D.C. Pathways (Fannie Mae Foundation and CYITC)

DC Pathways

In the fall of 2006, the Fannie Mae Foundation and the D.C. Children and Youth Investment Trust Corporation came to Symphonic Strategies with a desire to increase the quantity of high-quality programs serving the unserved and underserved communities in the District of Columbia, particularly those east of the Anacostia River in Wards 7 and 8.

Working with them, Symphonic Strategies designed and led a year-long initiative to strengthen the capacity and capabilities of out-of-school time, youth-serving organizations and their leaders, expanding their reach into new areas of the city, and deepening their impact on the youth and their families.

Symphonic coaches led each of the six participating organizations through a comprehensive, 8-step strategic planning process. Throughout the process, each organization received intensive, one-on-one coaching and guidance to help the leadership make informed strategic decisions about how to strengthen the capacity of the organization to better serve children.

Participating organizations received:

  • Numerous one-on-one strategic coaching sessions.
  • A complete “Organizational Capacity Audit” pinpointing areas of strength and weakness, along with a SWOT analysis.
  • A review of program evaluation process and tools.
  • Visioning, road mapping, and other group-based strategic sessions.
  • Tools to allow them to develop accurate, multi-year financial projections.

 

OUTCOMES

Before the initiative, participants:

  • Did not have current, realistic, and detailed strategic plans.
  • Distributed program descriptions that were generic and, in some cases, inaccurate.
  • Relied upon backward-looking, single-year financial estimates.
  • Were unclear about the organization’s core competencies, its strengths and weaknesses, and the opportunities and threats it faced.
  • Used inconsistent metrics that were often tied to inaccurate assumptions and out-of-date evaluation techniques.
  • Found themselves operating in a reactive mode most of the time.

 

After the initiative, participants HAD:

  • Written, comprehensive, multi-phase, multi-year strategic plans.
  • Program descriptions that are innovative and compelling.
  • Clear LOGIC models that are tied to organizational strategy.
  • A holistic understanding of the organization’s core competencies, its strengths and weaknesses, and the opportunities and threats it faces.
  • Forward-looking, multi-year financial projections based on actual income and expense figures.
  • Itemized budget forecasts with detailed line by line income and expenditure allocations.
  • An outcomes-based tool kit to measuring impact.
  • A more proactive outlook.