To me, a Chief Operating Officer is a metaphor for “solid, effective organizational operations and execution” rather than a specific position or responsibility. The HBR article tends to support this view—acknowledging that the function of the COO may be vested in a role with some other title—and illustrates the wide range for how the COO role can be viewed by suggesting seven different archetypes.

While the article is heavily skewed in the semantics and examples of private sector business, much applies or, at least, may give guidance for the COO role in nonprofit organizations. At the end of the article, the author poses a hanging question—Is the role of COO on the rise or decline? Ironically this is the primary conundrum for determining the role. Because there is no one set of responsibilities, commonly accepted definition, or “constants”, management and board must arrive at their own conclusions for what best fits their organization’s COO needs.

Having dealt with the issue of COO roles at various stages of my commercial career, especially in the late 1980s and 1990s, and having direct and indirect experience in helping establish the COO function in a score of nonprofits since 1992, I am strongly convinced that there is a compelling need for the COO function in a certain type and class of nonprofits—but certainly not all. The core of the issue for many nonprofit organizations is even more fundamental than the lack of a single definition—and that is having the experience in the board and executive director to understand what a COO role does and how it can help management and increase operational effectiveness.

This understandable lack of relevant experience on the part of some nonprofit leaders is clearly illustrated by what a Head of School once said when I suggested that a COO-like talent could help their organization: “I’m an educator and don’t have a clue about many of the things I’m now faced with every day—budgets, systems, personnel evaluations, and the like. And I don’t know what you mean when you say COO—what is that, what do they do, how does it change what I do?”

This individual typifies so many remarkable, compelling people who have put their hearts, souls, and sweat equity into building nonprofits that help make a meaningful difference in people’s lives. But, as their organizations grow and add programs and funders, increase the number served, and/or expand to more than one location, they wake up one day managing an organization that looks very different from the one they started, with very different managerial needs. Yes, their leadership, the passion for those served, their conviction to mission are as important as ever—even more so. But, as I long ago learned (the hard way), leadership in the absence of strong operational management rallies those you care for most around an inevitable oncoming implosion.

When contemplating the COO role, it’s important to focus on substance over form. Specifically, the title of COO (the form) is much less important than an organization coming to grips with its need for effective operational management—that is, the management capacity (people, systems, and know-how) that allows an organization to ensure that its “trains run on time” (the substance). And, the colloquialism of the “trains running on time” means that things run effectively and efficiently, within budget, and with the information to know in a timely manner when they are (or aren’t) doing so.

But, an important caveat for good operational management comes from a favorite Druckerism: “It is more important to do the right thing, than to do things right.” I’d prefer a nonprofit producing meaningful, lasting outcomes for children and families that is an operational disaster to one that is “well-managed”, but having only incremental benefit in helping those they serve.

Effective operations must yield improved results. In business, this is measured in profits, market share, low employee turnover, and satisfied clients. Similarly a nonprofit with effective operations must also yield improved results—measured in outcomes that are making a real difference in the lives of the children and families served, but also in “market perception,” staff turnover and retention, secured funding, and how much the community it serves appreciates what it does.

So what defines operational effectiveness? Well-written job descriptions, elaborate policies and procedures, human resource management guidelines and handbooks, expensive software systems, and a score of other things, in all honesty, have little to do with it. These are merely symbols, not the essence of good operations. If you have a clear vision of your work that is commonly shared, if people know what to do, if they care deeply and are well-trained and equipped for their work, if they feel respected and heard, if there is good internal communication, if programs are of high quality, if leaders demonstrate a continual need for the organization and those in it to improve, and if you establish a rigor and integrity in how all of this is managed by using timely, factual information and managerial common sense—then you can have “good operations.”

In our work with Venture Philanthropy Partners, we focus on what we call breakthrough organizations—organizations that have grown, or are growing, in complexity and size, and have reached the point where how they are run day-to-day is of critical importance—and we place a premium on the concept of the COO. But, we don’t (and experience bears this out) always see this manifest itself in establishing a formal position with the title of COO. What is important is that the executive director and board have the objectivity to see how their organization has changed, understand the strengths and limits of the executive director, the management needs, and then bring all of this together to define the need to strengthen operational management to support the executive director and the organization. To date, the VPP investment partners, in aggregate, have made substantial, even remarkable progress in their knowledge, experience, and practical understanding of what it takes to establish the COO function—with or without the title—and how to do it successfully, despite a number of painful and hard lessons, some still ongoing.

The sheer notion of a COO function runs counter to many of the traditional views—and limits—that we impose on great nonprofit leaders and their organizations:

• As nonprofits grow in complexity and/or size, the need for greater operational management is acute, but too often unrecognized and/or unaddressed by management and by boards that shirk their fiduciary roles.
  
• There is often confusion or misunderstanding of management roles in general, even beyond the COO role, as organizations change—and only time and experience can cure this. And, related to this may be the challenge of how a founder-led organization evolves to institutionalize the organization.
  
• Donors sometimes have an unrelenting and myopic focus on low overheads and “lean management” which is often counterproductive to achieving the very results everyone wants.

Highly relevant to nonprofits is a point the author notes: “Fundamentally, the role of COO is situational—depends on the nature of the CEO, the business and what it does, needs of the organization, etc., unlike a role of CFO that has much clearer and more common functional description.” And, I believe this is precisely the case for nonprofits and supports why we can’t over-generalize the role or presume to create an effective school or curriculum to train COOs. The article then provides seven reasons for having a COO or COO-like function, which I’ve paraphrased:

• The Executor. One role of the COO is to lead the execution of strategies developed by top management. It is simply a concession to the complexity and scope of the CEO’s job today, with its numerous external constituents. The COO takes responsibility for delivering results on a day-to-day basis, while the CEO is focused on the strategic, long-term challenges and major opportunities.
  
• The Change Agent. Sometimes the COO is used to lead a specific strategic initiative, such as a turnaround, a major organizational change, or a planned rapid expansion. This requires the COO to have a degree of unquestioned authority similar to that of an executor COO.
  
• The Mentor. Some organizations use a COO to mentor a young or inexperienced CEO (often a founder). A rapidly growing entrepreneurial venture might seek an industry veteran with seasoning, wisdom, and a rich network who can develop both the CEO and the emerging business.
  
• The Other Half. A role that complements the CEO’s experience, style, knowledge base, or penchants. For instance, providing a “calm, self-effacing manner.”
  
• The Partner. Sometimes a CEO simply works better with a partner, a form of co-leadership management.
  
• The Heir Apparent. Sometimes the role of a COO is to groom—or test—a company’s CEO-elect, and gives the person a chance to learn the whole company, its business, environment, and people. Being identified as a likely heir to the role of CEO is not a guarantee.
  
• The MVP. Some companies offer the job of COO as a promotion to an executive considered too valuable to lose.

Putting the title aside, establishing a strong and effective COO function is the most important step nonprofits at a certain growth stage can take next to ensuring that their organization has a compelling leader as its executive director and a strong board. For a breakthrough nonprofit, doing so may prove to be the most liberating action it can take, one that enables its Executive Director to be much more effective for greater impact, helps build a more engaged and effective board, and changes the inner workings of an organization to make it a better place for the staff to work and grow.

As always, my best,
Mario Morino

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Venture Philanthropy Partners, its founding investors, and its nonprofit partners are the cover story of the May issue of Washington Life magazine. The nine-page article, “Venture Philanthropy Partners: Invest in Social Change,” includes a lead story about VPP’s investment approach; sidebars from the co-founders—Raul Fernandez, Chairman and CEO of ObjectVideo, VPP Chairman Mario Morino, and Governor Mark Warner—and Jack Davies, Jim Kimsey, and Joe Robert, three prominent VPP investors; short profiles and key accomplishments of the 12 nonprofit investment partners; quotes throughout from founding investor Kathy Bushkin Calvin, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the UN Foundation; VPP Managing Partner Carol Thompson Cole; VPP board members Ken Slaughter, Partner at Venable, LLP, and Ralph Smith, Senior Vice President of Annie E. Casey Foundation; and a photo gallery of VPP’s other founding investors.

The magazine has a readership of approximately 150,000 and is available by subscription or at newsstands at locations including Whole Foods, Barnes & Noble, Olson’s, Borders, all regional airports, and Union Station. The May issue is online now.

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The Cases kicked off a brief speaking program by citing the noteworthy work being done independently by those in the room and emphasizing the importance of bringing this group together as “investors in our community,” with the power to leverage their collective resources, ingenuity, and resourcefulness for a common good. Governor Mark Warner, a VPP co-founder, addressed how VPP’s work holds many lessons for policymakers and how its efforts can influence philanthropy in the future.

Ken Slaughter, who sits on VPP’s and three investment partner boards, in some ways stole the show with a humorous first-hand account of his initial skepticism of VPP’s efforts and how, over time, he became a true believer, realizing VPP was there to help his organizations, not control or change them. Managing Partner Carol Thompson Cole then shared her personal conviction for VPP’s mission and highlighted some of the many accomplishments of VPP’s nonprofit partners. Finally, Chairman Mario Morino provided an overview of VPP’s first five years and wrapped up by outlining VPP’s broad vision for the future.

The Case event and the positive reception by all those attending confirmed the tremendous potential of this group, VPP, and its nonprofit partners to be a powerful force for social change, both for the National Capital Region and beyond.

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Collaborative Investment with NewSchools Venture Fund of more than $4.5 Million in Friendship Public Charter School

Together, VPP and NewSchools will invest more than $4.5 million into Friendship over the next several years to support specific strategic initiatives related to Friendship’s plans for growth and for improving the quality of its existing schools.

Friendship plans to open two more groundbreaking public charter schools. The first, Tech Prep, will be a high-tech career academy designed to serve 600 students in grades 7-12. Through Tech Prep’s curriculum—which fuses traditional academics with real-world technical applications—students will prepare for careers in information technology, media technology, healthcare, and environmental sciences. Tech Prep students will also have the opportunity to take college courses and earn course credits through partnerships with area community colleges. The second, Friendship Prep, will be the region’s first k-12 Spanish immersion and International Baccalaureate (IB) Program (considered one of the most rigorous academic programs in the nation), which will serve 1,100 students at full capacity. By 2010, Friendship will serve more than 6,000 students.

Donald Hense, Friendship’s founder and Board of Trustees’ chairman, said, “Friendship Public Charter School is exceptionally effective because our schools go far beyond the standard to ensure public education is not only a bridge to academic achievement, but a path to lifelong learning for students at all levels. The VPP and NewSchools partnership will enable Friendship to build on current success and significantly expand its capacity to deliver educational programs that prepare students for the demands and rewards of an evolving marketplace.”

Founded in 1998 by Hense, Friendship currently serves 3,600 pre-k through high school students on five campuses, and its four original campuses are among the highest performing public charter schools in the city. Friendship students have made dramatic gains on the Stanford Achievement Tests since the opening of the original four schools. In fact, of the almost 300 students that graduated from Friendship in 2005, 95 percent were accepted to college.

“Friendship is demonstrating that a system of multiple charter schools—one that holds students and staff to high expectations, collaborates with the surrounding community, and uses data to meet the needs of all students—can increase the availability of high-quality public schools in a challenging urban area," said Jordan Meranus, Principal at NewSchools. "We are excited to work with and support Friendship as it continually improves the quality of teaching and learning at its schools and increases the number of students and families it serves, and we are excited to be working with VPP on this effort.”

NewSchools is a national nonprofit venture philanthropy firm that works to transform k-12 public education by supporting education entrepreneurs so that all children—especially those underserved—have the opportunity to succeed in the 21st century. Through its Charter Accelerator Fund, NewSchools has supported more than a dozen high-quality charter management organizations (CMOs)—nonprofits that create and manage aligned systems of like-minded charter schools. These organizations focus on the need to address both scale and consistent quality in the charter school movement.

VPP began its involvement with Friendship in 2005. A rigorous business planning effort completed in December 2005 provided the blueprint for Friendship’s growth and innovation. This blueprint contains four strategies key to achieving Friendship’s five-year vision, including refining its academic program to invigorate performance, enhancing the effectiveness of central management in supporting schools, and more.

VPP Managing Partner Carol Thompson Cole thanked NewSchools for collaborating with VPP on the investment, saying “Friendship is showing that children and youth in urban areas learn and achieve just as well as their suburban counterparts when put in an environment featuring innovative teachers, high quality curricula, and schools that are safe and well-maintained. VPP is pleased to collaborate with NewSchools on this very important investment.”

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Updates on Human Capital and Leadership

College Summit Welcomes New Team Member
Thanks to Omar Garriott, Senior Coordinator of Marketing Strategy and Public Policy, for this update.

College Summit recently welcomed Donna Fleming as its new Executive Director for the National Capital Region. Fleming joined the team in late April, bringing a 25-year background in the private sector, coupled with extensive experience in the nonprofit world. Her work, primarily in board member capacities in the nonprofit community and with local governments, has centered around poverty, homelessness, and human services. College Summit represents an opportunity for her to attack the problems of social inequity from a different angle and to give back to a community to which she has close and deep ties—and is her first full-time foray into the nonprofit sector. Fleming is a graduate of Trinity College, where she will pursue a master’s degree this fall.


Updates on Programs/Services

CentroNía Provides Tax Clinic for Third Year
Thanks to Isabel Barranzuela, Communications Associate, for this update.

“In its third year, the steady growth of the clients, amount of refunds, and number of volunteers, as well as the overall support has doubled and been outstanding,” says Enrique Torrico, Family Institute Director who has been in charge of the program since its beginning. “This year we even opened a new site at Brightwood Elementary School where CentroNía had been providing tutoring services and the welcoming has been great.”

Volunteers, including university students, professionals, and retirees, came to provide individual tax preparation assistance as well as financial literacy and counseling information to more than 400 clients.

Three hundred eighty-one returns were prepared this season with refunds obtained totaling $632,092 and the amount owed by clients $82,011. This is an increase since 2005 when 199 returns were prepared with $325,000 in refunds. “Since our community has an increased awareness about the EITC and its benefits, we hope to serve an even greater number of people for years to come,” Torrico said.

CFNC Faces Scarce Preschool Space
Thanks to Kate Lyng, Development Assistant, for this update.

All of the Child and Family Network Center’s (CFNC) programs are located in communities of Northern Virginia that have both the highest concentration of families living in poverty and the highest concentration of families who speak English as a second language. Most of its programs are located in the Arlandria community where 37% of the families are Latino and 44% of the families have Limited English Proficiency.

Currently over 200 children and their families are participating in CFNC’s Early Childhood, Family and Health Services programs. With a current waitlist of over 150, CFNC was devastated when it learned that it would have to vacate two locations in Arlandria because the nonprofit organizations leasing to them need the space for their own programs.

“With nine centers in Alexandria and one in Arlington, CFNC serves many immigrants, including those who don't qualify for other programs. The organization, which has about 150 children on a waiting list, has not been able to find new locations. If it doesn't by June, the 32 children at the centers slated to close will have to go back on the waiting list,” said Executive Director Barbara Mason.

CFNC is not alone. Numerous preschool programs are finding it harder and harder to find appropriate space to house their programs. According to a Washington Post story on April 26, 2006, preschool space is scarce due to “a soaring demand for preschool, fueled in part by immigrant parents who live inside the Beltway, tend to have larger families, and have become more aware of the benefits of preschool.”

More states are beginning to recognize the importance of creating quality preschool programs. Last year, Virginia Governor Timothy M. Kaine (D) made universal preschool access for four-year-olds a centerpiece to his campaign. Maryland has also made a commitment to universal preschool by 2008.

CFNC is working with the Alexandria Recreation Department, other nonprofits, and city officials to secure space to allow the two Arlandria programs to continue.

CMHS's ESOL Classes Make Impact
Thanks to Executive Director Dennis Hunt for this update.

The Center for Multicultural Human Services’ (CMHS) Adult ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) classes for immigrants/refugees in the Northern Virginia area are off to a good start this semester. Forty-seven adults, primarily from Central and South America, are taking part in the 90-minute bi-weekly classes, which range from basic to intermediate. The classes, held at the CMHS headquarters in Falls Church, are coordinated by staff member, Hanan Abdulhadi, a native of Ethiopia, and taught by a team of 10 agency volunteers. While the adults are in class, 16 of their elementary school-aged children participate in Children’s Enrichment sessions including reading, arts and crafts, games, and cultural activities. The Children’s Enrichment Program, designed to encourage a positive attitude toward school, promote learning, and a sense of self and community, is coordinated by CMHS AmeriCorps volunteer, Ishi Prakash, a native of India, and led by a team of 11 agency volunteers.

One family benefiting from this program has been in the United States for only a short time, having fled political persecution in their country of origin. The mother, encouraged by CMHS case management staff, enrolled in the program and registered one of her children for the Children’s Enrichment classes. Before attending the classes, the mother could barely greet someone in English, and the young child knew no English. The two have been participating in the program for approximately two months now and are reported to be flourishing. The mother’s confidence and smile are returning as she slowly learns to understand and communicate in a language previously unknown to her. The child’s English is improving daily and he is blooming with the peer interaction.

More than just a program to help clients acquire English language-learning skills, the ESOL program empowers clients to take charge and forge ahead, armed with self-esteem, self-confidence, and the tools necessary to integrate into mainstream society.

Heads Up Exceeds Tutor Recruitment Goal
Thanks to Michelle deBaroncelli, Development Manager, for this update.

For its 2006-2007 AmeriCorps class of tutors, Heads Up has received the most applications ever in its 10-year history. By the April deadline, 231 college students had applied—a 200% gain over last year. At Heads Up, college student AmeriCorps members serve as full-time classroom instructors over the summer and part-time tutors during the academic year. Besides providing key staffing in Heads Up’s schools, they also allow the organization to operate efficiently by leveraging an existing resource—federal education vouchers in exchange for service.

Stephanie Farmer, college program director, theorized on the program’s surge in popularity on local college campuses: “We were mindful of tracking successful recruitment techniques from last year and used those lessons to really step up our efforts on campuses this year. For example, when we asked applicants from Howard where they had heard about our program, they told us that everywhere they turned they saw information about Heads Up. We really tried to saturate the campuses.”

After a rigorous interview process, those students who are accepted commit to a year of service with Heads Up. As an integral part of the program for grades K-6, Heads Up AmeriCorps members co-lead their own elementary school class, planning and leading innovative lessons to improve students’ reading skills.

Hiring a greater number of AmeriCorps members—144 will ultimately be hired for the 2006-2007 school year—enables Heads Up to keep low tutor-to-student ratios low which ensure that students will receive the kind of individualized attention that leads to greater gains in learning.

Mary's Center Partners to Prevent Diabetes
Thanks to Lyda Vanegas, Communications Officer, for this update.

On April 25, Mary’s Center hosted a press conference to launch It’s Never Too Early to Prevent Diabetes, the latest diabetes campaign message from the US Department of Health and Human Services’ National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP). The program, for women with a history of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) who are at higher risk to develop Type 2 Diabetes, is the newest of the Small Steps Big Rewards program which promotes easy steps to prevent or delay onset of diabetes.

Mary’s Center President and CEO Maria Gomez expressed her support. “We are committed to work with the moms and their children to educate them and to reduce their risk to develop diabetes,” she said.

The audience of more than 70 included national and local health representatives, health care providers, community leaders, media, and the general community. Dr. Griffin Rodgers, Acting Director of the National Institutes for Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, shared alarming statistics on the growth of diabetes. In America, 21 million people have diabetes and six million have the disease but don’t know it. The growing problem of gestational diabetes mellitus is an indicator of childhood obesity and early onset of Type 2 diabetes.

Deputy Surgeon General, Rear Admiral Kenneth Moritsugu shared the commitment of the office of the US Surgeon General to support and spread the word about this campaign. Moritsugu encouraged the audience to start making careful life choices, “If you have diabetes like me, try to minimize the negative impact of it,” as he showed his personal insulin pump. Carol Baker, a mother who had GDM during three pregnancies also shared that through careful lifestyle choices, she has prevented Type 2 diabetes despite high risk factors for both her and her children.

As one example of a prevention technique for diabetes, the audience participated in an aerobic activity, provided by the YMCA. Attendees, including the US Deputy Surgeon General, joyfully danced and exercised with moms and toddlers. Audience members left with positive messages and tools for addressing GDM in the community.

See Forever's Program Supports Alumni
Thanks to Stacey Miller, Director of Development, for this update.

Recent research shows just how few lower-income students of color who go to college are actually staying in and earning an associate’s or bachelor's degree. Nationwide, only about 11% of students from lower income minority families who enroll in college actually go on to earn a BA, and just slightly more than that go on to get an AA. Others go on to earn a certificate in a technical field (allied health, information management), but more than 40% drop out of college without any certification or degree at all. And these figures come on top of a high school graduation rate of only 50% for this same population.

In response to this crisis, and after analyzing the successes and pitfalls of See Forever/Maya Angelou Public Charter School’s early graduates, SFF created an Alumni Support program specifically designed to provide support and build the capacity of students to succeed in college. Adriana Rodriguez, Alumni Support Coordinator, begins working with students, in collaboration with MAPCS’s college and career counselor, toward the end of their senior year. Students who meet a few key criteria (complete financial forms, meet a savings target, agree to share college progress reports with the Alumni Office, and agree to host a current Maya Angelou student at their college) are accepted into the Alumni Scholars program. Through the program, Rodriguez or volunteer mentors provide intensive case management for the first critical year of college to ensure that all scholars establish a close relationship with a faculty member or administrator at the college, know how to access support service programs (like writing and tutorial centers), get involved with a positive peer group, and establish good basic routines for studying. The goal is to help students develop their own capacity to advocate for themselves and to and make good decisions at college, so that by their second year they can navigate the academic and social networks successfully and on their own.

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Awards and Recognition

AALEAD's Ceremony Honors Volunteers
Thanks to Rosetta Lai, Vice President for Development and External Affairs, for this update.

About 200 individuals attended AALEAD’s Annual Volunteer Appreciation Day on April 22, 2006, at All Soul’s Church. Photo collages, art work, and a slide show featured the volunteers. The program, emceed by Scott and Tony (a mentor/mentee team), included a parent speech, a dance performance, winning essays by Ines Nguyen and Wing Chu Ho, and AALEAD’s own version of The Newlywed Game to see how much mentors and mentees knew about each other. Framed certificates of recognition with pictures were given to volunteers and organizations as a token of thanks.

College Summit announced this month that it is the recipient of a $1,515,000 award from The Skoll Foundation to serve two new communities and 28,000 additional students over the next three years. The award is one of 16 Skoll Awards for Social Entrepreneurship to honor the most innovative and effective approaches to resolving critical social issues. College Summit was the lone education organization to be selected for the 2006 award and also received the largest single grant amount.

“We are honored to be a recipient of this prestigious award,” said J.B. Schramm, Founder and CEO of College Summit. “The Skoll Foundation is an organization that is truly on the vanguard of the social enterprise movement—and this substantial, multi-year investment will be instrumental in growing our scalable national model for increased college access.”

“College Summit reflects the essence of a Skoll social entrepreneur: a practical innovator who resolves social problems and builds civil society’s infrastructure and effectiveness,” said Sally Osberg, President and CEO of the Skoll Foundation. “Each organization in our portfolio of Skoll Awards for Social Entrepreneurship is tackling a complex social problem in order to promote healthy, sustainable communities. College Summit is no exception. Together with our other social entrepreneurs, College Summit represents an incredibly powerful force for systemic social change.”

The competitive Skoll Awards were personally presented by Skoll Foundation Chairman Jeff Skoll on March 30 at the third annual Skoll World Forum on Social Entrepreneurship at Oxford University in England. The World Forum convened a global community of practitioners and thought leaders in social entrepreneurship to set the future agenda for visionaries who want to transform society.

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AALEAD Releases Report on "Invisible Americans"

Earlier this week, AALEAD released a special report titled "Invisible Americans – the Hidden Plight of Asian Americans in Poverty," which includes an in-depth look at the growing number of at-risk children in Montgomery County, Maryland. This report calls attention to the growing number of Asian Americans in the United States—representing more than 34 ethnicities and 300 languages and dialects and living in all ranges of the economic and educational spectrum. More than one third of the immigrants in the Washington, DC metropolitan area are from Asia. The report illustrates that although aggregate census data portrays Asian Americans as educationally advanced and wealthier than the average American; these numbers do not represent Asian American subgroups such as Laotians, Cambodians, and Hmong Americans whose per capita income is about half that of whites and below African Americans, Latinos and American Indians. For a copy of "Invisible Americans – The Hidden Plight of Asian Americans in Poverty," please visit AALEAD’s website.

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