What Does Nonprofit Sustainability Look Like?
I often hear community leaders and elected officials pontificating about the importance of a “strong, sustainable nonprofit sector” as a way to enhance overall community health. They talk about the business and municipal communities partnering with the nonprofit sector to better address problems and bring a more holistic approach to the collective work. Unfortunately, I […]
Let Your Policies Be Your Guide
Hey there, friends in the nonprofit sector! Today we’re going to talk a bit about your nonprofit board’s role in policy making, and I’ve got a few tips to offer about policies that every nonprofit organization should have. But first, a quick story from the field: A good friend of mine is the executive director […]
Nonprofit Finance: Your Board Members Hate It. Help Them Love It.
Throughout my twenty-plus years in the nonprofit sector, I have encountered a lot of governing boards. I’ve served as a staff liaison to board committees, managed boards as an executive director, provided professional development consulting services to boards, and served on numerous nonprofit boards through my volunteer work out in the community. In each of […]
A Gentle Reminder About Governance…
I’ve taken too long of a break from writing, friends! Life and business sure have a way of taking over. I’m excited to be in the middle of launching a new education series for nonprofits with my friends over at the Academy for Grassroots Organizations. This new series will be called the Level Up Nonprofit Education Series. […]
Your Board Members Have Got to Go (eventually)…
I was talking to a friend the other day about his involvement with a local nonprofit organization. He proudly noted that he has been on this organization’s board of directors for over 20 years, and was taken aback when my jaw dropped and I exclaimed, “WHY WOULD YOU EVER??” Once I recovered from my shock, […]
Have You Checked Your Conflict of Interest Policy Lately?
Friends….Can we please talk about conflicts of interest for a few minutes? This won’t take long. We’ve all seen stories in the news about some of the more egregious examples of conflicts of interest. Individuals caught enriching themselves at the expense of one or more organizations they’re involved with (self-dealing). Business leaders making sweet-heart contract […]
This is (supposed to be) Serious Business
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been subjected to this type of nonprofit board recruitment conversation: “Hey, L. I’m on the board of XYZ Organization and I’d really love it if you’d consider joining. There’s no real work to do, just show up at a few meetings. No, really, you don’t have to […]