Make a Lasting Impact:

While there are many organizations in your community dedicated to addressing community needs, rarely is there one source of information that looks at all of these needs. Therefore, it is essential for an organization like your United Way to take the lead in understanding and planning to meet these community needs.

Your United Way can guide this process with a Needs Assessment from Perspectives Consulting Group, Inc.  Different United Ways refer to a Needs Assessment in different terms, including Community Report Card and Community Assessment, but the idea is the same: identifying needs in the community.  The Needs Assessment will:

• Develop focused plans to address your community needs based on comprehensive and organized information
• Provide your community organizations with the critical information needed to continue their work and improve the status of the community
• Understand your community needs according to residents, community leaders, service providers and service consumers
• Make community information readily available in an easy-to-read, and easy-to-use Needs Assessment
• Target the leading issues in your community such as: health and well-being, early childhood development, seniors, housing, and education

If your United Way wants to lead the way to understanding community needs, the Needs Assessment is the most effective and efficient method you can use. United Ways that make an effort to understand their community needs through the Needs Assessment will appreciate the benefits in their community for many years to come.


Use Our Proven Method:

The Needs Assessment is based on a comprehensive collection of existing data, studies and information about your community needs, and surveys and research of your community.

There are many sources of information about your community that exist, which are brought together in the Needs Assessment. This information may include existing studies, past surveys, government reports and statistics, along with information collected by individual organizations and agencies. The Needs Assessment collects, organizes, and integrates the information so that users can see a broad view of your community.

Surveys provide your community with essential information to understand community needs.  Surveys can be conducted with community residents, community leaders, service providers, and service users to supply your United Way with thorough information.

The survey process starts by meeting with your United Way to identify the issues of concern, and form the survey objectives.  The survey is then developed to address those issues and meet generally accepted survey practices. Most surveys are conducted by telephone as this method provides the most statistically accurate sample.

Once the information is obtained, Perspectives Consulting Group, Inc. analyzes the information and provides an easy-to-read, easy-to-use report. When developing the Needs Assessment, we reveal the critical information that will make a difference in your United Way’s understanding of community needs, future planning, and resource allocation.

To help your United Way fully utilize the results of the Needs Assessment, we will meet with your United Way staff to discuss the recommendations and next steps for action.

Perspectives Consulting Group, Inc. has developed the Needs Assessment to meet the special needs of United Ways. We have worked with United Ways across the United States conducting community research, and understand the challenges facing United Ways. We integrate our efforts with United Way programs such as the community impact agenda, branding initiative, and outcome measurement.

View an example of a Needs Assessment including primary and secondary community research Perspectives Consulting Group, Inc. completed for a local United Way.

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Click here to read more about Perspectives methods for Report Cards and Needs Assessments.
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