CANDID.
Candid is a leading nonprofit information organization that connects people who want to change the world with the resources they need to do it. Formed through the combination of Foundation Center and GuideStar, Candid provides trusted data, research, tools, and sector intelligence that help nonprofits, foundations, and donors make better decisions and strengthen the social sector.
Highlights
Refine Focus
Candid had significant assets and sector credibility, but its fundraising model needed clearer external framing, stronger systems, broader organizational ownership, and a more mature prospect pipeline.
Sustainable Growth
Strengthen development infrastructure, expand and diversify the prospect pipeline, and position Candid for sustainable fundraising growth.
Strategic Plan
S&W delivered a comprehensive assessment, strategic development plan, case framing, operating recommendations, staffing guidance, and implementation roadmap to help Candid build a stronger philanthropy engine.
The Challenge
Candid entered this engagement with extraordinary assets: trusted data, broad reach, and a distinctive role as infrastructure for the social sector. Yet that same strength created a fundraising challenge: Candid’s value was essential but often difficult to explain and fund, particularly when donors could not easily see how data, platforms, and field-wide tools translated into philanthropic impact.
Internally, the development function also needed stronger systems, clearer priorities, and broader engagement from leadership and the board. Salesforce practices, forecasting, pipeline ownership, and cross-department coordination were inconsistent, limiting the team’s ability to manage growth strategically.
At the same time, Candid faced a changing landscape shaped by AI, product modernization, and increased demand for actionable sector intelligence. To meet the moment, Candid needed a clearer philanthropic case and a more disciplined development infrastructure.
The Solution
Schultz & Williams completed an in-depth assessment of Candid’s development function, including stakeholder interviews, data analysis, landscape review, operations audit, and strategy conversations. Building from this shared fact base, S&W developed a strategic development plan organized around four themes: positioning Candid as indispensable sector infrastructure, clarifying its business model and the role of philanthropy, strengthening fundraising systems and organizational engagement, and elevating growth opportunities tied to sector intelligence, AI, and collective-good needs.
The engagement produced practical tools and recommendations, including case-for-support strategies, KPI and proof-point guidance, Salesforce stage and forecasting recommendations, refinement and evolutions to fundraising strategies, staffing and leadership structure guidance, CEO fundraising recommendations, and a phased 12-month implementation roadmap. Together, these deliverables give Candid a clearer story, stronger operating model, and actionable path to build sustainable philanthropic revenue.
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