Recent increases in the visibility and frequency of capacity-building activities in philanthropy arise from several trends. First is the considerable attention to venture philanthropy, with its counterpart in the nonprofit world – social entrepreneurs. Although not inherently linked (I don’t personally believe running nonprofits as you would a business would improve their outcomes), capacity-building in practice is supported by many donors because they view it as the “business” approach to nonprofit.

Second is the increasing commitment by foundations to evaluating funded projects and their measurable outcomes. The lack of nonprofit organizational capacity shows up in evident ways when a rigorous evaluation is done.

And third, there are profound changes in the nonprofit world that both promote and demand increased strength of these institutions.

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