The Capacity Building Evaluation Project
If you count every tiny nut, bolt, and gasket, a standard internal combustion engine contains from 1,000 to 3,000 individual parts. Every single cylinder, piston, crankshaft, and camshaft must work simultaneously to power a vehicle. Nonprofit organizations have a similar complexity. While they certainly need funding, they also need technical assistance and other resources to run efficiently and go the distance for our community.
In 2025, The Cape Cod Foundation conducted an external evaluation of its Capacity Building Grant Programs with generous support from Eastern Bank Foundation. The initiative gave us an invaluable opportunity to get under the hood for a closer look at the nonprofit engine to determine how we could adapt and expand our efforts to help nonprofits fire on all cylinders. With input from past grantees and impact data from past grant programs, we have incorporated many recommendations into the enhanced 2026 Catalyst Grant Program.
Capacity-Building
The Foundation defines nonprofit capacity building as: intentional efforts to increase organizational ability to effectively fulfill its mission and build long-term sustainability through strengthening an organizations’ core systems, skills, resources, knowledge, operation, and management practices.
- Transitioned to general operating support. While participants will focus on specific capacity-building initiatives, the funding is flexible so organizations can determine where it will be most effective over the three-year life of the grant.
- Added technical assistance designed to meet the needs of each cohort (for example financial reporting, strategic planning)
- Continued to build cross-sector cohorts. Bringing nonprofit leaders together from diverse organizations (size, longevity, impact areas) with aligned projects and goals has been among the most requested resources from nonprofits.
Our capacity-building efforts are not limited to this program. They are part of a larger strategy to strengthen the nonprofit sector. The external evaluation confirmed other steps for moving forward:
- Expand resources to a broader group of nonprofits over time as we learn more about needs
- Develop a pathway for nonprofits at all stages to receive Foundation support. For example, our Open Door Grant Program is designed for smaller, often younger, organizations, new to the Foundation. Grants are smaller and largely for programmatic support. By strengthening our relationships with these organizations over time, we may be able transition them into the larger Catalyst grant opportunity.
- Continue to build and allocate resources for Responsive Grantmaking. Life is unpredictable. Pandemics, changes in state and federal funding—even epic blizzards—create immediate needs which don’t align with a grant program but require funding. Being nimble and responsive is key.
- Expand the Foundation’s role as a convenor and collaborator in the community. In the fall, we will offer a pilot Collective Impact Program for organizations who want to work together. We will also be convening small groups of leaders to discuss needs and encourage cross-organization collaboration.
Together, we have invested more than $113 million in grants and scholarships in the Cape Cod Community. For good.
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Cape Cod Foundation
508.790.3040
261 Whites Path, Unit 2
South Yarmouth, MA 02664
info@capecodfoundation.org
