If you are searching for more knowledge, questions and answers, see the latest questions and answers below.  If you have a question that you haven't seen asked or answered, please feel free to go the Express Yourself page and ask.

 Q.        Do you provide lobbying services?

A.   Yes.  A crucial, though often overlooked, area of development work includes building cooperative relationships with government.  Governmental and regulatory policies often are informed by philanthropy or impact the effectiveness of such work.  Within our team of consultants, we have advocates who have worked with elected officials - Democrats and Republicans - at the highest levels of federal, state, and local governments and with governments around the world.

Q.        Does the Alliance offer workshops or professional speakers?

  A.   Yes, we have a number of alliance members who are accomplished speakers and executive coaches.  These skilled team members can work with you to communicate the importance of social responsibility within your company or foundation, facilitate meetings, or speak on a variety of CSR-related topics.

Q.        Do you conduct brainstorming sessions?

A.   Yes, brainstorming sessions are a key part of helping a client or nonprofit make decisions and develop their own unique plans.

Q.        Do you provide corporate coaching?

A.   Yes, we are proud to have some of the best executive coaches in the world as members of our team.   Our coaches are skilled in helping organizations address a variety of issues, including conflict management, and leadership and organizational development.

Q.        Do you assist nonprofits in fundraising?

A.   Yes, however this is not one of our primary objectives since the majority of our clients are funders.  We do have alliance team members with a broad range of fundraising experience.

Q.        Do you provide business services?

A.   Yes, we offer an extensive collection of business services to corporations, foundations, and nonprofits. Some examples include business planning, technology solutions, public relations and marketing.

Q.        Can you work in conjunction with our internal committee?

  A.   Absolutely.  Our goal is to meet each and every client's specific needs, therefore we have designed our services to be complimentary to a client's internal committee and to respond to their unique needs.  The breadth of the Sapphire Alliance's expertise allows us to work at all levels of a business or foundation, with internal committees or individuals as needed through a variety of services, including coaching, brainstorming, strategic planning, nonprofit screening/introductions, and specific expert assignments.

Q.        How do you charge for your services?

  A.   The charges for each engagement are based on an understanding of the specific client's needs and budget.  The typical forms of reimbursement are:

• Monthly Retainer

• Flat fee for services to be provided, or

• Hourly fees when appropriate.

Estimates are provided once a clear understanding and agreement is established for each assignment or engagement.  The amount of the retainer or fees reflects the agreed upon tasks and requirements.  In some cases, clients have a specific budget for funding and we work with them to select specific services to leverage their available funds.

Q.        Do you only work with companies that have a specific level of contributions or budget for investing in social responsibility activities?

A.   No.  The unique concept upon which the Sapphire Alliance was built allows us to expand and contract to meet a client's unique budget or requirements efficiently and cost-effectively.