Marketing and Communications: Certificate in Nonprofit Management Series

Certificate in Nonprofit Management Program

Marketing & Communications**

Dates: Thursdays, September 3, 10, 17 and 24

Location: Northern Illinois Center for Nonprofit Excellence (NICNE) at NIU Rockford

Time: 12:30 pm to 3:00 pm

Facilitator: Martesha Brown, MBA, CEO and Lead Consultant of MB Strategic Solutions and Market President Greater Rockford and Belvidere with Midland States Bank

Cost: $225 NICNE Members | $250 General Admission

Course Details: Gain the essential skills, tools, and techniques you need to develop a strategic marketing plan to enhance your organization’s bottom line and mission impact.

Learn where and how to focus your promotional efforts to enhance your mission, programs, and fundraising, ensuring your organization stands out in a cluttered marketplace.

You will:

• Explore the building blocks of marketing;
• Define your key audiences on which to focus your efforts;
• Explore the roles of branding, strategic marketing, and communications;
• Determine your unique differentiators and consideration for brand management;
• Learn how to effectively engage your audiences, such as clients, donors, employees, volunteers, community stakeholders, funders, and the media;
• Identify the appropriate platforms and strategies to drive integrated marketing campaigns unique to your mission;
• Understand the importance of metrics and performance measurement;
• Learn about key budget and strategic considerations;
• Gain an understanding of the role marketing audits, audience analysis, and segmentation to measure impact and hone strategy;
• Build a beginning marketing plan for your organization.

You will learn from local industry experts, and explore numerous tools, templates, and resources to guide your work.

This class is geared towards working professionals. While attendees are expected to engage in activities during class, there is generally no homework required. Expect to spend no more than 30-60 minutes per week outside of class. In-class activities, discussion, and engagement will enhance your learning and relevance of topics to your work.

Facilitator: Martesha Brown is a Rockford native and MBA Graduate of Rockford University with a passion for economic development, strategic planning, marketing, and community engagement. She is the Market President for the Greater Rockford and Belvidere areas for Midland States Bank, with prior leadership roles in economic development, public relations, marketing, and operations for the RACVB, Rockford Park District, and Alpine Bank.

Martesha has volunteered on a variety of boards and committees including Goodwill of Northern Illinois, Think Big, Transform Rockford, Habitat for Humanity, Community Foundation of Northern Illinois, Chairman's Bridge Committee, State of Illinois Governor Pritzker's Capital Development Board, State of Illinois Association of Park Districts, Rebounding Rockford's Covid Recovery committee, RAVE, Leadership Rockford, Coalition of Latino Leaders, and the NAACP. In April of 2021, Martesha was officially elected as the First Black Woman to serve on the Rockford Park District Board of Commissioners in its 112-year history and now sits as the President of the board.

She has been recognized and awarded as one of Rockford's “Forty Under 40”, a Rockford Register Star “people you should know,” is a recipient of the “25 Black Leaders to Watch” by Soul News Network and Inspiring 815, one of Channel 13's 13 Heroes, a Juneteenth Helping Hand Recipient, a YWCA Woman of achievement winner, a 2021 Rockford Chamber of Commerce Community Hero, and was named one of the 2022 Northwest Quarterly's 25 Most Interesting People.

Martesha is a member of NICNE's Professional Services Team, partnering to support nonprofit organizations across the Rockford region. Her business, MB Strategic Solutions, focuses on sharing skills and knowledge developed over her professional career in areas of strategic planning, board development, coaching, leadership development, project management, public relations, engagement planning, goal execution, and operational efficiency.

In addition to her consultancy work, Martesha is an accomplished public speaker. She regularly engages diverse audiences at conferences, panels, and community events, delivering dynamic and insightful keynotes on leadership development, strategic visioning, purpose-driven focus, belonging, and more. Her presentations inspire others to take actionable steps toward positive change in their organizations and communities.

Martesha lives with the belief that true impact begins when we find our purpose and use it to uplift the community around us.

Certificate in Nonprofit Management Program Overview: Leading a high-impact mission-driven nonprofit requires more than goals and plans; it requires concrete knowledge and skills. NICNE’s five-course Certificate in Nonprofit Management program will teach you the skills needed to strengthen your organization and better achieve your mission.

Each course is led by an accomplished expert in their field. Facilitators include nonprofit executives, master-level leaders committed to collaboration as a tool to drive social change, and facilitatros and guest speakers with advanced certifications and decades of experience in nonprofit leadership.

This program is valuable for leaders seeking to broaden or refresh their skill set, aspirng leaders seeking senior leadership positions within their organizations, line staff seeking to improve leadership skills, board members seeking to serve in a more strategic advisory role, and people seeking to transfer from the for-profit to the nonprofit arena.

**This is one of the five courses in the Certificate in Nonprofit Management Program. Take any of the courses individually or complete the entire series. Courses may be taken in any order and attendance credit does not expire. Upon successful completion of all five courses (90% overall attendance) participants will receive a Certificate in Nonprofit Management from The Northern Illinois Center for Nonprofit Excellence at Northern Illinois University. Full program details can be found by visiting our website at www.niu.edu/nicne/. Please call 815.753.8793 or email Billie Callahan at [email protected] with questions.

About NICNE: Northern Illinois Center for Nonprofit Excellence (NICNE) has been providing capacity building, training, technical assistance and resource support to nonprofit organizations within our region since August 2004. We are celebrating the completion of our 20th year as the region's primary resource for nonprofit management, leadership development and community initiative leadership. NICNE strengthens nonprofits and encourages collaboration resulting in a strong, vibrant nonprofit sector critical to a healthy community.

NICNE's mission: Promote, model and grow innovation, excellence and social impact. NICNE is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization affiliated with Northern Illinois University, Division of Outreach, Engagement and Regional Development. Learn more at www.niu.edu/nicne/

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