2020 THINKSGIVING CHALLENGES

These are the challenges our teams paired to solve in 2020.

Featured
Thinksgiving wins award from The Business Journal
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The Solutions Showcase @ Venture Cafe
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Wings of Hope + Ameren

We’re entering our seventh decade as a nonprofit and many of our long-time volunteers are almost as “experienced” as we are. How might we ... attract younger and more diverse volunteers to work with and learn from our current amazing team?

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As a nonprofit dance company, we’ve always taught our students in person. Lately we’ve mixed Zoom with outdoor engagements, but winter is coming. How might we … find ways to help donors, clients, and students feel comfortable returning to our spa
Consuming Kinetics Dance Company + Caleres

As a nonprofit dance company, we’ve always taught our students in person. Lately, we’ve mixed Zoom with outdoor engagements, but winter is coming. How might we … find ways to help donors, clients, and students feel comfortable returning to our spaces for classes and events or deliver them virtually in more creative and effective ways?

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Our long-standing nonprofit is filled with amazing staff and leadership volunteers who care deeply about our mission, yet struggle to connect virtually with an external audience. How might we … better equip them to embrace innovative ways to advoca
Lutheran Family & Children Services + Spire

Our long-standing nonprofit is filled with amazing staff and leadership volunteers who care deeply about our mission, yet struggle to connect virtually with an external audience. How might we … better equip them to embrace innovative ways to advocate for our clients?

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We utilize multiple technology systems, and none share information well with the others. How might we … explore ways to integrate data from several sources into one, helping us make better decisions faster.
Mission St. Louis + UNCOMN

We utilize multiple technology systems, and none share information well with the others. How might we … explore ways to integrate data from several sources into one, helping us make better decisions faster?

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Our organization works from multiple locations and provides services at all hours of the day and night. How might we … better foster a positive culture among our distributed, super-busy team members that celebrates their accomplishments and recogn
Fathers & Families Support Center + Horizons Consulting

Our organization works from multiple locations and provides services at all hours of the day and night. How might we … better foster a positive culture among our distributed, super-busy team members that celebrates their accomplishments and recognizes contributions from all?

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We’re building an innovation ecosystem and know that collaboration is key. How might we … leverage readily available virtual tools to connect our community and turn stakeholders into collaborators?
Danforth Plant Science Center + Husch Blackwell

We’re building an innovation ecosystem and know that collaboration is key. How might we … leverage readily available virtual tools to connect our community and turn stakeholders into collaborators?

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We provide services and training to our region’s educators, but know they need so much more. How might we … build relationships with other innovative partners to uncover and address the problems our community’s educators are facing during this pan
Connected Learning + Hunter Engineering

We provide services and training to our region’s educators but know they need so much more. How might we … build relationships with other innovative partners to uncover and address the problems our community’s educators are facing during this pandemic and beyond?

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We’re providing much-needed services to the region’s underfed and food insecure, but are struggling to connect with prospective donors when we can’t show them our work in person. How might we … leverage virtual methods and tools to build deeper re
St. Louis Area Foodbank + Commerce Bank

We’re providing much-needed services to the region’s underfed and food insecure, but are struggling to connect with prospective donors when we can’t show them our work in person. How might we … leverage virtual methods and tools to build deeper relationships with them so they’ll continue to engage with us and become champions for our organization?

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Though we connect authors with our region’s neediest children to inspire them to write, we’re struggling to tell our own story. How might we ... better use technology to amplify our impact and increase interest in our community?
The Noble Neighbor + Bayer

Though we connect authors with our region’s neediest children to inspire them to write, we’re struggling to tell our own story. How might we ... better use technology to amplify our impact and increase interest in our community?

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Our technology requires us to enter the same information into multiple systems, resulting in duplicated data and hundreds of hours of wasted time. How might we … rethink our systems and practices to free up more time for our team members to engage
St. Patrick Center + Integrity XD

Our technology requires us to enter the same information into multiple systems, resulting in duplicated data and hundreds of hours of wasted time. How might we … rethink our systems and practices to free up more time for our team members to engage with those we serve?

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Gateway Greening + Nestle Purina

In 36 years as a nonprofit, our focus has shifted and our name no longer captures the core of what we do (and is often confused with other organizations in our region). How might we … find a better name that matches our mission and is uniquely ours?

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Sickle Cell Association + Filament

We focus on building awareness of a deadly, hereditary incurable disease. How might we ... find innovative ways to deliver programs to effectively inform, educate, and engage the community at large about the disease, its impacts, and preventative measures they might take?

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Though we’re a new nonprofit, we’re experiencing huge nationwide demand for our services. How might we ... quickly scale our current team, operations, and systems to keep up with demand and grow our impact?
Limitless Foundation + Emerson

Though we’re a new nonprofit, we’re experiencing huge nationwide demand for our services. How might we ... quickly scale our current team, operations, and systems to keep up with demand and grow our impact?

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Women’s Foundation of Greater St. Louis + SLU

While our team members and volunteers believe deeply in our mission to help women, our message is often told in inconsistent ways. How might we … align our messaging and effectively communicate our story to stakeholders?

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We’re a workforce-focused nonprofit founded by several of our city’s most civic-minded entities. How might we … become known as the go-to resource that connects teachers and students with future-focused employers designing jobs for the new economy
STEMSTL + Clayco

We’re a workforce-focused nonprofit founded by several of our city’s most civic-minded entities. How might we … become known as the go-to resource that connects teachers and students with future-focused employers designing jobs for the new economy?

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Before COVID, we delivered art-centered programs to young people, veterans, and people with disabilities in our studio. How might we … help our amazing artists tell their stories​ and share (and sell) their art in creative, virtual-friendly ways?
Artists First + Cannonball

We used to deliver art-centered programs to young people, veterans, and people with disabilities in our now-unavailable studio before COVID. How might we … help our amazing artists tell their stories​, share, and sell their art in creative, virtual-friendly ways?

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We’re a nonprofit supporting parents raising transgender children, with chapters in ten states and a high demand for growth. Our volunteer leadership is passionate but spread too thin. How might we ... scale our organization to attract the right
Transparent USA + Cortex

We are a nonprofit supporting parents raising transgender children, with chapters in ten states and a high demand for growth. Our volunteer leadership is passionate but spread too thin. How might we ... scale our organization to attract the right talent and leverage community partners to become the nationally recognized resource for these families?

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