The Investment Process

Social Venture Partners Greater Tucson invests in a new nonprofit each year through a rigorous process beginning with the Grant Round Launch. Nonprofit organizations and their representatives are invited to attend an informational session hosted by SVP Staff and Partners to learn about our investment model and our decision-making process. A representative from the nonprofit must attend the session in order to apply for investment.

Grant Round Launch 2011

Following the Launch, nonprofits are encouraged to submit a Letter of Inquiry to our Investment Committee. The Letter of Inquiry is designed to assess the fit of a possible partnership between the nonprofit and SVP.

Basic criteria for applicants:

  1. Primary activities must be located in Pima County
  2. Applicant must have its 501(c)(3) status

Applicants must demonstrate at least 3 of the following:

  1. At least 2 full-time or equivalent employees
  2. Operating budget of $100,000 or more
  3. Two or more years in operation
  4. At least 100 clients served

A nonprofit applying for our grant must be able to demonstrate that they are actively working towards at least ONE of the following:

  • Increasing the literacy rate in Pima County through innovative, entrepreneurial, and accountable programs;
  • Emphasizing inter-generational approaches to literacy development;
  • Addressing needs, and challenges relating to economic, cultural, life skills, early childhood, school age, adult family and community literacy
  • Engaging families in multiple forms of literacy aimed at changing economic standing and improving life conditions for the family;
  • Supporting relationship building, coordinated planning, shared vision, and leadership among literacy agencies and stakeholders.

EVALUATING YOUR APPLICATION

Your submission will be evaluated by a committee of Partners, the Investment Committee, based on the potential impact our Partners believe their investment of financial and human capital can have and the probability of success. We place great importance on the way in which you plan to use the skills and expertise of our Partners and in the strength of your management team. We will also consider how you intend to leverage our investment to ensure a long-term impact beyond the investment period. The requirements for the Letter of Inquiry and other details can be found here.

The Investment Committee will then select four organizations (varies on number of submissions) that they feel best meets our investment criteria. These nonprofits are then invited to participate in a comprehensive due diligence process, and to submit a Full Proposal to the Committee. SVP does not not accept unsolicited proposals. We evaluate each applicant quantitatively and qualitatively through interviews, presentations and site visits.

UPON INVESTMENT

After careful consideration, the Investee is chosen and announced to the community. The Investee is assigned a Lead Partner. A Lead Partner is an SVP Partner who acts as a liaison between the nonprofit and SVP throughout the partnership.

The Investee then must complete an organizational assessment within the first three months of our partnership, including organization staff and Board Members, which is facilitated by the Lead Partner and SVP Staff. The assessment helps determine the goals and objectives for the partnership work plan. Investees complete 6-month and year-end reports to determine successes in the collaborations and areas of improvement. Reports provide information about measurable accomplishments toward initial objectives, how grant money is spent, how resources are utilized, and programs outcomes.