General Questions
Non-Profit Advisors is not a referral service. Our full-time professional staff provide the services and stand behind all quality, service integrity and customer satisfaction outcomes.
We are an organization with strong roots in workforce development and in education and training. Providing services such as IT support, finance, and customer contact services, helps us realize our goal of continuous learning while building strong institutional knowledge around best practices. Helping other non-profit organizations increase their mission impact is just another way we can have positive impact in the larger nonprofit community.
Yes. Our own offices are currently in 7 states and we support Non-Profit Advisors’ customers in a total of 12 states. Most services are available nationwide.
As a non-profit organization ourselves, our priorities are to increase mission impact, promote skill development and career progression, and cover our costs in the process. As such, you will find our services are priced below our competitors in all areas. This does not mean however, that we do not offer superior quality, results, and customer satisfaction outcomes in all we do. Additional pricing information can be found on each service area web page.
Non-Profit Advisors is a subsidiary of National Able Network. Its original focus was in the areas of technology and finance because our organization invested heavily in these areas following the Great Recession and consequently developed exceptional capacity. Sharing our resources and talents initially served to spread the costs of these investments across multiple organizations thereby allowing National Able Network and all its partner organizations to direct more funds to their core missions and less toward back office expenses.
In most cases, one or more members of our executive team will set up a phone call or meeting with you to better understand your needs and goals. We will typically follow up with a written proposal to you in one to five business days.
It can happen and, if it does, we will be the first to tell you! As a non-profit with a 42-year operational history, we have an excellent network of partner organizations and plenty of experience with a wide variety of vendors that we can help either steer you toward … or away from. Referral advice is gladly provided at no cost.
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IT Network & Desktop Support Questions
Both. About 90% of IT issues can be quickly and effectively resolved through our remote access technology. This also saves costs. In other cases, including scheduled upgrades, training for staff, and other projects, our team will gladly be there for you in person.
Our team will generally know about critical issues and outages even before your staff becomes aware of them and respond within a matter of minutes. For contract purposes, we minimally guarantee a one (1) hour response time during normal business hours and a “best effort” response outside of normal business hours. Shorter response times can be available if your business requires.
The IT Help Desk operates out of our workforce center in Chicago and is staffed with highly qualified and certified network engineers. The Help Desk staff are selected from top graduates of IT Career Lab and receive specialized customer service training in addition to their technical credentials.
No. Our contracts never lock anyone in, and you can stop services at any point with just 30 days’ notice.
Yes. We have a library of policies that are regularly updated and frequently examined by all sorts of auditors. We are happy to share them with any of our service customers at no additional cost. IT security has more recently come under scrutiny by auditors and Boards. As your IT service provider, we will help you respond appropriately to any auditor’s queries.
No. Our team will work with whatever vendors you wish. National Able Network regularly reviews all its IT contracts and goes out to bid every one-to-three years to assure we are receiving the best quality and most affordable service. This includes everything from Internet connectivity to printer maintenance to telephony. We are happy to share our procurement findings and make recommendations on vendors in any area you need.
For general IT services, we typically charge $110 per hour as a base rate for clients in monthly agreements. If you have specific projects, we can provide custom quotes.
Finance, Accounting & Compliance Questions
Organizations hire us for a variety of reasons. The most common examples are:
- The organization needs top-notch financial oversight by an expert in both nonprofit accounting and government reporting and compliance but cannot afford a full-time CFO.
- Organizations that are experiencing rapid growth in funding and programs and discover they have “out grown” their existing accounting solutions.
- Foundations or other funders require organizations with insufficient audit track records to engage us in order to receive funding.
- Boards of directors or executive leadership in an organization have reason to believe a fiscal overhaul is needed and improved systems put in place.
- Organizations at risk of dissolution or insolvency look to us to help manage restructuring.
No. Our financial services team has experience across a range of accounting products. If your organization does not currently have a solution that works for you, we can recommend an appropriate and cost-effective option and help you implement it.
Yes. Not only can we assist on a short-term or longer-term basis, but once you hire new finance staff, we will help with any training or transition support you need for a smooth handover.
Yes. This type of engagement is actually not unusual, particularly with an organization that is experiencing growth or other changes impacting finance practices and scope. Our services are never an “all or nothing” proposition. We are happy to provide only the level of support that your team actually needs.
Yes. We can always handle payroll, including all required reporting. In some cases, we have also extended employee benefits to small organizations that would otherwise be unable to competitively procure them.
We estimate the cost of our services based on a shared understanding of the scope of work requested, the average estimated number of hours we expect will be needed per month, and the level of expertise required. Some contracts are for as little as $1,500 per month for nonprofits that have some internal finance staff but that need CFO-level oversight of key areas.
Customer Contact Center Questions
People who really care! Non-Profit Advisors operates a customer contact center staffed with individuals receiving paid work experience training. Throughout their assignments with the contact center, these individuals receive ongoing training in customer service, various technology applications, database management, and an astonishing variety of program-related areas. Many are low-income seniors qualified for federal assistance, military veterans at risk of homelessness, and/or students in technology training programs.
Yes. The Customer Contact Center is ideal for handling high-volume event outreach, doing seasonal donation drives, conducting surveys, or even handling scheduling for any large number of people. No long-term contracts are ever required.
We work with each customer in advance to develop scripts, FAQs, and identify background information and referral materials in order to be thoroughly prepared. Center staff receive upfront training specific to your needs and have a professional Center manager always on hand if additional help is needed.
Yes. We can absolutely help you develop a survey to gather the data you need. The Center staff use both phone calls and email to achieve the highest response rates.
You will need to provide sufficiently thorough background information to enable our team to speak knowledgably on behalf of your organization and achieve your desired results. For outbound calling, we of course will need contact information (preferably both phone and email addresses, if available) for individuals or organizations you wish us to contact. Finally, we will need a point of contact in your organization in case an issue needs to be elevated.
Yes. You will receive monthly (or more frequently, if desired) reports indicating numbers of inbound and outbound calls, numbers of successful attempts, whether we left a voice message or not, and any other data you have requested we collect from the calls (and/or emails). For surveys, we also provide reports using Survey Monkey.
We typically operate only during normal business hours. If you have a requirement for weekend or off-hour services, we can usually make arrangements with sufficient notice.
Services are priced based on an estimated base level call volume with allowance for some percentage over the base volume. We also take into consideration the simultaneous number of Center representatives you will need and the number of days of calling. In every case, our customers find they get better results at lower overall cost than doing it themselves!
Strategy Development & Leadership Questions
Our team is not just highly qualified in consulting, but brings the ‘real world’, practical experience of both nonprofit and for profit executive leadership – including multiple CEO roles – to the job. We have been in your shoes and understand that effecting change requires more than nice PowerPoint and checklists. It requires an in-depth, honest, and holistic perspective of what is going on at all levels and in all areas of your organization, including your Board. No two engagements are the same and we do not fall back on cookie-cutter answers.
The decision to merge two (or more) nonprofit entities requires not just digging through the documents on the checklist, but thoughtful sole-searching and honest dialogue about what each party wishes to accomplish and what truly defines each organization. Nonprofit Advisors applies the same integrated approach to nonprofit consolidation that it does to all its strategic leadership engagements. We not only look at everything from financials, program structure and practices, staffing, real estate, and future visions, but help the parties connect the dots among these key areas to understand how best to act on the bigger picture.
Very reasonably! We start by talking to you about your view of the scope, timing, and specific deliverables and then give you a fixed price you can rely on. Our goal at the conclusion of any engagement is to be sure you get more than you pay for and are enthusiastic about recommending us to your friends. In select cases, we also offer services on a limited pro bono basis to nonprofits unable to pay.
Real Estate & Office Planning Questions
Yes. Nonprofit Real Estate Advisors is a partnership with Steinco Realty. All State licensing and required credentials are maintained by Steinco. This includes brokerage, architecture, and project management.
Our relationship with Steinco and, specifically, David Stein goes back 16 years. Mr. Stein is not only a highly skilled real estate broker, but an outstanding negotiator and true philanthropist at heart. He has generously supported not only National Able Network but many other excellent nonprofit causes over the years. Typically, the second largest expense line item for nonprofits is occupancy. As such, we know that many of our Nonprofit Advisors customers looking to reduce ongoing expenses can benefit from honest real estate services.
Nothing. Whether you are leasing new space, re-negotiating lease terms for space you are currently in, or looking to buy real estate, the landlord and/or seller pay any fees in the form of brokerage commissions. Our job is to make sure you get the best possible deal.
We recommend starting the process when you have between 18 and 24 months remaining on your current lease in order to have the maximum leverage in negotiating the next deal.
Landlords would almost always prefer to keep the tenant they have than to start over with new tenants, and that gives you leverage in negotiating your lease extension or new lease. Landlords know you have choices and are often willing to make concessions and offer allowances in exchange for keeping you there. We know what to ask for!