When the national headquarters and local affiliates of a nonprofit network are not strategically aligned, both are limited in reaching their full potential. Intra-network conflicts and confusion about roles can result in muddled public perceptions of the nonprofit, inconsistent program delivery, and diminished funding success.

Often the problem is rooted in issues such as:

• A mission statement that is not backed by a clear, shared understanding of whom the target beneficiaries are.
  
• Tension and lack of trust between the national and local entities, leading to conflicts over governance decisions and funding sources.
• A dramatic range in the quality and quantity of services delivered by the local entities.

But in today's environment of increasing demand for outcomes, nonprofits are under increasing pressure to demonstrate not just good intentions, but measurable results. It is therefore in a nonprofit network's best interest for all of its entities to agree on what they're delivering and how they're measuring success.

Only by taking careful, inclusive steps can all of the entities arrive at a path forward that honors differing perspectives regarding the network's current and future work, and is honest about shortcomings that can be improved upon. 

Optimizing the alignment, impact, and sustainability of a nonprofit network requires deep, collective exploration and assessment of the organization's mission. It also demands very particular strategies to make sure that the organization's executives, board members and staff at both the national and local level embrace any plan for change and improvement. These strategies include everything from accurately assessing the overall health of the organization to carefully constructing a communication plan to hiring executives from the local entities to serve as consultants.