Scope | citizen-science-fund

Overview of Phase 2. Scope

The second phase of developing a business strategy for a citizen science non-profit is "scoping" potential new revenue. The draft business canvas from Phase 1 can be a foundation and guide while scoping new options.

OBJECTIVE:

The objective is for an organisation to investigate potential options for new revenue to support the mission.

WHO:

The scoping phase can be championed by one person in the organisation, but must be participatory in nature and include substantial input and buy-in from all key personnel - from volunteers to board members. Depending on the capacity of the organisation, it may be useful to contract specialist expertise to facilitate the scoping phase, but it is vital that there is access and support to all levels of the organisation.

DURATION:

Expect that the scoping phase will take 6-12 months. The size of the organisation, the complexitiy of partnerships, services, and existing revenue streams, and the extent of previous strategic planning will affect the time frame.

OUTPUT:

Logic diagram of how new revenue could support the organisation's mission.

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Step 2.1 Potential Investors

Throughout this toolkit, the term 'investor' is used to mean any individual or entity that does (or could) recevie value from your organisation. In this step, your organisation will investigate if there are new investors who might be interested in paying money to receive value from your organisation. Using the business model canvas as the foundation, and the Investors section of the toolkit, your organisation can scope if and who might be willing to invest in your mission and the products and services that you deliver.

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Step 2.2 Potential Funding Tools

Using your business model canvas again as the foundation, building upon the potential investors identified through Step 2.1 above, and utilising the Tools section of the toolkit, your organisation can scope potential new funding tools to support your mission.

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Step 2.3 Logic Diagram

The final step in the scoping phase is to create a logic diagram, similar to the example above, which illustrates how potential new investors and funding tools could be used to support the activities that ultimately achieve the mission of the organistation (building on the business model canvas).

One of the risks of seeking new revenue streams is "mission drift" - or the potential for the organisation to follow the funding, rather than keeping its focus on the mission. Using a logic diagram helps to facilitate discussion around how potential new investors & tools could (or could not) directly contribute to the core activities of the organisation. If a potential new investor or tool can not be linked to the mission, even through intermediary steps, it should not be further considered.

Note that in the example above, the arrows do not always point straight up. Sometimes one tool may fund multiple activities, or one investor may support several tools. When creating a logic diagram for your organisation, seek to capture these flows.

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DRAFT Citizen Science Funding Toolkit

for the Great Barrier Reef Citizen Science Alliance