Introduction The United Way of America and United Way International are part of a federation of nonprofit organizations formed by caring people to serve the needs of their communities. They bring neighborhoods together and facilitate measures toward making a difference to better the world. They have over 1,300 local United Ways in the United States and over 3,000 United Way organizations operating in 45 countries. They raise funds and distribute them to the most effective local service providers, build strong alliances, and coordinated volunteer support among charities.An obstacle that United Way needs to overcome is how many people want to have their donation used in a specific manner.
Some people are not interested in giving their money for a general charitable purpose but want to specifically state how they want their money to be spent. If there was a way for United Way to come up with different focus type groups using money is a variety of way, perhaps people would be able to pick the focus group they wish to donate their money to, thereby choosing how their money will be spent. Situation AnalysisStarting in 2000, United Way reached a plateau in the United States. This was due to challenges such as recruiting and keeping qualified fund-raisers.
Also a growing focus on large gifts from very wealthy people and celebrities reduced motivation by common people when publicized. The American people wanted to know where their money was going and how much of it was actually going to a charity. They wanted to be able to know that the money they were donating was going to a cause that they supported rather than something that did not mean as much to them.The events of 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina were two of the biggest examples because a large number of people shifted their donations to those causes. It gave them the satisfaction of knowing where exactly their money was going and being a part of something bigger than themselves.
Situational Analysis Continued: United Way in the financial environment was increasing year after year and had great support from donors until they started to find themselves in a hole. Like many other nonprofit organizations, United Way was accused and ound guilty of many claims of fraud. The biggest scandal came in 1992 when the president and CEO of the company, William Aramony, and two other executives, were convicted of conspiracy and money laundering to the extent of $1 million. The next one came in 2001 from the Washington, D.
C. chapter after CEO Oral Suer look more than $500,000 to pay for his own expenses including annual leave and early pension. Other cases like these ones occurred through the early 2000’s and began to seriously tarnish the reputation that United Way had been known for for so long.A management system that had been stable for over a decade was finally starting the crack. When local chapters began to question the declining financial rewards, they threatened to disband and create their own organization.
This was due to the growing fact that nonprofits had sometimes been notoriously ineffective at accomplishing their social missions, getting maximum return on their money, and been willing to take on too much risk. With resources becoming scarce, chapters were forced to downsize and consolidate.While this offered an opportunity for potential savings and efficient savings, it also meant a lack of focus that could present challenges to certain managers and groups. Marketing was something that United Ways did very well and was very successful with.
They had partnerships with many reputable organizations, the biggest one being the National Football League. Through the use of public appearances from NFL players, coaches, and owners, United Way effectively turned itself into a major charity player.Also high profile people such as Bill and Melinda Gates gave very large donations that looked good to public as well as receiving a large sum of money from Bank of America. Mission and Vision “United Ways worldwide were part of a federation of nonprofits formed by caring people to serve the needs of their communities. They raised and distributed funds to the most effective local service providers, built alliances and coordinated volunteer support among charities, businesses and other entities, and acted as best practice models of management and inancial accountability.
” Organizations like United Way help address gaps in local, state, and federal governments, provide relief after natural and manmade disasters, and help with detrimental effects of society. Goals and Objectives Gallagher’s new plan required chapters to supply annual financial reports. Standards encouraged chapters to indentify community problems, raise funds to solve these problems, and to show measurable progress toward their goals by adopting and ethical code that includes an annual independent audit.By doing this, chapters will be able to provide tangible proof to donors that their support makes a difference, which is also one of the things that worried a large number of donors. He also had been working to promote a change in the United Way strategy, including a change in mission, the creation of standards of performance excellence, and a requirement that local members certify their obedience to the membership standards. S.
W. O. T. Strengths Strengths include strong brand recognition due to the fact that the charity has been around for over a decade and are currently the fourth largest charity in the world.United Way is also supported by one of the biggest organizations in the United States, the National Football League.
Over the past 120 years, up until 2000, they have experienced a solid financial performance and steady growth. This looks very good for a company and is something that almost no other company can say they have done. Weaknesses Some of the weaknesses involved with United Way are an increasingly competitive and changing environment for charity contributors.This could lead to many current donors finding new organizations that solely support a certain group that the donor is trying to send their money to. Currently they have reached a standstill in fund-raising which is something they are not used to. They are going to have to find a way to effectively get out of this “funk” and find a way to get back to the growth they have experienced for so long.
Donors are frustrated with the fact that they are not able to access the information regarding how their donations are being used and where they are going.Also they are worried if their privacy is going to be protected and if the charity met voluntary standards of conduct. It is difficult for nonprofits to maintain trust since their services are not easily viewable to the public, and once that trust is broken, it is very hard to get it back. Opportunities Try to find other big-name organizations, like another major sport, or well-known companies to expand United Way could be a huge opportunity.
With the added support and recognition is could be all it takes for United Way to see steady revenue like they have in the past.Getting involved with more celebrities other than Bill Gates could open a whole new demographic group of people to support United Way’s cause. Also by having less chapters there is more opportunities, and money, to donate to major causes. With the decline of some not-so-major-chapters, United Way could use the money to donate a larger sum to where donors see fit. Threats Nonprofits are becoming increasingly popular with a 40 percent increase since 2000. Therefore the amount of donors could decrease drastically if they find another organization that is tailored more to where they want their money to go.
There is a threat of many chapters disbanding and decentralizing. This could be viewed very negatively by donors because they could see it as the organization on the decline or not appreciating the area some donors live. Strengths •Brand Recognition •Highly Supported •Decade of Steady Growth Weaknesses•Increasingly Competitive Environment •Fraud Cases •Lack of Donor Trust Opportunities•New Affiliations •Less Overhead •More Donations Threats•New Competitors •Possible Future Scandal •Chapters Decentralizing RecommendationsMake the guidelines set out by CEO Brian Gallagher mandatory. This will lead to more trustworthy workers and help donors see where their money is going to.
Make partnerships with large companies that share the same philanthropic views as United Way. Having support by well-known organizations can open the doors to a new demographic of people who are looking to donate money to a good cause. Also getting involved with more celebrities could be a positive endeavor because if people see someone they like then it gives them a reason to relate to them more.
