Getting Over "Overhead"

We're not alone in bemoaning overhead as downright misleading measure of a nonprofit's efficiency and effectiveness. So what's next?

In a new Nonprofit Quarterly article, we take a look at what nonprofits and foundations can do now to move beyond this unhelpful metric and break the "doom loop" of underfunding.

The article is for anyone who has thought: "How are we supposed to maximize impact while minimizing investments in programs and staff?”, "What would my funders say if they knew our full costs?" or "How can I better understand and support grantees' financial health so that they can achieve the results we all want?"

Let's make 2016 the year we banish "overhead" as an indicator of virtue. Not only the metric, but the whole mentality that cutting costs to the bone will help the people we serve. Only by understanding and meeting the full costs of social change can we realize the potential of the social sector.

Please take a look at “Why Funding Overhead is Not the Real Issue: The Case to Cover Full Costs,” and weigh in with your own observations and feedback.