We are no longer accepting applications. For questions, please contact Samantha Jakubowski at sam@leadingedge.org.
The pandemic changed the way we do business. It’s not the first time a national (or international) crisis has shifted our work and it won’t be the last. The question is how we, as organizations and organizational leaders, position ourselves to respond more effectively to these changes in the future. What capacity do we need to build to be more effective when external factors impede our work? What ideas do we have to be more resilient in the future?
To help organizations be more proactive in meeting particularly tricky challenges or exciting opportunities, TAC provides subsidized, customized consultation with vetted experts across various fields. Our support is anchored in capacity building, ensuring that every organization receiving support leaves the engagement with resources and tools to meet their objectives and better serve their communities now and into the future. Engagements are time-bound and limited in scope, providing organizations and leaders a jumping-off point for making change.
While TAC is able to subsidize the majority cost of the consultations, we may ask organizations to contribute some portion of the fees. We will work closely with organizations to determine the amount.
Read our FAQs
Available Areas of Support
TAC has previously accepted applications for organizations seeking support in the following areas:
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Executive and Team Coaching: Support for individuals and/or teams to help clarify goals, achieve organizational and personal objectives, and act as a confidential sounding board.
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Financial Planning and Modeling: Process to review an organization’s finances and financial systems to create effective tools to track and forecast financial performance.
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Fundraising Strategy: Help to strategize and reimagine fundraising tactics in a changing landscape. This work can also support organizations identify prospective donor groups, develop stewardship plans, and train the board or staff on donor cultivation, fundraising strategies, and goals.
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Organizational Culture: Support defining organizational values and embedding them into all aspects of your organization’s work.
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Adaptive Priority Setting: Develop a roadmap for your organization’s work in a changing environment. Defining adaptive priorities helps organizations continually refine and adjust their work.
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Succession Planning: Prepare your organization for change by ensuring you are developing talent at all levels of the organization to replace key positions as staff and/or clergy transition into new roles, go on leave, or leave the organization.
Organizations can receive support for up to two areas within 12 months, but engagements cannot overlap. Organizations can only apply for one engagement at a time. They will not be eligible for a second consultation until the first engagement and follow-up evaluation survey are complete.
Process
We will review all applications within 10 business days of submission. If necessary, TAC may request follow-up materials or a follow-up call with the applicant to help with decision-making. All decisions regarding support will be made within 45 days of application submission.
If an organization receives support, they will be matched with a service provider. Organizations can meet with their service provider as soon as practicable after being matched. The consultation process will be time-bound and could take several months to complete depending on the project’s scope.
Communication and information provided to the service provider will be kept strictly confidential between the organization and service provider.
Eligibility
To be eligible for targeted support, organizations must serve the Jewish community in the Chicagoland area and possess current 501(c)(3) status or have a fiscal sponsor with current 501(c)(3) status.
Organizations that have not received support from TAC in the past will be prioritized. Those who previously received support are still eligible for new support(s) if the previous engagement and evaluation survey have been completed.
How Organizations are Matched
TAC will work with each recipient to identify the best provider for the needs being addressed. In some instances, where there are multiple providers available, TAC will be able to provide organizations with a choice of providers. In these cases, TAC will give organizations background information about each provider and their areas of expertise or specialization to help organizations make decisions.
Please note that Third Plateau is supporting TAC in reviewing applications and matching organizations with providers. In some instances, Third Plateau may also be a provider for consultative services.
Reporting Requirements
TAC requests that all targeted support recipients confirm when their engagement has been completed. We will then ask you to complete a brief evaluation survey (to take no more than 15 minutes of your time) within 14 days of the engagement’s end. Any subsequent support will not be considered until the follow-up evaluation survey has been completed. Periodically, TAC might request additional input through follow-up surveys to help us learn about potential long-term impacts on organizational capacity.