achieved extraordinary levels of impact—from Habitat for Humanity to the Heritage Foundation—and distilled six counterintuitive practices that these organizations use to change the world. This book has lessons for all readers interested in creating significant social change, including nonprofit managers, donors and volunteers.

Leslie R. Crutchfield (Washington, D.C.) is a managing director of Ashoka and research grantee of the Aspen Institute. Heather McLeod Grant (Palo Alto, CA) is a nonprofit consultant and advisor to Duke University’s Center for the Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship and the Stanford Center for Social Innovation. Crutchfield and Grant were co-founding editors of Who Cares, a national magazine reaching 50,000 readers in circulation between 1993-2000.

Brian Walton - Library Journal

Crutchfield and Grant, cofounders of Who Cares?, a national quarterly journal devoted to community service and social activism, have put together a workable list of the six best practices for nonprofits based on a thorough study of 12 high-impact organizations, from Habitat for Humanity to the National Council of La Raza. The practices they advocate are fairly straightforward (e.g., "inspire evangelists"), if a little short on specific implementations, but the book's real strength is how well it translates business practices and philosophies to the nonprofit sector, in particular by shifting the focus from competition to collaboration. The work suffers a little from a surfeit of jargon, but it's a decent read with sound ideas. Every organization can take something from it, but if your nonprofit isn't on the road to national attention, don't expect to pick up more than a couple of ideas. Recommended for larger business and leadership collections.

Biography

Leslie R. Crutchfield is a managing director of Ashoka: Innovators of the Public, a philanthropic adviser, and a research grantee of The Aspen Institute's Nonprofit Sector and Philanthropy Program. She serves on the board of the SEED Foundation and resides in the Washington, D.C., area.


Heather McLeod Grant is an adviser to the Center for Social Innovation at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business and to leading nonprofits. She is a former McKinsey & Company consultant, serves on the Advisory Board of Stanford Social Innovation Review, and resides in the San Francisco Bay Area.