Report Title:	Intermediary Profile Report
Report Date:

Organization:	KAL	Program ID Number: I-29
Date Profile Created:	June 29, 2009	Date Profile Last Updated: July 30, 2009

Program Summary:
Fieldstone Alliance and Nonprofit Finance Fund (both profiled separately in the intermediary section of this database), with financial support of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, work as partners to develop the capacity and financial acumen of U.S.-based W.K. Kellogg Foundation grantees that have an active grant at any point between January 1, 2007-August 31, 2009. This joint effort, known as KAL (formerly the Kellogg Action Lab), is helping nonprofits develop and maintain alignment among mission, organizational capacity and capital. Its goals are to: (1) improve the overall performance, effectiveness and financial sustainability of U.S.-based WKKF grantees; and (2) use the knowledge created in this work to leverage learning about effectiveness and make improvements in performance throughout the nonprofit sector.

An array of flexible services that respond to an organization's specific needs are offered, including financial support, access to expert consultants and access to knowledge resources.

Financial support is provided in three ways. (1) Knowledge Resources: Organizations with annual operating budgets below $1 million receive $750 to purchase knowledge resources (books & publications, conference registration fees, memberships, online resources, subscriptions, etc.) that will strengthen the capacity of their organization as a whole. KAL provides a compendium of especially valuable items and has negotiated discounted prices on some, but grantees are not limited to that list for their purchases; (2) In-person Convenings and Webinars: Organizations with operating budgets of $1 million or less may receive a stipend of up to $500 per person for up to three people to cover travel and lodging costs for a KAL convening. Organizations with operating budgets over $1 million may receive one stipend of up to $500 to cover costs; (3) Grants for Capacity-building Consultations: Organizations may apply for funding to cover such agreed-upon consultations as organizational assessments, strategic planning, financial analysis, business planning, referrals for financing and capital resources, and other opportunities. Fieldstone Alliance's Organizational Assessment and Nonprofit Finance Fund's Nonprofit Business Analysis are among the options available. Some organizations undertake them both in a combination consultation. Upon approval of a consultation grant, organizations pay either $500 (annual operating budgets under $1 million) or $1500 (annual operating budgets over $1 million) towards the consultation, and KAL pays the remainder of the cost. During the first year 77 grants averaging roughly $23,000 each were made.

KAL maintains the web-based College of Consultants, a national, vetted database of highly skilled consultants, and grantees may use it to locate the help they need. Information on how to secure and work with consultants is also available, along with handouts from convenings.

KAL convenings address topics of interest to larger numbers of KAL participants. They are structured to allow participants to learn from and with their peers. Two formats are used: in-person trainings and web-based or video-based presentations that participants can access from their offices. Typically the in-person convenings involve a day and a half of learning opportunities, and they are offered at various sites across the U.S.

KAL also operates the Innovative Practice Fund and Product Dissemination initiative, which is providing 10 to 15 grants to nonprofits, funders or capacity-building providers (including WKKF grantees or non-WKKF organizations) to develop and disseminate innovative capacity-building knowledge, services and tools that fill service or knowledge gaps in the sector. As new tools and knowledge resources are developed through this fund, they will be packaged and disseminated to the nonprofit sector.

Knowledge resource grantees are sent a short evaluation form six months after receiving their check by Decision Information Resources (DIR), KAL's evaluator. It asks how the money was spent and what impact the resources had on the organization. Consultation grant recipients submit a report 30 days after their consultation is completed, and participate in KAL evaluation. Additionally, the consultants who work with grantees and the three KAL partners are interviewed by DIR as part of the evaluation process. A first year evaluation of KAL was completed in August 2008.

KAL's initial grant from WKKF ends in 2009, and a proposal for a second grant to continue KAL will be decided upon in July of 2009.