The Unternehmerstiftung (USC) acts as a connector between nonprofit organizations, businesses, academia and government. As we share the same core values it was we where happy to support USC in their NGO selection process and optimize their own CRM.

Identify, evaluate, and support the most promising social enterprises in Germany.

USC was facing several significant challenges in their mission to identify, evaluate, and support the most promising social enterprises in Germany:

1. Inefficient selection process
   Their existing due diligence process for evaluating potential NGO partners was manual, inconsistent, and managed through scattered Excel files, making it difficult to compare candidates objectively.

   
   

2. Limited impact measurement:
   There was no standardized approach to defining and tracking impact KPIs for funded organizations.

   
   

3. Inefficient data management:
   Information about potential and current partners was scattered across multiple systems without a single source of truth.

We supported with audit, process optimization and data management

Circle for Change (CFC) conducted a comprehensive audit of USC's processes and systems, focusing on three key areas:

1. Standardized Selection & Due Diligence Process

CFC helped USC develop a structured, six-stage selection process for identifying and evaluating potential social enterprise partners:

• Initial Screening: Automated qualification using standardized criteria (focus area, nonprofit status, target group under 26 years, geography in Germany, professional staff, and replicability potential)
  
  

• Detailed Screening: Evaluation of organizational maturity and alignment with USC criteria
  
  

• Get-to-Know Phase: Personal meetings to establish trust and evaluate cultural fit
  
  

• Detailed Assessment: In-depth evaluation using a standardized matrix against USC's four main criteria: entrepreneurial approach, impact orientation, scalability, and systems change potential
  
  

• Board Presentation: Standardized format for presenting candidates to the Kuratorium
  
  

• Partnership Development: Collaborative goal-setting and milestone definition

2. Streamlined Data Collection & Management

CFC supported during the CRM evaluation process with the goal to find a CRM system that perfectly matches USC’s specific requirements

• Managing the entire partner pipeline (Due Diligence Process)
  
  

• Storing and organizing all partner documentation
  
  

• Tracking interactions with potential and current partners
  
  

• Measuring and reporting on impact metrics

3. The Results:

The implementation of these new processes led to significant improvements:

• Enhanced Decision-Making: Kuratorium members reported greater clarity and confidence in funding decisions

• Improved Partner Experience: More transparent process for potential partners

• Stronger Impact Measurement: Clearer definition and tracking of partner KPIs

• CRM provider shortlist: USC received a holistic and granular evaluated shortlist of CRM providers that match their process requirements

About Unternehmerstiftung (USC)

The Unternehmerstiftung (USC) is a German foundation committed to creating equal opportunities for all people to lead self-determined lives. Founded by entrepreneurs, USC believes that access to health, education, and social participation are fundamental rights. Their mission focuses on finding and scaling effective solutions that help children and youth reach their full potential.

USC acts as a connector between nonprofit organizations, businesses, academia, and government, leveraging entrepreneurial expertise and networks to identify and scale impactful solutions. The foundation works primarily in Germany, focusing on prevention and system-level change rather than short-term fixes.