Author: erik

Social media sometimes means engaging in difficult discussions

Uncategorized

User engagement isn’t always rainbows and unicorns

By Rose Reinert
Guest blogger
dialogGood morning! Last week we discussed chapter 14 of The Social Media Bible, which focused on  webinars and online radio. This week, I am veering from my normal review of Lon Safko’s book and sharing a bit about my recent experience with  Social Media – for better or worse.
As part of my current role as a Community Outreach Liaison, I oversee the planning, posting and monitoring of my agency’s Facebook Page. The experience has been fun and challenging.
I have a secret to share. As I have walked you all through the The Social Media Bible, I too have learned so much on how to improve my posting and engagement for my agency. So, I have gotten creative, shared links and posted photos and videos to better engage and attract attention from our followers.
Well, this past week I experienced first hand what it means to embrace this communication tool for better or worse.
Over the weeks, I have written all about how social media is a tool that:

  • ensues two-way communication
  • provides an opportunity for open communication
  • builds trust

All sounds wonderful doesn’t it?
Well . . . sometimes . . . the truth hurts.
Recently, I received a clear and urgent email from my boss saying:

“There are negative comments on our Facebook page. Delete them and let me know when you do.”

Upon further investigation, I discovered some negative reviews, and these were not gentle notes of dissatisfaction. These posts were very detailed, passionate negative reviews from those who we had clearly failed. Despite my better judgment, I posted an apologetic response on each of the reviews, of which some were months old.
The following details are blurry, but let’s just say the untimely response threw gasoline on a fire.
Here is what I learned.  If you enter the Social Media realm:

  1. You must accept, for better or worse, feedback.
  2. Having a clear plan and strategy for responding to negative and positive reviews as well as run-of-the-mill comments is critical.
  3. Approach your job with an understand that you cannot please everyone.
  4. Despite the potential for negative feedback, the opportunity for enhanced engagement and communication through social media outweighs the risks

So, like any good life lesson, I pick-up, learn, and move on.
Misery loves company. Please share with me your teachable moments with your social media marketing.
rose draft sig

Making the case for setting a clear shared vision

organizational development, Planning

Forward!

By John Greco
Originally published on June 14, 2012
Re-posted with permission from johnponders blog
monk_benedictine_100If you cry “Forward!” you must make clear the direction in which to go.  Don’t you see that if you fail to do that and simply call out the word to a monk and a revolutionary, they will go in precisely the opposite directions.
— Anton Chekov, Russian dramatist

To make sense of this quote, we need to understand monks and revolutionaries.
I imagine what Chekov had in mind when citing a monk is someone who lives within an established routine, with not a lot of change or variance, and with a reverence for the past.  I enhance that image further by thinking that monks have so much reverence for the past that they keep it alive in the present.
I imagine what Chekov had in mind when referencing a revolutionary is very different — strong intention, with strong action, to break from the current status quo, and create something radically new.  I enhance that image further by thinking that revolutionaries have such an appetite for immediate change that they want to pull the future into the present.
Forward, to a monk, means no change is necessary nor anticipated.
Forward, to a revolutonary, means change is assumed and must happen NOW!
It is easy to see, then, that “forward” to a monk might mean committing to a strict adherence to the practices and traditions of the past.  And to a revolutionary, ”forward” might mean the accelerated establishment of new and different policies and practices, NOW!
There is likely a monk-like colleague and a revolutionary-like colleague sitting to the left and right of you.  Same, sitting on either side of each of them.
And which way do you lean?
The implications for leaders are considerable.
We need to be explicit with plans and strategies and visions.   What is changing?  What isn’t changing?  We might see ways to bridge the gap; we can speak to how planned changes actually honor the past (which will get the attention of the monks) while speaking to the promise of changes in short order (which will pique the interest of the revolutionaries).
Just think of what this means vis-à-vis mixed generational workforces.  And vis-à-vis rapid technological advancement.  And social change.
Oh boy!
So; not unlike the high-wire act of change, calibrating and recalibrating the messaging is important; if the monks have inordinate influence, marginalization, irrelevance, and extinction are real risks.  If revolutionaries hold sway, chaos and confusion disable.
In either scenario, there is not progress.
There is no forward.
john greco sig

Do you have work-life balance in your non-profit job?

Uncategorized

As many of you know, I am currently working out-of-state and living at my mother-in-law’s house in the DFW metroplex. I woke up this morning and my generous house host engaged me in a spirited discussion about the idea of work-life balance. I am not a dummy, and I presume my mother-in-law is telling me that she doesn’t think I’ve struck the right balance. Of course, all of this got me thinking about the idea of work-life balance and the non-profit sector.
My mother-in-law’s point of view
scales of justiceWork-Life balance is about dividing your time between work and life. Work stays there and your life is over here. The idea of balance looks like the scales of justice, and the two sides (representing work and life) are in perfect balance.
Her thinking is that those individuals who work 60, 70 and 80 hours a week cannot achieve work-life balance. Furthermore, she thinks those people are selfish because if work is that important to someone then they are cheating their spouses, families, and pets.
After digesting my mother-in-laws strong point of view, I think this is a very popular position. I think lots of people view work-life balance through this lens.
My point of view
self fulfillmentI used to look at work-life balance through the same lens as my mother-in-law, but a friend of mine helped me change the way I look at these competing  things in my life.
I don’t believe in the scales of justice analogy anymore. I now believe that the scales can be imbalanced, and the question is all focused on whether or not you’re happy and feel fulfilled.
Selfish? Perhaps! But it is where I am at right now.
The non-profit sector
stressed out workerAs I stewed about this morning’s conversation with my mother-in-law, I started thinking about all of my non-profit friends. I couldn’t think of anyone with perfectly balanced scales, but I could think of lots of non-profit friends who appear happy and fulfilled.
I also started thinking about the reality of non-profit work:

  • Under-funded agencies
  • Under-staffed workplaces
  • Long hours
  • Hard work

So, I decided to write this morning’s blog and seek your opinion about what work-life balance means to you AND how you achieve what you consider balance.
A few interesting articles

So, what do you think? Please use the comment box below to weigh-in with your thoughts and experiences regarding work-life balance and the non-profit work experience.
Here’s to your health!
Erik Anderson
Founder & President, The Healthy Non-Profit LLC
www.thehealthynonprofit.com
erik@thehealthynonprofit.com
http://twitter.com/#!/eanderson847
http://www.facebook.com/eanderson847
http://www.linkedin.com/in/erikanderson847

Engaging others with webinars and online radio

technology

Trainings, virtual meetings, advocacy!

By Rose Reinert
Guest blogger
So, in the first 13 chapters of Lon Safko’s book — The Social Media Bible — he establishes that social media is about so much more than just Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.  Safko continues expanding our understanding in chapter 14 when he writes about webinars and online radio.
Of course, webinars are seminars and trainings conducted over the internet; whereas, online radio is an audio program (or music) transmitted over the internet.
One of the pillars of a good board development / board governance plan is a training program. Unfortunately, this is a lot easier said than done.
When I was an executive director, I tried really hard to get board members to attend conferences. I brought trainers to town, and I even tried to integrate small training nuggets into our board meetings. The reality is that board volunteers are busy people and breaking away is always difficult.
Thanks to the magic of social media (and specifically webinars and online radio), non-profit professionals now have additional tools in their toolbox to engage board volunteers and other stakeholder groups.
Webinars
webinarAt my previous agency, their national office made tremendous investments in webinars (aka distance learning). The following are just a few of the training titles I saw them offering:

  • Creating a Committee Work Plan
  • Holiday Mailings
  • Implementing a Resource Development Plan
  • Managing Donor Relationships: Using a Donor Database
  • Board Development 101
  • How to Create a Board Development Plan

If you really wanted, there is nothing stopping you from designing your own trainings and using webinar services to facilitate those distance learning events.
In addition to trainings, I also see some agencies use tools like GoToMeeting and Adobe Connect combined with conference call technology to host virtual meetings.
In my experience, there are some important things to keep in mind when it comes to webinars:

  1. Participants have many distractions from the home and office (e.g. email, phone calls, interruptions), and it is easy to lose your audience if your presentation isn’t highly interactive with lots of questions, polls and surveys. Ask questions of participants in advance of the webinar and answer them during the webinar.
  2. Distance learning is not the same as in-person trainings and meetings. Keep these sessions short and sweet (e.g. 30 to 45 minutes).
  3. Participants need to be reminded to show up because (for whatever reason) these virtual events are easier to not show up for compared to real-time events.

If you are looking for FREE webinars or pre-recorded webinars to use with your board members and fundraising volunteers, check out some of these resources:

Online radio
online radioMany people have discovered Slacker radio, but online radio isn’t just about streaming music while you workout.
Many decades ago, radio was a mainstay in our grandparent’s living rooms (before the advent of television). Once television squeezed radios out of the picture, many of us just listened in our cars as we drove from place-to-place.
Online radio has liberated radio from our cars and enables music and talk shows to be heard on our work and home computers. This, of course, opens up lots of possibilities for non-profit organizations.
The most obvious possibility was already cover by Erik Anderson on October 21, 2013 right here on the DonorDreams blog in a post titled “Have you discovered non-profit radio yet?“. In that post, Erik introduced us to the Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio.
If you haven’t checked out Tony’s online radio show about the non-profit sector yet, it is definitely worth it.
Of course, your non-profit organization can start its own online radio station. Why? Because it is another opportunity to get your message out there. It is marketing. It is prospect cultivation. It is donor stewardship. It can even be something you integrate into your agency’s programming with clients.
If you want to learn more, I suggest you go pick-up a copy of Lon Safko’s book — The Social Media Bible.
The Houston Chronicle also published an online article with a number of excellent links relevant to this topic. Click here to check it out.
How is your agency using webinars and online radio? Please share your thoughts and experiences in the comment box below.
rose draft sig

What is distracting you and impacting your non-profit agency?

organizational development

X the Concerns

By John Greco
Originally published on June 25, 2012
Re-posted with permission from johnponders blog
Pen-paperIn this post I will be sharing one of the most profound and impactful lessons of my life.
But for you to really relate, I need you to participate.
So please go get a blank piece of paper and a pen.
Oh come on!  Painless, really.
Okay.  Draw as big a circle as you can on the page.
Now think about everything you are concerned about.  Everything: your aging mom, the near term milestone on that project, the risk of the company losing a key leader, the European financial crisis, etc.  Make small x’s inside the circle to represent each of those concerns.
You are now looking at your circle of concern.  Mark it as such.
Imagine that you rearrange your concerns, so that the ones that you really can’t do anything about (e.g. the European financial crisis; the flight risk of that key leader) move toward the boundary of the circle.  The concerns you believe you can do at least something about move toward the center of the circle.
Now draw a second, smaller, circle, inside the larger one, around those concerns that you believe you can do something about.
You are now looking at your circle of influence.  Mark it as such!
A common reaction, at this point, is that there are way more concerns outside your circle of influence than inside it.  Or, that the concerns that are outside your circle of influence are weightier and more consequential than those inside your circle of concern.
Disheartening, isn’t it?
In reality it is more than disheartening.  It is distracting.  And that distraction has consequences.
When we focus on things that we really can’t do anything about, we are actually expending valuable time and energy that could have been used to work on those things that are inside your circle of influence, those concerns that you really could do something about.
What really ends up happening is your circle of influence shrinks.
Yep, I said that right; when we worry, stress out, and become fixated or paralyzed by the things that we are concerned about but can’t really do anything about, we miss the opportunity to influence one or more of those things inside the smaller influence circle.  Let’s say you’ve been stressin’ about Greece pulling out of the Eurozone and Spain defaulting on its debt and Italy’s next and geezus what’s going to happen to my 401K! … and you miss the opportunity to work on that project milestone.  It’s too late to recover.  You are going to have to report that you missed that milestone, and the deliverable target date is now at risk.
That concern, in effect, just drifted outside your circle of influence.  Your circle of influence just shrunk.
Not a good thing.
But there’s more to this exercise, and if you quit now, you will only have seen the downside.  There is considerable upside.  Trust me.
Let’s say we don’t get distracted by those concerns that we know we can’t do anything about.  Let’s say, instead of obsessing about Greece and Spain and Italy and your 401K you use that time and energy to set up some coaching from a trusted colleague on the near term project milestone.  As a result, she actually helps you quite a bit; you subsequently are in much better shape to report on that milestone.  And when you make that report, it is well-received and your skill and effort is recognized.
Odds are pretty good that your circle of influence just got larger.
Saywhatnow?
You’re thinking you may have less of a concern for that project, or even no concern at all anymore, but how can I say your circle of influence got larger?
Because it’s at least possible that that flight risk leader took notice of the way you recovered that project, and wants to talk about how you did it, and how might you help him… and that previous “nothing you can do” concern just slid into your circle of influence.
That’s quite a stretch you say?  Okay, another possibility:  because you are not so much concerned about the project now, you can devote some time and energy to researching twice a week home nursing visits for your mom.  That concern just slid into your circle of influence…
Look, these are hypotheticals.  I’m trying to bring to life those x’s on a piece of paper; but I don’t have to try that hard, right?  You know ‘em…
… and you know what this is all about.
Maybe you don’t need to be reminded, but I do —
John!  Don’t worry about things you have no control over and can’t do anything about!  Do something about the things you can do something about!  You can influence!
That’s the impactful, easy-to-understand-but-difficult-to-sustain-in-real-life part of the lesson.
Here’s the profound part — The more I influence, the more I can influence.
Yes, I do worry about the Eurozone financial crisis.  Can’t really do anything about that particular concern.
Yet!
john greco sig

What does your agency's committee system look like?

Board governance, organizational development

Board Work via Board Committees

By Dani Robbins
Re-published with permission from nonprofit evolution blog
committee1Appointed or elected community leaders govern an organization. As outlined in my favorite Board book Governance as Leadership  and summarized in The Role of the Board, the Fiduciary Mode is where governance begins for all boards and ends for too many.  I encourage you to also explore the Strategic and Generative Modes of Governance, which will greatly improve your board’s engagement, and also their enjoyment.
At a minimum, governance includes:

  • Setting the Mission, Vision and Strategic Plan
  • Hiring, Supporting and Evaluating the Executive Director
  • Acting as the Fiduciary Responsible Agent
  • Raising Money and
  • Setting Policy

Committees are how the work of the board gets done. The committees, their structure and definitions will be outlined in your organization’s by-laws, which in Ohio are called Code of Regulations.
The by-laws will also dictate if committee chairs and committee members must be board members. I recommend that the chairs be board members but that committee membership not be limited to only board members. Committee work is a great way to build the bench of a board, see how someone works and it they are a good fit for a future board position. Most organizations have a requirement that Board members serve on at least one committee.
Committee members are responsible to the full Board for the research, work, framing of the issues and recommendation in their assigned area.  There are a minimum of three committees I recommend as “must haves,” which are Board Development, Resource Development, and Finance Committee.
There is often also some version of an Executive Committee and there may be other committees as well. Let’s review each.
Executive Committee
The Executive Committee is usually the four Officers (President, Vice-President, Treasurer and Secretary of the Board) or the Officers plus the Committee Chairs.  Less often, Executive Committees have members at large.
Executive Committees can sometimes make decisions in lieu of the full board. This will be clearly stated in the by-laws. I generally recommend against this. In fact, other that in emergency situations when I think they’re critical, I generally recommend against the Executive Committee meeting on a regular basis.
Powerful Executive Committees tend to disengage the remaining board members. It allows the few to operate without the whole. Anything that contributes to board member disengagement works against the agency’s success and should be avoided.
Finance Committee
committee2The Finance Committee, chaired by Treasurer, works with the appropriate staff in examining the financial reports, understanding and monitoring the financial condition of the organization and preparing the annual budget. The Treasurer presents the monthly financial statements to the Board at each board meeting. This committee also selects an audit firm each year and reviews the audit plan, audit and 990, which should be signed by the Treasurer prior to submission.
As it is sometimes considered a conflict that the committee that monitors the books also manages the auditor selection, it is considered a best practice to have a separate audit committee.  If this is not feasible for your organization and as auditing firms are independent of the agency, this conflict can be mitigated by bidding out your audit and changing your auditor every few years.
Resource Development Committee
The Resource Development Committee works with the CEO, the senior development staff, if there is one, and the Board of Directors in developing strategies to identify and secure needed resources and funding to support the operations of the organization. The Committee is responsible for creating and executing a plan to raise money. The full Board is responsible for introducing their network to the organization, attending events, financially supporting the organization and encouraging other to do as well.
Board Development Committee
The Board Development Committee is concerned with identification of new Board members and the development of the future leadership of the Board. The Board Development Committee helps develop an effective Board through its two main functions:
Board Building:  A diverse board of directors (thought, skill, race, faith, ability, orientation, age, and gender) that is passionate about the mission of the organization is created through a Board Building process.
Board Education:  Board members will fully understand and effectively fulfill their commitments to the Board of Directors when a comprehensive orientation, continuing education, annual evaluation and recognition process is in place.
With the exception of a functioning Executive Committee, the Board Development Committee is usually the most powerful committee of the Board.  It is often the only committee that you can’t just volunteer for but must be invited to join.
Other Committees
Some Boards also have program committee, human resource committees and a variety of other committees.
The Program Committee is responsible for the program side of the Board’s fiduciary responsibility. They focus on how the programs tie to the organization’s mission, what they impact, how that impact is measured and the number of people who are served in those programs.
The Human Resource Committee is responsible for the development and recommendation of the personnel and other relevant policies, the creation of a salary adjustment plan and the framework for the CEOs evaluation.
A Word of Caution
committee3I recommend caution when creating committees to do the work of staff. It gets very confusing as to who is responsible for what and responsible to whom. If Board members are acting in staff roles, the Executive Director retains the authority for decision-making. If the Board members are operating within the scope of their roles, the Board has the authority for decision-making. Conversations had in advance can help you avoid role confusion and the overstepping of boundaries.
Do you agree with my three “must have” committees?  What else do you recommend? What is your experience with committee work? As always, I welcome your insight, feedback and experience.
dani sig

What is your agency's case for doing some planning?

Board governance, Planning

planningAs someone with two degrees in planning, I catch myself all the time with my non-profit clients explaining that the solution to their problems is that they need a plan. It might be a strategic plan, resource development plan, or board development plan . . . but oftentimes I am amazed at how many times failing non-profit agencies just haven’t invested in creating plans.  I mean, come on folks! Who hasn’t heard the old expression, “If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail“?
In recent years, my point of view around planning has evolved slightly. I now believe there is a time and place for planning. When there is too much chaos in the external environment or too much internal crisis or turnover, planning is at best a wasteful exercise and at worst can contribute to the problems at hand.
Of course, I still bristle when I hear board members say something like:

“I don’t want my agency engaged in planning. In the end, all that happens is the plan gets put on the shelf to collect dust. We need less planning and more doing!”

When I hear statements like this, it is usually indicative of:

  • an agency without a culture of planning
  • staff without an understanding of how to engage a board
  • board volunteers without an understanding of implementation tools
  • a board who doesn’t manage or evaluate its staff
  • an agency that is either standing still (best case scenario) or in crisis (worst cast scenario)

When trying to make the case for engaging in some sort of planning activity to a board of directors, I typically talk about “roles and responsibilities” of the board of directors. As you might imagine, this approach is usually met with yawns and eye rolling.
However, I recently found a blog post by Nell Edgington titled “5 Ways Great Strategy Can Transform a Nonprofit” while clicking around on a LinkedIn group dedicated to strategic planning for non-profit organizations. It was in that post I think Nell makes a much better case for planning that might be better received by resistant boards.
Here is what she says:

“People and organizations that make large gifts to a nonprofit are in effect investing in the future of that organization. And if you can’t articulate your future plans in a thoughtful, compelling way, funders won’t make that larger investment.”

Duh!
So, what has been your sales pitch to your board when trying to convince them to roll up their sleeves and engage in some planning. Please share your thoughts and experiences in the comment box below. We can all learn from each other.
Here’s to your health!
Erik Anderson
Founder & President, The Healthy Non-Profit LLC
www.thehealthynonprofit.com
erik@thehealthynonprofit.com
http://twitter.com/#!/eanderson847
http://www.facebook.com/eanderson847
http://www.linkedin.com/in/erikanderson847

Your agency can use Twitter to engage donors and supporters

Fundraising, technology

Tweet this!

By Rose Reinert
Guest blogger
rose1I think the morning after the “big game” is a great time to unwrap the impact of utilizing Twitter. It was hard to watch the game without seeing a ton of hashtags encouraging viewers to follow the excitement or learn more about a company or product by following it on Twitter. Lon Safko, author of The Social Media writes about “microblogging” in chapter 13, which begs the question: “What is microblogging and what does it have to do with Twitter?”
Simply stated, microblogging can be described as the act of sending a text message or sharing videos, photos, or  audio. It allows you to make friends, give and receive advice, and most of all, get up to the minute news. Of course, the most familiar microblogging tool is Twitter, which is something your non-profit should be using.
There are many benefits to Twitter, but to maximize those benefits it is important to first cultivate a strong community of supporters, and even more importantly, remain relevant. Twitter is not meant to set and forget. You need to provide real-time updates (e.g.  photos, videos and engaging questions are all great ways to attract attention).
Another way to utilize Twitter is as a fundraising tool. There are countless stories of successful fundraising through the power of Twitter. In my local community, Community Crisis Center, a domestic violence shelter raised over $150,000 in two weeks using Twitter and social media. This was unheard of in our community, but is possible with the right formula.
As I took a deeper dive into other organizations that have successfully raised funds utilizing Twitter, I stumbled on Twestival. Twestival describes themselves as, “The largest grassroots social media fundraising initiative in the world.”
twestivalHow does Twestival work?
Twestival is a movement that uses social media for social good by connecting communities offline on a single day to highlight a great cause. All local events are organized 100% by volunteers and 100% of the ticket sales and donations go directly to local non-profits who organizers identified as having an incredible impact.
What I loved about this group was that: 1) a volunteer had to register an organization . . .  a non-profit could not register themselves and 2) you receive a mentor to help make your “event” a success. This is a great way to gather support for your organization, but you need to  be careful. More likely than not, supporters will not be sustainable for the long term (e.g. donor turnover is very high among people who contribute to your twestival). However, it is possible these individuals might continue to follow you on Twitter or Facebook and become loyal investors if you work hard at engaging them.
If you plan on adding Twitter as one of your agency’s fundraising strategies, like any effort, it must be intentional, strategic and consistent. Maximize your efforts by highlighting volunteers, special events, and educating about your mission and how you are meeting your mission.
How have you used Twitter to engage donors or share your mission? Please share your experiences with raising money utilizing social media or specifically Twitter.
rose draft sig

Does your agency's technology plan depend on 12-year-olds?

organizational development, technology

The School Bus Won’t Wait

By John Greco
Originally published on May 21, 2012
Re-posted with permission from johnponders blog
Pensive Businessman Using LaptopDavid was a tenured college professor.  While an expert in his field, he knew very little about computers; just enough in fact to get on a network and ask for help.  Fortunately, a more experienced user came to his aid, never failing to give just the right advice.
One morning, when a vexing problem was plaguing him, his expert advisor who had been on-line with him for over an hour, said, “I’ve got to go.”  David pleaded with him, “You can’t leave me, we’ve almost found the solution.”
Across the electron world came the next sentence:  “You don’t understand, my school bus won’t wait for me.” 
David thought for a moment, his curiosity mounting, “How old are you?” he asked.
“I’m twelve,” was the response on his screen, “and I’ll talk to you later.”
Source:  Community Building:  Renewing Spirit and Learning, Edited by Kazimierz Gozdz, (c) 1995.

tech2A few short years ago, we couldn’t have even imagined such a scenario.  In the past, proximity and commonality brought us together.  We had family and close friends; help came from familiar places.
Today, help can come from anywhere, from anyone, at any time, on anything.  Help can come from the most unlikely people.  And from the most unlikely places.
A twelve year old across the globe can help a college professor.
There is great potential in the invisible network of an electronic community, no?   Technology is enabling us to connect like never before, opening up possibilities like never before.
We can pretty clearly see the upside for problem solving and innovation, speed and progress, quality and quantity of work.
But just think of the possibilities for changing our attitudes; our prejudices and biases; of slowly dissolving bigotry, and discrimination; and racism, sexism,ageism …
Even the possibilities for relationships!  Today, my son can play an on line, real time game with like-minded people from all across the world, and in so doing, develop a friendship with a girl a thousand miles away that has real meaning.
Gives new meaning to “the girl next door” doesn’t it?  She can now be here, there, anywhere!
I can imagine a lot, but I can’t imagine what life will be like 100 years from now.  You and I will never know.  Even my mom’s upcoming fourth great-grandchild may not know.
I wonder who my mom’s fourth great-grandchild will have as friends and family?  It certainly does suggest a different slant on “extended family” …
And I wonder who will be helping my mom’s fourth great-grandchild when she is an aging professional seeking help with the emerging technology of that time?
Technology.  Adapting to change.  And possibility.
As I age, and as technology advances, it is likely I will start falling behind.  It is already happening.  I have a cell phone that I only use to make telephone calls.  :-)
tech3And I already see that I’m not adapting fast enough to keep pace with the innovations.  The technology school bus isn’t waiting for me!
But, as I age, I hope I can keep seeing the possibility.  I will likely need help with this.  I hope I can stay open-minded and aware enough to know that my mom’s fourth great-grandchild’s help will only be a click or two away.
Here’s hoping she can help me before she needs to leave for school!
john greco sig

Is your non-profit ready for an increase in minimum wage?

Fundraising, Planning, volunteers

obamaWhen adjusted  for inflation, the current federal minimum wage is smaller than it was when President Reagan was the President of the United States. Democrats in Congress have been making the case to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 for the past year. Ten states in 2013 raised their minimum wage laws, and President Obama is signing an executive order increasing the minimum wage to $10.10 for all government contracts.
Here is what the White House said in a statement it issued prior to the State of the Union:

“Hardworking Americans — including janitors and construction workers — working on new federal contracts will benefit from the Executive Order (EO). Some examples of the hardworking people who would benefit from an EO include military base workers who wash dishes, serve food and do laundry.”

Of course, all of this got me thinking about non-profits who take government money and sign those contracts. Are they included in this executive action?
After doing some research . . . I’m still not sure, but I believe the answer is “NO”.
However, there is a bigger question here . . . What should your agency be doing to get ready for a prospective increase?
Now some of you probably read this question and think, “Oh Erik … you’re such a worry wart. This is just pre-election season chatter. Nothing is going to happen. This is all posturing.”
While I know you are right, the facts are still the facts, and the trend arrow is pointing in the direction of $10.10/hour. I say this because we can look at state governments and use them as a barometer, and 10 states increased their minimum wage in 2013.
head in sandIn my humble opinion, non-profit professionals have two choices:

  1. You can put your head in the sand, cross your fingers and hope the minimum wage does go up (and what does that say about your feelings for your employees and clients???)
  2. Or you can be proactive and start making plans today for what will likely happen at some point (if not next year then some time in the next few years)

As a planner, I like option two. It is like my mother always said,  “It is better to be safe than sorry.”
So, what does planning and preparation look like? Here are just a few preliminary thoughts:

  • Start talking about what this looks like with your agency’s HR committee
  • Dust off you Salary & Compensation Plan (or revise those salary scales) and assess where your employees currently are and what a potential law change would change that picture
  • Start budgeting and funding small wage increases NOW because going from $8.00 or $9.00 to $10.10 is easier than going from $7.25 to $10.10
  • Engage your resource development committee in constructing a fundraising plan for 2015 focused on increasing your organization’s revenue

I believe focusing on revenue increases is the biggest thing you should be focused on right now. Too many non-profits cut-cut-cut after the economic recession hit in 2008. Of course, this means there is no more fat to cut and all future expense budget adjustments will be cuts to organization muscle and decreases in service.
It really boils down to one question in my opinion:

Don’t your clients deserve better than program cuts and staff layoffs?

Let’s get proactive and focused on the future again!
What is your agency doing to prepare for a possible minimum wage increase? Who are you engaging? What plans are you making? Please use the comment box below to share your thoughts and plans. We can all learn from each other.
Here’s to your health!
Erik Anderson
Founder & President, The Healthy Non-Profit LLC
www.thehealthynonprofit.com
erik@thehealthynonprofit.com
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