Five Ways to Recover from the August Doldrums

Summer finally drew to a close last week and if you've looked at your online figures for August, you'll probably notice a downward turn. August is typically the low-water mark for most organizations in terms of visits, page views, donations, and actions. Your organization will need to come out swinging in September to make up for the lethargy.

Five things to consider for September can be found here.

How Best to Help Nonprofits Weather the Storm?

Our nonprofit foundation is impacted by the relentless drumbeat of lousy economic news. It is a challenge to deliver financial support for BDPA programs and services with the repercussions from the economic downturn in America.

As such, we read with interest the onPhilanthropy interview with Clara Miller, President and CEO of the Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF), which recently surveyed nearly a thousand nonprofit leaders on that question. NFF sought to identify the areas of most critical need occasioned by the economic downturn, both for the immediate and longer-term durability and effectiveness of the sector. In blunt terms, NFF reported "America's nonprofits, including the "lifeline" organizations that many depend on for food, shelter, and other basic services, are strained to the breaking point."

Read full interview.

Tell the Story As if Your Life Depends On It

We are the fiscal agent for 50 BDPA chapters around the country. Occassionally, we run across articles that we think would be useful for those chapters ... or other nonprofits. Here is one that I think any person serving in a leadership position for a nonprofit should take to heart. This article was written by Susan Carey Dempsey and published earlier this month by onPhilanthropy.

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When I meet with the leaders of a nonprofit organization for the first time, I often ask them what they would say if I grabbed them by the collar and demanded to know, “If your organization ceased to exist tomorrow, what would happen to the world?” The question always startles them, because they’d assumed that their mission was perfectly obvious, their cause deserving, and that if consultants like me could provide a little guidance, they could attract funds from donors large and small.

Having shocked them back to the moment of primal scream, I can begin to walk them -- whether they’re for Saving the Gecko or Banning the Split Infinitive -- through the indispensable process of telling their story. It’s also described as “Making the Case,” but the fundraising case we’re all familiar with is often a merely formulaic recitation that’s too easily ignored. Let’s look for a minute at what you can accomplish, if you really think about telling your story, as well as you possibly can.

Read the rest of Ms. Dempsey's article here.

Dot Com to Dot Org: What to Expect When Employees Make the Transition to the Public Sector

by Molly Brennan

An increasing awareness of the need for business-world skills coupled with a looming leadership deficit has caused many non-profit executives to look to the for-profit world for talent. But transitioning from one sector to the other can be challenging for new hires, management, and co-workers alike.

Looking for Talent
According to some estimates, by 2016, as many as 640,000 new senior managers will be needed in the non-profit sector -- the equivalent of 2.4 times the number currently employed. This dearth of leadership is due in part to the departure of retiring baby boomers, but also to the significant growth of the non-profit sector as a whole and the need for greater financial and management expertise within leadership ranks. One of the most effective ways to address this deficit is to recruit and train employees from the for-profit sector who offer the skills that are needed by many mission-driven organizations.

You can read the rest of the article here.

Personal Giving by Nonprofit Board Members: Why 100% Matters

There are many factors that determine fundraising effectiveness and feasibility in the nonprofit sector, but success almost always starts with the board of trustees. Board members are selected for a variety of reasons and they have varying degrees of direct responsibility for raising funds. Personal giving by board members, however, should always be understood as a core responsibility.

One of the most basic measures of organizational health is the commitment of every board member to contribute within his or her means. If board members don’t provide regular support, it suggests that they do not understand what it means to lead on the organization’s behalf. It could also suggest that they don’t understand why the organization needs financial support. Nonprofit staff members and board chairs have an obligation to make sure that the reverse is true. A high functioning board should strive for a personal 100% participation rate.

Read the rest of this article here.