How we choose nonprofits to work with
We want Laurels to be fun and productive for everyone involved, and we choose our nonprofit partners accordingly. We can't work with everyone, and prioritize responsive partners who will generate enthusiasm and high-quality support on the platform.
Clear mission
The easier it is for volunteers to understand an organization's mission, the easier it will be to activate those volunteers to produce high-quality work. This often means some combination of (a) a mission is inherently easy to explain and (b) existing materials that explain the mission clearly.
Relevance to our volunteer professionals
Laurels volunteers are (for now) based entirely in the US, and for now we’re focused only on nonprofits that serve US constituencies.
We also tend to prioritize organizations who serve customers / clients directly (this might exclude, for example, a nonprofit grant-making foundation).
We avoid overtly political or controversial causes. We know that means we’ll exclude some important organizations, but we’re ok with that for now.
Qualified nonprofit status
We only work with qualified 501(c)3 nonprofits. This helps us ensure that our client organizations comply with a range of important regulations concerning nonprofits.
We also prioritize nonprofits that are rated by Charity Navigator or a comparable organization. This helps us maintain quality control.
We’re too small to have to do our own extensive diligence on the nonprofits we partner with!
Clear need
We’re trying to match high-impact contributions with high-need organizations. With that in mind, we try to prioritize working with organizations that can articulate a near-term need that Laurels volunteers can solve. We also prefer it when the results of Laurels contributions can be visible in the short term. Every volunteer likes to see their work in action!
