Section A – Intellectual Assets (6 questions)
Definition: Assets can be: 1. Physical Assets – Tangible resources your organization owns, controls or uses to achieve its goals. 2. Intellectual Assets – Intangible, knowledge-based resources that provide competitive or strategic value. This section looks at how well your organization identifies, protects, and leverages its intangible strengths — such as knowledge, data, processes, brand reputation, and partnerships.Goal: To understand whether intellectual assets are being recognized and transformed into strategic or financial value that supports long-term sustainability.
2. In the past 3–5 years, how would you rate your organization’s ability to draw value from its intellectual assets to support business development or growth)?
Not yet applied – intellectual assets have not been actively used for value creation (e.g., training materials exist but are only used internally, research reports not shared externally). Occasionally considered – assets are mentioned in discussions but rarely translated into outcomes (e.g., exploring brand reputation or partnerships in proposals, but without concrete follow-through). Applied in specific cases – assets are used for value in certain projects or services, but not consistently across the organization (e.g., using research to develop one consultancy product, piloting a tool once, or leveraging a brand name to win a donor project). Regularly leveraged in selected areas – assets are consistently drawn on to create value, but mostly in limited domains (e.g., launching new training services based on existing manuals, developing products from prior research, or forming partnerships around a recognized methodology). Strategic integration – intellectual assets are fully embedded in business development and organizational growth, informing portfolio design and company strategy (e.g., using proprietary tools in all proposals, integrating knowledge/IP into annual strategy, building new revenue streams around branded methods or platforms).
3. How would you describe your organization’s ownership and protection of intellectual assets (e.g., training content, software tools, manuals, branding elements, or unique methods)? This includes both legal ownership of intellectual assets and the measures your organization takes to safeguard them.
No formal ownership and no protection in place. Content developed externally is available to the organization, but without a legal agreement granting rights to use it beyond the original project or task (e.g., training slides prepared by a consultant without transfer of rights). Licensed use from an external source (e.g., consultant, partner organization), but not owned by the organization. Created and owned by the organization but not formally protected (e.g., basic contracts, no formal IP registrations). Fully created, owned, and legally protected by the organization through formal systems (e.g., copyrights, trademarks, patents, NDAs, secure databases).
4. How are your organization’s intellectual assets leveraged for financial value? This refers to how your knowledge, tools, content, or data generate income for your organization.
Not yet leveraged for financial value . – e.g., knowledge and content are used only internally. Limited use, mainly internal applications. – e.g., training guides or research outputs applied for staff capacity building. Occasionally monetized in specific cases. – e.g., one-off advisory services, a single report sold, or a pilot training offered for a fee. Regularly leveraged to generate financial return. – e.g., recurring revenue from workshops, online courses, or licensing agreements. Systematically embedded as a major revenue stream. – e.g., intellectual assets form the foundation of service lines, paid products, or long-term contracts.
Section B – Financial Sustainability (6 questions)
Definition: Goal: To assess how resilient your financial structure is and whether you are moving from donor reliance to diversified, self-sustaining revenue streams that can secure your future impact.
7. What is your organization’s main source of funding or revenue? (Please select the option that best represents your largest funding stream.)
Predominantly from a single donor, client, or funding source. A few donors or clients (e.g., 2-3), with high dependency on them. A mix of sources, but still dominant reliance on one donor, client, or stream. A balanced mix of donors/clients plus some self-generated income (e.g., services, events, memberships). Highly diversified across multiple streams, including donors, clients, partnerships, and self-generated income.
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