(July 28, 2014 |New Orleans, LA) – The Greater New Orleans Foundation, in partnership with the Kresge Foundation and Chevron, is pleased to announce Pitch It! The Innovation Challenge 2014 to support breakthrough ideas in the nonprofit field. “Nonprofit organizations must continue to seek innovations that improve efficiencies in order to keep pace with the ever-changing economic landscape,” said Joann Ricci, vice president of Organizational Effectiveness at the Greater New Orleans Foundation. “Thriving organizations are ones that re-think, re-frame, and re-imagine how they do business.” In her role at the Foundation, Ricci provides assistance and trainings to hundreds of local nonprofit organizations to strengthen their operations.
The Pitch It! The Innovation Challenge will fund a novel approach, an innovative product, a new process, or an inventive service that supports a new way of doing business in the nonprofit field. The top prize is $25,000 with second and third place winners receiving $7,500 and $5,000. Ideas can be submitted that solve a particular challenge whether it pertains to management, finance, governance, technology, or programs. All 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations within the region are eligible to apply.
“The Challenge is a way to reward organizations that are willing to take a risk, act on a hunch, or think outside the box,” said Ricci. “Innovation is also about sharing. Ideas that surface here may flourish within in human services field and beyond.”
The deadline to submit your idea is August 22, 2014. The application is available at dev.gnof.org/recieve. Three finalists will be selected to further develop their concept. They will present their ideas in a public pitch to a panel of judges on Friday, October 17th at 9:00 am at the New Orleans Museum of Art.
For more information on Pitch It! The Innovation Challenge, please visit our website at http://www.gnof.org/program/pitch-it-the-innovation-challenge/.