The most fundamental decision a nonprofit organization can make is to define the results it must deliver in order to...
GMAT Reading Comprehension : (RC) Questions
Source: Official Guide
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The most fundamental decision a nonprofit organization can make is to define the results it must deliver in order to be successful. That process entails translating the organization's mission into goals that are simultaneously compelling enough to attract ongoing support from stakeholders and specific enough to inform resource allocations. One approach is for nonprofit leaders to formulate and agree upon the organization's intended impact. A strong intended-impact statement identifies both the beneficiaries of a nonprofit's activities and the benefits the organization will provide—that is, the change in behavior, knowledge, or status quo its programs are designed to effect. Such specificity gives decision makers a powerful lens to use when they have to make trade-offs among worthy, competing priorities.
Discussions about an organization's intended impact tend to be iterative, inclusive (drawing in board as well as staff members), and incredibly hard. One source of difficulty: legitimate needs invariably outstrip any single organization's ability to meet them. So by clarifying its strategy and scope, the nonprofit is also determining what it will not do. This involves tough choices, without "right" answers. But only by making them can a nonprofit align its limited resources with the activities that will have the greatest impact.
Ques. 1/3
The passage most strongly implies which of the following about clarifying the intended impact of a nonprofit organization's activities?
Solution
1. Passage Analysis:
Progressive Passage Analysis
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| The most fundamental decision a nonprofit organization can make is to define the results it must deliver in order to be successful. | What it says: For nonprofits, the most important decision is figuring out what success looks like. What it does: Introduces the main topic and sets up the central argument Source/Type: Author's opinion/claim Connection to Previous Sentences: This is the opening statement - establishes the foundation for everything that follows Visualization: Think of a food bank deciding: "Success means feeding 1,000 families monthly" vs. vague "help hungry people" Reading Strategy Insight: This sentence tells us the ENTIRE passage will be about this one decision - defining success for nonprofits. Everything else will elaborate on this. |
| That process entails translating the organization's mission into goals that are simultaneously compelling enough to attract ongoing support from stakeholders and specific enough to inform resource allocations. | What it says: Defining success means turning your mission into goals that are both inspiring (donors want to support them) and detailed (you know how to spend money on them). What it does: Explains what the "fundamental decision" from sentence 1 actually involves Source/Type: Author's explanation/elaboration Connection to Previous Sentences: This builds on sentence 1 by explaining HOW to make that fundamental decision. "That process" directly refers back to "define the results." Visualization: Mission: "Help homeless pets" → Goal: "Find homes for 200 cats and 150 dogs annually through adoption events and veterinary care" (compelling + specific) Reading Strategy Insight: The author is helping us by breaking down the abstract concept from sentence 1 into concrete components. |
| One approach is for nonprofit leaders to formulate and agree upon the organization's intended impact. | What it says: Here's a specific way to define success: leaders should decide together on what change they want to create. What it does: Introduces a specific method for accomplishing what sentences 1-2 described Source/Type: Author's recommendation Connection to Previous Sentences: This provides a concrete solution to the challenge outlined in sentences 1-2. "One approach" signals this is THE method the author wants to focus on. Visualization: Literacy nonprofit leaders meeting to agree: "Our intended impact is helping 500 adults read at 8th grade level within 2 years" What We Know So Far: Nonprofits need to define success, this involves creating compelling + specific goals, and one way to do this is through "intended impact" What We Don't Know Yet: What exactly makes a strong intended impact statement |
| A strong intended-impact statement identifies both the beneficiaries of a nonprofit's activities and the benefits the organization will provide—that is, the change in behavior, knowledge, or status quo its programs are designed to effect. | What it says: A good intended impact statement answers: WHO you help + WHAT change you create in them What it does: Defines the key concept (intended impact statement) and breaks it into two clear components Source/Type: Author's definition/framework Connection to Previous Sentences: This directly answers the question raised in sentence 3 - it tells us what makes an intended impact statement work. The phrase "that is" signals the author is clarifying/restating the same idea. Visualization: Beneficiaries: "Single mothers under 25" + Benefits: "Gain job skills to earn $15/hour within 6 months" Reading Strategy Insight: Feel relieved here - this is simplification, not new complexity. The author just gave us a simple two-part formula for something that seemed complicated. |
| Such specificity gives decision makers a powerful lens to use when they have to make trade-offs among worthy, competing priorities. | What it says: When you're specific about your intended impact, it becomes much easier to choose between different good options. What it does: Explains the practical benefit of having a strong intended impact statement Source/Type: Author's explanation of benefits Connection to Previous Sentences: This builds on sentence 4 by explaining WHY the two-part formula (beneficiaries + benefits) is so valuable. "Such specificity" refers directly back to being specific about WHO and WHAT. Visualization: Youth nonprofit choosing between after-school tutoring vs. summer camps. With clear impact statement "help 100 at-risk teens graduate high school," tutoring wins easily. Reading Strategy Insight: The author is reinforcing why intended impact matters - we're still building on the same core concept, not adding new complexity. |
| Discussions about an organization's intended impact tend to be iterative, inclusive (drawing in board as well as staff members), and incredibly hard. | What it says: Creating an intended impact statement involves repeated conversations with many people, and it's very difficult. What it does: Acknowledges the challenges/realities of implementing the approach Source/Type: Author's observation about the process Connection to Previous Sentences: This shifts from the benefits (sentence 5) to the challenges of creating intended impact statements. Still focused on the same core concept from sentence 3. Visualization: Environmental nonprofit: 6 months of back-and-forth meetings between board members, staff, and volunteers trying to agree on specific impact measures Reading Strategy Insight: The author is being honest about difficulties - this shows they understand real-world implementation, which makes their advice more credible. |
| One source of difficulty: legitimate needs invariably outstrip any single organization's ability to meet them. | What it says: One reason it's hard: there are always more real problems than any one organization can solve. What it does: Provides a specific explanation for why the process is "incredibly hard" Source/Type: Author's explanation Connection to Previous Sentences: This directly explains sentence 6 by giving us the first reason why intended impact discussions are difficult. "One source of difficulty" explicitly connects to "incredibly hard." Visualization: Homeless shelter recognizing they could help with housing, food, job training, mental health, addiction - but can't do everything well Reading Strategy Insight: This is elaboration, not new complexity - we're diving deeper into the same point about difficulty. |
| So by clarifying its strategy and scope, the nonprofit is also determining what it will not do. | What it says: When you get clear about your intended impact, you're also deciding what problems you WON'T try to solve. What it does: Restates the implication of sentence 7 in clearer terms Source/Type: Author's logical conclusion Connection to Previous Sentences: This restates sentence 7 more directly. "So" signals this is the logical conclusion. The difficulty comes from having to say NO to worthy causes. Visualization: Education nonprofit deciding: "We focus on reading skills for K-3 students" means saying no to math tutoring, high school programs, adult education Reading Strategy Insight: The author is helping us understand the emotional difficulty - it's hard because you must reject good causes, not bad ones. |
| This involves tough choices, without "right" answers. | What it says: These decisions are emotionally difficult and there's no obviously correct choice. What it does: Further emphasizes the difficulty and ambiguity of the process Source/Type: Author's acknowledgment Connection to Previous Sentences: This continues elaborating on why the process is hard (from sentences 6-8). "This" refers to determining what you won't do. Visualization: Animal rescue choosing between saving 50 healthy dogs or 10 dogs needing expensive surgery - both choices save lives, no "right" answer Reading Strategy Insight: The author is validating that this feels hard because it IS hard - building empathy with readers who struggle with these decisions. |
| But only by making them can a nonprofit align its limited resources with the activities that will have the greatest impact. | What it says: Despite the difficulty, you MUST make these tough choices to maximize your organization's effectiveness. What it does: Provides the final argument for why the difficult process is worth it - circles back to the main point Source/Type: Author's conclusion/final argument Connection to Previous Sentences: This brings us full circle to sentence 1. "But" contrasts with the difficulty described in sentences 6-9. The "greatest impact" connects directly back to "define the results" and "intended impact." Visualization: Food bank choosing to focus only on weekend backpack programs reaches 1,000 kids well vs. trying to do everything and reaching 200 kids poorly Reading Strategy Insight: This is the payoff - the author has made a complete circle. We started with "define results for success" and end with "activities that will have the greatest impact." The passage reinforces one central idea rather than introducing constantly new concepts. |
2. Passage Summary:
Author's Purpose:
To explain how nonprofit organizations can make better strategic decisions by creating clear intended impact statements that define who they help and what change they create.
Summary of Passage Structure:
In this passage, the author builds their argument in clear steps:
- First, the author states that the most important decision for nonprofits is defining what success looks like, which means turning their mission into goals that are both inspiring and specific.
- Next, the author introduces intended impact statements as the solution, explaining that strong statements must identify both who you help and what change you create in them.
- Then, the author acknowledges that creating these statements is very difficult because there are always more problems than any organization can solve, forcing tough choices about what not to do.
- Finally, the author concludes that despite the difficulty, organizations must make these hard choices to use their limited resources most effectively.
Main Point:
Nonprofit organizations must create specific intended impact statements that clearly define who they help and what change they create, and they must be willing to make tough choices about what they won't do, because only by being this focused can they maximize their effectiveness with limited resources.
3. Question Analysis:
This question asks what the passage "most strongly implies" about clarifying intended impact - meaning we need to find what the author suggests indirectly rather than states explicitly. The question focuses specifically on the process and consequences of clarifying intended impact.
Connecting to Our Passage Analysis:
From our passage analysis, several key insights relate to this question:
- The passage explains that clarifying intended impact involves "determining what it will not do" (sentence 8)
- The author emphasizes that "legitimate needs invariably outstrip any single organization's ability to meet them" (sentence 7)
- The process involves "tough choices, without 'right' answers" (sentence 9)
- Organizations must "align its limited resources with the activities that will have the greatest impact" (sentence 10)
The central tension the author identifies is that nonprofits face more worthy causes than they can handle, so clarification necessarily involves exclusion.
Prethinking:
Based on our passage analysis, the strongest implication about clarifying intended impact is that organizations will need to narrow their focus. The author's logic flows like this: there are always more legitimate needs than any organization can meet → clarifying impact means deciding what you won't do → this involves tough choices → but it's necessary to maximize effectiveness. This suggests organizations must limit their scope from what they might ideally want to do to what they can realistically accomplish well.
Answer Choices Explained
A
Decision makers must make difficult choices about whether requests from would-be recipients of the organization's services are legitimate.
Why It's Wrong:
- The passage doesn't focus on evaluating whether needs are "legitimate" - it actually states that "legitimate needs invariably outstrip any single organization's ability to meet them"
- The author assumes needs ARE legitimate; the difficulty comes from having too many legitimate needs, not from questioning their validity
- This misrepresents the core challenge as one of evaluation rather than resource allocation
Common Student Mistakes:
- Does "legitimate needs" in the passage mean organizations must judge which needs are real?
→ No, the author uses "legitimate" to emphasize that these are genuinely worthy causes, making the choices harder, not easier - Is the difficulty about determining what requests are valid?
→ No, the difficulty is about choosing among multiple valid requests when you can't fulfill them all
B
The organization will most likely need to narrow its intended activities to a subset of those that its decision makers would like to include.
Why It's Right:
- The passage directly states that "by clarifying its strategy and scope, the nonprofit is also determining what it will not do"
- The author explains that legitimate needs "outstrip any single organization's ability to meet them," requiring organizations to narrow their focus
- The logic flows from unlimited worthy needs to limited organizational capacity to necessary choices about scope
Key Evidence: "So by clarifying its strategy and scope, the nonprofit is also determining what it will not do. This involves tough choices, without 'right' answers. But only by making them can a nonprofit align its limited resources with the activities that will have the greatest impact."
C
The organization should not try to define in detail the categories of beneficiaries that it intends to serve.
Why It's Wrong:
- This directly contradicts the passage's emphasis on specificity - the author states that "such specificity gives decision makers a powerful lens"
- The passage advocates for intended impact statements that "identify both the beneficiaries of a nonprofit's activities and the benefits the organization will provide"
- The author argues that being detailed about beneficiaries is exactly what makes impact statements strong
Common Student Mistakes:
- Does the difficulty of the process mean organizations should avoid being too specific?
→ No, the author argues specificity is essential despite the difficulty - it provides "a powerful lens" for decision-making - Would defining beneficiaries in detail make the tough choices even harder?
→ Actually, the author suggests specificity makes choices clearer, not harder
D
To make effective choices about how best to target which needs, the organization may have to exclude some board members or staff from deliberations.
Why It's Wrong:
- The passage explicitly states that discussions should be "inclusive (drawing in board as well as staff members)"
- The author advocates for including more stakeholders, not fewer, despite the process being difficult
- The difficulty comes from the nature of the choices, not from having too many people involved
Common Student Mistakes:
- Since the process is "incredibly hard," wouldn't fewer people make it easier?
→ The author suggests the opposite - that inclusive discussions are part of creating strong intended impact statements - Do "tough choices" require limiting who participates?
→ No, the difficulty comes from the choices themselves, not from the discussion process
E
The organization's leaders often find it unnecessary to decide among beneficiaries' apparently competing needs.
Why It's Wrong:
- This is the opposite of what the passage suggests - the author emphasizes that making difficult choices among competing needs is central to the process
- The passage states that discussions are "incredibly hard" precisely because leaders must choose among legitimate, competing priorities
- The phrase "without 'right' answers" shows these decisions are unavoidable, not unnecessary
Common Student Mistakes:
- Does "no right answers" mean leaders can avoid making choices?
→ No, it means the choices are difficult but still necessary - "only by making them" can organizations succeed - If there are no right answers, can organizations serve all beneficiaries equally?
→ No, limited resources force prioritization even when all needs are legitimate
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