Skip to content

Strategic Focus Turned Confusion into Confidence for Social Capital, Inc.

Orbis (10)

Industry

Nonprofit/Charity

Challenge

Social Capital expanded rapidly during the pandemic, launching new programs that left funders and board members confused about the organization's direction. This lack of clarity cost them funding opportunities, even though the internal team understood how everything connected.

Results

Strategic planning, values clarification, and quarterly S2 execution helped Social Capital refocus on developing community leaders. They confidently exited an 18-year, $500K AmeriCorps grant, grew private fundraising by 45% (targeting 100%), and built a unified team with a clear story that resonates with stakeholders.

socialcapitalinc.org/

It really positioned us to say, yes, this AmeriCorps grant has been a very big part of our identity, our budget, everything, but we can walk away and have a vibrant future without it.

David Crowley

President & Founder, Social Capital, Inc.

LET

About Social Capital, Inc.

Social Capital, Inc. is a nonprofit with nearly 25 years of experience strengthening communities through connection. Founded by President David Crowley, the organization focuses on building social capital—the relationships and networks that make communities thrive. Rather than running programs themselves, Social Capital develops and supports "social capital cultivators"—local leaders who identify community needs, bring people together, and create lasting change.

After 25 years, Social Capital had programs pointing in too many directions—funders couldn't see where they were headed. Strategic focus and quarterly planning helped them confidently exit an 18-year federal grant and grow private fundraising by 45%.

The Challenge

After years of growth and particularly rapid program expansion during the COVID-19 pandemic, Social Capital, Inc. found themselves struggling to articulate a clear, cohesive strategy to those outside the organization. While their internal team understood the connections between their many initiatives, the lack of a unified narrative created confusion for funders and board members—resulting in missed funding opportunities and uncertainty about the organization's path forward.

The Solution

Seeking a way forward, Social Capital, Inc. engaged System & Soul's consulting and advisory services, working closely with Jon Chen to clarify their core expertise and values. The team adopted the S2 tool for iterative quarterly planning and shifted their operational focus from directly running diverse community events to developing 'social capital cultivators'—empowering community leaders to drive broader impact.

President David Crowley reflected, "If you ask different team members what our story is, you would probably get as many different takes as we have team members." Through values clarification and structured planning, the organization built a shared language and direction, which David described as, "a nice balance...Jon helped us do that dance between here's a model and a framework and, okay, but here's where you are and here's how to mesh our unique needs as a nonprofit with a framework that can be powerful."

The Results

Armed with strategic clarity and a revitalized sense of purpose, Social Capital, Inc. confidently navigated a major funding transition—sunsetting an 18-year, $500,000 AmeriCorps grant as federal support became uncertain. This bold move was made possible by their newfound alignment and agility.

In just 12 months, private fundraising increased by 45%, with stretch goals approaching a 100% increase. The quarterly planning process ensured strategies were continuously executed, not forgotten, and values clarification fostered greater teamwork and buy-in.

As David Crowley noted, "After a year plus of working with Jon, I really feel like we are moving forward with a lot of clarity on our strategic direction and all the good things that come with that." He added, "Having strategic clarity before the federal funding crisis positioned us to say, yes, this AmeriCorps grant has been a very big part of our identity and budget, but we can walk away and have a vibrant future without it."