Tools & Supports
Tools, Templates, and Insights for Nonprofit Success.
Find the tools, templates, and insights you need to lead, grow, and adapt. From governance and design thinking to fundraising and storytelling—it’s all here, right when you need it. We’ve curated this page to help you make smarter decisions, access resources faster, and keep your mission moving forward. Let’s build something great together.
Capacity Building Resources
Building strong, resilient organizations starts with the right skills and tools. Our capacity building resources provide practical support to help your nonprofit grow, adapt, and thrive in a changing environment.
Reports & Articles
- Capacity Building – Investing in Not-for-Profit Effectiveness (PriceWaterhouseCoopers, 2011)
- Deeper Capacity Building for Greater Impact (TCC Group, 2007)
- Effective Capacity Building in Nonprofit Organizations (McKinsey & Company, 2001)
- When Good Is Not Good Enough (Stanford Social Innovation Review, 2013)
- The Nonprofit Starvation Cycle (Stanford Social Innovation Review, 2009)
Case Studies
Real-world case studies offer valuable insights and inspiration. Explore stories of nonprofit successes, challenges, and innovations to learn practical lessons and support your organization’s growth.
Board Governance
Strong board governance is the backbone of effective nonprofit leadership. Equip your board with practical, modern tools and knowledge to lead with confidence and clarity. Explore our governance resources built for today’s challenges.
Charitable Compliance
- Annual Calendar Checklist for Registered Charities (The Charities File)
- Board Agenda Gems Info Sheet (The Charities File)
Good Governance Best Practices
- Good Governance Checklist (Capacity Canada)
- Ten Practices Module (The Charities File)
- Reviewing Governance in Your Organization (Jane Garthson)
Minute Taking
Volunteer-Run Nonprofits
Financial Resources
From budgeting tools to funding strategies, our financial resources help organizations build stability and make informed decisions. Explore practical tools for smarter financial stewardship.
CRA Compliance
- Completing your Charity Return (CRA web link, 2020)
- CRA Record Keeping Guidelines (CRA web link, 2016)
- GST / HST Information for Charities (Canadian Revenue Agency)
Charity Treasurer
- Role Description for a Charity Treasurer (The Charities File)
- FAQs from a Treasurer’s Perspective (The Charities File)
Fiduciary Duty
Not Sure Where to Start?
Try the NFP Capacity Scorecard to better understand your NFP's strengths and challenges and receive a personalized report.
Upcoming Events
Annual Board Governance BootCamp | Boldly Hopeful in a World on Fire | November 24, 25 & 26, 2026 | Bingemans Conference Centre, Kitchener, ON| In-person Conference
Design Thinking
Design thinking continues to evolve. New tools, techniques, and approaches are regularly introduced and refined to meet emerging challenges and ways of working.
Must Read Books
- 101 Design Methods
- Change By Design
- The Design Of Everyday Things
- The Doodle Revolution
- Game StormingÂ
Books (Available as ebook or paperback on Amazon)
- 101 Design Methods by Vijay Kumar
- Change By Design by Tim Brown
- The Design Of Everyday Things by Don Norman
- Design Thinking For The Greater Good by Jeanne Liedtka, Randy Salzman & Daisy Azer
- The Doodle Revolution by Sunni Brown
- Game Storming by Dave Gray, Sunni Brown and James Macanufo
- How To Solve Big Problems And Test New Ideas In Just Five Days by Jake Knapp with John Zeratsky & Braden Kowitz
- The Design Of Business by Roger Martin
- This Is Service Design Doing
- This Is Service Design Thinking
Articles, Websites & Media
- This video, from ABC Nightline, introduces IDEO and their approach to problem-solving through design thinking.Â
- IDEO U’s Creative Confidence Podcast
Articles
- Want to know about the history of design thinking? Check out “Design thinking origin story plus some of the people who made it all happen” by Jo Szczepanska
- “Shh! Don’t Tell Them There’s No Magic In Design Thinking” by Jared Spool, is a refreshing look at why design thinking isn’t a fad any more than design is a fad.
Websites
- Interaction Design Foundation is a Danish nonprofit whose goal is to share information about interaction design, human-computer interaction, and design thinking. Definitely have a look at their freely available design thinking resources.
Media
- This video, from ABC Nightline, introduces IDEO and their approach to problem-solving through design thinking. While the video is from several years ago, it is a great way to get a feeling for design thinking – its strengths and weaknesses, its goals, and its process – from one of its strongest champions
- IDEO U’s Creative Confidence Podcast
People, Companies, and Organizations
- IDEO, as well as their Design Kit
- Stanford d.school is one of the modern champions of design thinking. Not only do they teach and write about design thinking, they continue to develop new mental models around its application, and share tools with the community.
- Overlap Associates are a design consultancy, based in Kitchener. They are wonderfully friendly, super smart, and share a great many of their resources!
Forms, Artifacts, and Templates
- Where to start? When to finish? What questions should I ask? This poster outlines the key elements of design thinking and how they relate to each other. Perfect for sharing with your team and hanging up in the office, or keeping in the glove compartment of your car (you know, just in case…). Download the Design Thinking Process Map.
- Understanding how your users feel, what their motivations might be, and how they view the world are steps toward empathy. An empathy map is a simple tool designed to get you seeing through their eyes, feeling their frustrations and better understanding of what they value in a service or product. Download the Empathy Map.
- Feedback can often be too narrow or focused. The Feedback Form adds structure to the process, allows stakeholders to provide more comprehensive and insightful feedback, and guides a conversation through all aspects of potential improvement. Download the Feedback Form.
- Developing a robust understanding of how we interact with a product or service (or even the world around us) can be tricky. By using a Journey Map, we learn more about the detail of the journey, about both positive and negative interactions, and the relationship between all of the elements of the journey. Download the Journey Map.
Human Resources
Effective human resources practices are essential for building strong, mission-driven teams. From recruitment to retention, our HR resources support nonprofits in creating healthy, equitable workplaces. Explore tools to strengthen your people strategy.
Succession Planning
- Building Leadership Organizations (Annie Casey Foundation, 2008)
- Charity Shoe Box Info Sheet (The Charities File)
- Organization Shoe Box Checklist
Nonprofit Workforce
- Current State of Skills Development in the Canadian Non-Profit Sector (The Canadian Nonprofit Sector, 2011)
- Change Work: Valuing Decent Work in the Not-for-profit Sector (ONN, Mowat NFP, TNC, 2015)
- Developing Labour Market Information (HR Council for the Nonprofit Sector)
Executive Directors
Storytelling Resources
Compelling stories bring your nonprofit’s mission to life and inspire action. Our storytelling resources help you craft authentic, engaging narratives that connect with supporters and amplify your impact.
Nonprofit Storytelling Best Practices
Video Storytelling
The Goodman Centre
Technology
Digital advertising continues to evolve and for nonprofits, staying ahead means making the most of powerful tools. Maximizing your online presence is more than a bonus. Learn how your organization can unlock the full potential through our technology resources.
Google Grants for Nonprofits
Non-Profit Technology Best Practices and Trends
CASL
Digital Marketing for Nonprofits
Helpful Tech Resources
Leadership
These resources are designed for organizations with staff and executive directors in place, where the board provides strategic oversight and policy direction, and staff manage day-to-day risks.
Fundraising Resources
Access to funding fuels nonprofit missions and drives impact. Our funding resources provide guidance on grants, fundraising strategies, and donor engagement to help your organization secure the support it needs. Explore tools to boost your fundraising success.
Tax Receipts
- Fundraising for your charitable work
- Fundraisers Receipt Book – Quiz (The Charities File)
- Fundraisers Receipt Book – Receipting Decision Tree (The Charities File)
- Fundraisers Receipt Book – Specific Questions about Receipt (The Charities File)
Charitable Compliance
- Fundraising for your Charitable Work
- Description of Charitable Purpose and Activities (The Charities File)
- Fundraisers Info Sheet (The Charities File)
Social Enterprise
Evaluation Resources
Our evaluation resources provide practical tools and strategies to help your nonprofit assess programs, learn from results, and demonstrate success.
Strategic Philanthropy for a Complex World
Developmental Evaluation
Evaluative and Strategic Thinking
- Strategic Learning – The Spark Model to Do Good Even Better (Spark Policy Institute, 2012)
- Evaluation Flash Cards – Embedding Evaluative Thinking in Organizational Culture (Michael Quinn Patton, 2013)
- Strategy Design Amid Complexity: Tools for Designing and Implementing Adaptive Funding Strategies (Foundation Review, 2015)