So, what are the 6 keys to success?

1st, advocate and serve. High impact NGOs soon realize that simply delivering a good service is not enough; they need to campaign for political action if they really want to drive massive social change.

2nd, make markets work. The great nonprofits do not rely on traditional giving; they work with market forces, generating income where possible, working with for-profit businesses to help them “do well by doing good”.

3rd, inspire evangelists. Volunteers are not just a source of money and effort; they can be turned into highly effective advocates for the non-profit’s cause. The best non-profits turn their volunteers into strong communities.

4th, nurture non-profit networks. Although many non-profits talk about collaboration, few do much of it in practice. That is their loss. The best non-profits, Ms Crutchfield and Ms Grant explain, “freely share wealth, expertise, talent, and power with their peers, not because they are saints but because it is in their self-interest to do so.”

5th, master the art of adaptation. The best nonprofits are serial innovators, constantly adapting what they do to changing circumstances. They have made mistakes, and occasionally flopped, along the way, but they have sustained their impact and stayed relevant because, “unlike many non-profits, they have also mastered the ability to listen, learn, and modify their approach based on external cues.”

6th, share leadership. Many social entrepreneurs are a bit like a combination of Louis XIV, who said “L’état—c’est moi” and Louis XV, who warned, “Après moi, le deluge”. Differentiating the social entrepreneur from the organisation he creates is often difficult. In such cases, the organisation tends to collapse when the entrepreneur leaves.

Research on what makes an effective NGO