Catering American Style

Americans know how to cater a party. At least that’s what me and David, our American intern at work, proved yesterday at a reception for our organisation. Of course, being a non-profit, we had a very limited food budget (drinks were already covered). What can you get for 100 pounds ($200 +/-) to cover 60+ guests at an evening reception during the dinner hour? Leave it to me and David.

We hiked up to our local Sainsbury’s, with a side trip to show David the nearby canal, of course, and did a whirlwind shopping spree an hour before the event. Prior to our departure our work associates daftly advised us, “don’t do it American style with lots of sweets, only savouries.” Taking this as guidance and not an insult we kept their words in mind as we dutifully wandered the isles of this grocery superstore.

Finding the most economical veggie, dip, cheese, olive and crackers (aka biscuits) options, we took bets on the tally. I was certain we were over budget but David kept on insisting we didn’t have enough and were definitely under budget. He’s a finance person so I think he had a clue.

As we shopped we threw all British etiquette to the wind and wandered the isles, loudly commenting on prices, randomly asking staff for help and generally being menaces. Did you know that toothpicks are called something else in the UK? I think they're cocktail stabs or something. Now that I think about it toothpick is not an inviting term.

As I gesticulated with a staff person trying to explain toothpicks David had gone all California on the “ghetto style” grocery cart (his words not mine) for which we had to pay a 1 pound deposit. He cleverly tinkered with the coin holder and got his coin out.

College Advisor: David, what did you learn on your UK internship?

David: How to finagle my deposit money out of a ghetto style shopping trolley.

College Advisor: Good man, you’ve made our country proud.

David: Oh yeah, and how to cater a party on a shoestring budget

College Advisor: I see a future for you in non-profits.

We get to the checkout and boldly inform the checker that we’ve taken bets on the total. At first she is not amused but as we cheered each item as she rang them up I think she felt the power of positive thinking. By the end she too was taking bets. Grand total: 51 pounds. Great news, we’ll go back for more. And so we went back into the bush to scavenge more grub. We finally topped out at 81 pounds. That's the American spirit.

Preparing the spread and placing it on the buffet table, for now it was a buffet in our minds and not some simple finger food gathering, our associates were impressed. Of course we had the one plate of cookies aka biscuits (why are both sweet and savory biscuits called the same thing and not cookies and crackers which makes so much more sense?)

All night the guests commented on the quality of the catering. We had only one black mark against our spread, no butter for the biscuits. Well, frankly, that’s plain weird. So with that one criticism aside we felt very satisfied with ourselves. Even the little pickles were munched up and that was our one risk item.

I will admit that the only plate that was full at the end was the sweet biscuits selection.

Searching for Third Place

Working in the social sector I often refer to the concept of Third Place when it comes to building community around a non-profit organisation. The idea is that in our lives most of us have a first, second and third place in which we dwell. First is usually home, second work and third traditionally has been a communal, comfortable place where we connect with like minded people. In the past this could have been a religious group or perhaps an art group. In modern times it is often Starbucks or a favourite pub.

Third place has taken on new meaning in the cyber age. As I keep moving around the world I maintain a string of internet linkages to my family and friends that is fast becoming my third place. For instance, this blog may very well be my third place. I write a tidbit about my happenings every few days and trust that there are people out there reading my notes. It is a bit one sided except for a few readers who write comments. So, is it really a community that I’m building or more of a voice I keep putting out there to maintain some kind of continuity and presence?

I am in search of a third place that takes me beyond the computer screen since that already occupies much of my work day. The etching course I took allowed me to do something different from the day to day ordinary. It feels like perhaps the studio could be my third place, reminiscent of my college years happily spent in the darkroom.

But really my third place needs to thread through my life on a daily basis. In San Francisco and even to some extent Houston this came in the form of all the organisations in which I was involved. My closest friends were the people that were also passionate about these projects. I have yet to make this kind of community connection in London.

Book Review: Nonprofit Lifecycles

Nonprofit Lifecycles: Stage-Based Wisdom for Nonprofit Capacity
By Susan Kenny Stevens, Ph.D with a foreword by Paul C. Light and Published by Stagewise Enterprises, Inc. - March 2002

Winner of the Alliance for Nonprofit Management's Terry McAdam Book Award for most valuable nonprofit book published in 2002.

Review by Amy Kweskin, Research Fellow, Americans for the Arts

Nonprofit Lifecycle: Stage-Based Wisdom for Nonprofit Capacity uses easy to understand developmental and organizational theory to guide in evaluating the health and evolution of any organization's capacity functions. The most valuable feature of this workbook-style text is Susan Kenny Stevens' illustration of Nonprofit Lifecycle Capacity Placement. Clearly articulated, easy to communicate and endlessly applicable this diagram-based methodology can be used to chart the evolution of all aspects of organization and program development.

The organizational lifecycle, like the human lifecycle, begins at conception and ends in death. Stevens frames these stages as Idea, Start-up, Growth, Maturity, Decline, Turnaround, and Terminal. Pinpointing the evolutionary stage of key organizational functions allows for board and staff to identify the health (capacity) of the organization. These functions include Programs, Management, Governance, Financial Resources, and Administrative Systems. You need not be limited to these areas. The model is endlessly adaptable and can be used by board and staff with equal effectiveness for addressing any management capacity issue.

I used Stevens' model in a Board Leadership Training program to explain organizational lifecycles to a group of corporate executives and they found it extremely useful. It became our template for discussing a variety of organizational capacity development scenarios. Additionally, I used it with a class of undergraduate arts administration students to address leadership development and their own career evolution.

Charting the current stage of each capacity building function allows the organization to conduct its own situation analysis. The process jump starts strategic planning and enables organizations to proactively engage management services. Stevens clearly identifies the diagnostic characteristics and performance outcomes in each stage allowing for goals to be articulated and benchmarks to be set with measurable charting of progress. Using this text empowers organizational stakeholders to objectively evaluate the vitality of the organization. It also is one of the few resources that candidly addresses organizational decline and termination.