Giving Compass' Take:

• In this story, Pamela Hawley of Forbes discusses a few of the things that nonprofits and for-profits could learn from each other.

• Nonprofits and for-profits must operate differently. How can nonprofits decide what practices they should adopt and which are not applicable to the nonprofit sector?

• To learn about three steps you can take to make sure your business is having a positive impact, click here.

Nonprofits are reassembling more and more like businesses. They might have storefronts, generate revenue, maintain contracts and create strong brands.

Based on my experience in the nonprofit industry, here are [four] areas in which I believe nonprofits can learn from for-profits:

1. Efficiency: Nonprofits can be more efficient by watching how for-profits measure results.

2. A Strong Board Of Directors: Having a board of directors can provide them with introductions and strong funding

3. Generating Revenue: For-profits need to generate revenue to survive. I would say that the same should hold true for nonprofits.

4. Employee Benefits: For-profits often provide more employee benefits. Nonprofits should do the same.

Next, let’s review the ways for-profits can learn from nonprofits:

1. Mission-Oriented: For-profits have a tendency to get caught up with results and sometimes lose their sense of purpose in why they’re doing what they’re doing.

2. Positive Culture: Environment counts for a lot more than some for-profits might realize.

3. ‘Doer Organizations’: For-profit companies often have a lot of fat. That middle layer at companies may be wasting company time, but the company has gotten too big to manage everyone effectively and resourcefully. Most nonprofits simply don’t have money to waste on this.

Read the full article about nonprofits and businesses by Pamela Hawley at Forbes