Sustained Collaboration Clinics: Exploring Partnerships & Mergers (Option 1)

Strengthening nonprofit impact sometimes means looking beyond traditional partnerships and exploring new ways of working together. From shared services and joint programming to mergers and acquisitions, more organizations are beginning to ask whether deeper collaboration could help them better serve their communities and sustain their mission over time.

The Nonprofit Center’s Sustained Collaboration Community Clinics are designed to help nonprofit leaders begin that conversation.

These 2-hour facilitated sessions are intended for Executive Directors and Board leaders who want to better understand the spectrum of sustained collaboration and what it might mean for their organization. Each session will begin with an overview of different collaboration models—from informal partnerships and shared services to joint programming, strategic alliances, and mergers—before diving deeper into merger and acquisition readiness.

Using elements of the nationally recognized La Piana Mergers & Alliances Toolkit, participants will focus on the first stage of the merger process: Assessment.

Through a mix of presentation, discussion, reflection activities, and practical worksheets, organizations will explore:

• Why they may want to consider a strategic partnership
• What outcomes they hope to achieve through collaboration
• Whether their board and leadership team are ready for the process
• How organizational culture and change management affect partnership success
• Their organization’s tolerance for growth, change, and risk
• How to identify potential partners, including ideal characteristics and common red flags

Participants will also receive a preview of what comes next in the process, including partner identification, joint advisory committees, due diligence, legal considerations, negotiation, and integration planning.

These clinics are not intended to push organizations toward a single outcome. Instead, they provide a neutral, structured environment where nonprofit leaders can build a shared understanding, assess their readiness, and determine whether deeper collaboration could strengthen their mission. Participants will leave with practical tools, discussion prompts to bring back to their board, and a clearer sense of possible next steps—whether that is continued exploration, peer conversations, coaching, facilitation support, or a more formal partnership process.

Recommended Participants: Executive Director and Board Chair or another board leader. These clinics are intentionally designed for small group participation, please only register if you know you can attend as space is limited to 6 organizations per clinic.

The 2026 Clinics will be offered: June 9, July 21, September 22, and October 20.

This program is part of the Nonprofit Center’s Sustained Collaboration Initiative, advancing our commitment to helping nonprofits thrive in a changing environment and exploring innovative business models that drive long-term success.

The Nonprofit Center thanks the Jessie Ball duPont Fund Equity and Placemaking Fund for their generous support of this program.