What we learned running an operations growth program with 21 nonprofits

WorkStream Nonprofit is a nonprofit dedicated to removing operations bottlenecks to impact. We’re an operations support organization for mission-driven nonprofits. Most of our work is hands-on: back office operations + fractional COO work, financial management, hiring support, and operations training and coaching.

GRIP, our Growth Readiness Improvement Program, is a program we developed in 2025 to make that impact more accessible: it’s a lightweight diagnostic and improvement program designed to help small and mid-sized nonprofits identify operational constraints, strengthen internal systems, and build the foundation needed for sustainable growth.

We’ve now run 15 orgs through it to completion, with 6 still in progress. We have some data now – and it seems to be a very effective intervention.

Here’s our write-up of what we assumed going in, how we ran it, what the numbers say, and what we’d tell founders and funders based on the results.

Summary

• GRIP is our short, 4-session operational readiness program for nonprofits. 21 orgs have gone through it since mid-2025: 15 have completed, and 6 are still in progress
• Every org that completed the program improved: all 15 completers, with an average gain of 11.5 points on our 100-point readiness index, a 19% average improvement
• The lower an org’s starting score, the bigger the gain. Individual improvements ranged from 7% to 46%. The average starting score was 65.8, and the average completion score was 77.3
• The biggest gains were in growth strategy, staffing plans, metric tracking, and technical infrastructure
• Of the 21 participating orgs, 19 participated at no cost, and 2 paid the $950 fee. It was run mostly on volunteer time by Deena Englander and Freddy Zwanzger. While the results have been strong, we will need continued funding to keep operating it for free or at a reduced cost. Even at the full price of $950, it’s still a very cost-effective intervention.

Our assumptions going in

• No one person is an expert in everything
• The majority of organizations are stretched thin and don’t have resources to engage consultants
• The majority of organizations don’t have business management experience
• Guidance from experienced professionals can really help an org stabilize
• There are some fundamentals that all orgs need, and those are replicable across many orgs
  If those are true, then a short, structured program should be able to improve operations without a big consulting budget. That was our belief, and what we set out to test.

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Tuesday, September 8th | 12:00 PM – 12:30 EST

Strong operations give your organization the stability to grow, and fundraising gives it the fuel to keep going. Jessica will share what nonprofit leaders need to have in place to build a fundraising program that supports the mission year after year. Our final session of the year brings the series full circle.

This session is focused on implementation. You will leave with tools you can apply right away, along with the opportunity to ask questions during live Q&A.

Register via the link below.