How much money should your non-profit have in reserve?

June 4, 2013 erik Board governance, Fundraising, organizational development, Planning

operating reserves Identifying blog topics can be hard. Sometimes you find a comfort zone and ideas flow freely. Other times, it is next to impossible and the writers block is crippling. So, I love it when readers sometimes email me on the side and suggest topics.

Yesterday, a reader did exactly that when she emailed me with the following request:

“Do you take requests? If so, I would love to hear your take on social service agencies that have more than 6 months of money on hand and the impact of that on fundraising.”

When I first read that email, I planned on squirreling the topic away for one of those days when topic ideas are difficult to come by. However, there was something about this topic that possessed me. I opened up a few Google searches, read a few white papers and blog posts, and found myself whipping out this post.

First, let me start with a very direct response to the question posed by the reader.

I have worked with a disproportionately large number of small non-profit organizations. Organizational capacity for these agencies is always an issue and the amount of cash on hand is typically very small. So, I’ve always advocated to CEOs and their boards that they put plans in place to build operating reserves equal to three to six months.

Only one client to my recollection every worked with more than a six month operating reserve, and I don’t think it impacted their fundraising efforts. If I were to speculate as to why that was, I think the explanation is simple . . . that agency did an excellent job with donor communications and made their case as to why operating reserves of that size were important.

Setting this one example aside, I do generally believe that building large operating reserves larger than 6 months or one year causes problems with donors. I say this because of everything Dan Pallotta writes in his book Uncharitable and how donors hold the non-profit sector to a different standard than the for-profit sector.

In his book, Pallotta talks eloquently about how for-profit corporations are rewarded by investors for generating profits, banking cash and growing organizational capacity. He contrasts this point with how donors punish non-profit organizations for doing the same thing.

For actual examples and a better explanation, I encourage you to read his book. I promise that it will be an eye opening experience. Additionally, you’ll likely walk away from the exercise and find yourself muttering the words: “Damn Puritans!”

In my clicking around and Googling, I found a number of interesting facts including:

Charity Navigator reserves its top ratings for organizations with 12 or more months of working capital.
The Nonprofit Finance Fund reported in its 2012 State of the Sector Survey that only one-fifth of survey respondents said they felt their donors were comfortable talking about operating reserves.
In 2011, more than three-quarters of non-profit organizations had less than 4 months of expenses in operating reserves (60% reported less than 4 months and 28% reported one month or less).

I strongly urge you to click-through and read more startling statistics on this and similar subjects at:

Executive Service Corp, “How Much in Reserve Funds Should Your Nonprofit Have?“
Nonprofit Finance Fund, “2012 State of the Sector Survey“
Nell Edgington’s Social Velocity blog, “A Financial Taboo Nonprofits Must Get Over“

I want to thank the reader who suggested this blog topic because they have caused me to change my thinking on this topic. From now on, when agencies ask my advice on what they should strive towards with regards to building an operating reserve, I plan on telling them . . .

12 months or more! ! ! !

With this Big Harry Audacious Goal (BHAG), the next words out of my mouth will be . . .

“Create a strong case for support or prepare to incur the wrath of donors.”

For those of you who don’t think this is possible, please take a moment to think about why that much cash on hand is important to your organization.

Many agencies are using their operating reserves as cash flow cushions as they wait for their accounts receivable from government grants. (Believe it or not some states are six to 12 months late in paying their bills.)
It is a sign of financial health to have operating reserves of this size.
One of the lessons learned from the recent economic recession is that larger rainy day funds are a necessity and not a luxury.
Stuff breaks and your organization needs to be in a position to fix the roof or replace a HVAC unit without running off to donors with an urgent case for support that sounds like a crisis or fire drill.

My advice to anyone who cares to hear it is:

Set a goal to increase your operating reserves to 12+ months
Work with the Finance Committee to develop a plan to achieve this goal (Yes, it will likely be a plan that spans many years). Perhaps, include in your plans to use a portion of your operating reserves to invest in organizational capacity building once certain targets are achieved.
Work with the Resource Development Committee to write a case for support that supports these actions.
Don’t hide from donors. Get out there and start talking to them. Weave the talking points from this new case for support focused on increasing reserve levels into your stewardship efforts. Donor engagement and education is the key to success.

So, I’m curious how many of you think I’m crazy? How big are your reserves? How big would you like them? What do your donors say about your reserves? Please use the comment box below to weigh-in on this discussion.

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

The changing face of philanthropy

June 3, 2013 erik Fundraising, technology

I often counsel my non-profit clients to invest in technology and social media. I tell them to experiment with ePhilanthropy strategies and tactics. However, I warn them to avoid living on the cutting edge and especially be aware of the “bleeding edge” of these types of efforts. In a nutshell, I advice them to invest and learn, but do so in a way that make sense from a “return on investment” perspective.

Of course, what I mean is that fundraising professionals should not forget that more than $300 billion is generated every year by charities from private sector sources (e.g individuals, corporations, and foundations). While the data is messy, it still appears that less than 10 percent of this funding results from online efforts by non-profit organizations.

Essentially, I’ve been telling clients that investing 90 percent of your time in something that accounts for just 10 percent of overall giving might not be a wise decision. So, my counsel has always been “slow and steady wins the race.”

This has been my advice for the last decade, and if there is one truism in life that I really subscribe to it is the old saying by Heraclitus that the only constant in life is change. With this in mind, I pay attention to the benchmark data from our online giving friends at Blackbaud, Network for Good and other such organizations. I do this because I know that one day we will hit that tipping point and my advice will need to change.

Before I go any farther, it is important to say:

I don’t believe direct mail is dead.
I don’t believe you should stop asking people face-to-face.
I don’t think you should ignore your Baby Boomer donors and double down on ePhilanthropy strategies focused on GenXers and Millennial donors.

However, we may be getting closer that “tipping point“. Have you seen some of the 2012 benchmark data for online giving? The Chronicle of Philanthropy did a nice job reporting on these trends on March 27, 2013. The following are just a few of the highlights from a report issued by M+R Strategic Services and Nonprofit Technology Network:

Revenue from online fundraising efforts increased by 21 percent.
Annual growth in Facebook fans of non-profit organization pages was 46 percent.
Annual growth in Twitter followers of non-profit organizations was 264 percent.

Click here to see an awesome infographic based on this benchmark study.

It is hard to get a handle on what the average size gift is from online efforts. I get different numbers when I look at different sources, but we are talking about average gifts in the $60, $70, and $80 ranges.

There is also interesting benchmark information about online monthly giving programs. This online fundraising strategy appears to bring in an average monthly gift of $19.

Lots of data and very little time to digest it all; however, this quotation caught my attention in another Chronicle of Philanthropy article on December 2, 2012:

“Online giving, though, accounts for less than 10 percent of the dollars charities collect, experts say. But Steve MacLaughlin, director of Blackbaud’s IdeaLab, predicts that over the next five years, the total share of gifts raised online will grow to 15 percent of charities’ overall donations.”

All of this gets me wondering . . . where is that tipping point? When should non-profit organizations get more serious about investing in technology, social media and development of online giving strategies and tactics?

I think my advice might be evolving. Yes, slow and steady wins the race, but investments in benchmarking and planning are always wise.

What is your average size gift from one-time online gifts? Is it in line with national averages? Did your Facebook fan base grow by 46 percent? Did you Twitter following grow by an audacious 264 percent? If not, what are you planning to do in 2013 to adjust your efforts and prevent yourself from falling behind the curve? And how will you guard against the risk of over-investing and living on the cutting edge?

Please use the comment box below to share some of your thoughts. Why? Because we can all learn from each other.

Here’s to your health!

There are BIG BUTS to consider when planning for change in your workplace

May 31, 2013 erik organizational development

Welcome to O.D. Fridays at DonorDreams blog. Every Friday for the foreseeable future we will be looking at posts from John Greco’s blog called “johnponders ~ about life at work, mostly” and applying his organizational development messages to the non-profit community.

In a post titled “Big Buts,” John talks about leadership and how changing the culture at your agency starts at the top. I just love the Chinese proverb with which John starts his post: “The people follow the example of those above them.”

I cannot tell you how many times I’ve walked in the front door of an agency because they need help changing something.

Something being . . .

We’re not raising enough money.
We’re not hitting our goals.
No one is on the same page.
The agency is adrift.
The programs aren’t achieving the necessary impact.
Donors are abandoning ship.
The board is disengaged.

In these initial conversations, I’m always asked to help fix the situation, but the fix is always something like:

Help us write a strategic plan, board development plan, resource development plan, annual campaign plan. Plan! Plan! Plan!
Conduct a program assessment.
Facilitate a training.

Please don’t misunderstand me. I am not suggesting that assessments, plans and trainings aren’t important. They are crucial! However, there are questions that must be asked first. Those questions are:

Is the leader (or leaders in the case of a non-profit organization) willing to lead the change?
Is the current leader the right leader to lead this change? Or are they part of what needs to be “changed”?
Is the current leader willing to lead by example after the training, assessing or planning is completed?
Is the current leader willing to do whatever it takes to get everyone else (e.g. middle management, board members, etc) aligned and on the same page?
Is the current leader willing to advocate and lead on issues pertaining to policies, procedures and practices (e.g. budget practices, fundraising policies, HR policies, board practices especially around creating accountability in the boardroom, etc).

Again, please don’t misunderstand me. I am not just talking about the executive director of a non-profit organization. Depending on the circumstances and requisite change, these questions can also pertain to:

board president
board volunteers who serve as committee chairs
fundraising professionals
program leaders

All I am saying is that step one to any change initiative at your agency needs to involve taking a good hard look in the mirror and asking some tough leadership questions. To John’s point in his post “Big Buts,” the issue goes beyond just “Do we have the right person(s) sitting in the right seat(s)?” It includes a lot of BIG BUTS.

Only after those questions are asked and answered can planning or training efforts take root and spark the cultural change you seek in your non-profit agency.

An old friend of mine is famous for saying: “Non-profit success starts and ends with leadership.”

To channel Jim Collins this morning . . . Does your agency have the right people on the bus? Are they all in the right seats? How do you know? What tools do you use to answer these questions? Annual performance plans? Committee work plans? Year-end individual board member evaluation tools? Written annual personal performance plans for individual board members? If it is change you seek, are those individuals willing to lead by example?

Lots to ponder on a Friday morning. Once you have some answers, please share a few of your thoughts in the comment box below.

Here’s to your health!

“V” is for victory

May 30, 2013 erik Board development, Board governance, Fundraising, volunteers

One of my favorite training curricula that I’ve ever had the privilege of teaching is titled “Inspiring & Managing Your Board for Fundraising Success.” In that curriculum, there are nine keys to accomplishing what the title promises its participants. One of those nine keys is celebration & recognition, and it is the inspiration for today’s DonorDreams blog post.

As most of you know, I’ve spent the last 30 days working hard at hosting the Nonprofit Blog Carnival (which officially went live yesterday). Click here to see the carnival and all of its participants . . . you don’t want to miss this month’s carnival.

During the month of May, a few major milestones were achieved at DonorDreams.

We surpassed 34,000 all-time page views.
We achieved more than 1,000 all-time comments.
We eclipsed the 500 post mark (Phew, that’s a lot of content).
We hit an time high in daily visitors and page views during the last month.

I ask for your forgiveness as I take a moment to celebrate.

I know that for some of the big time bloggers out there, these might seem like small things to celebrate. However, DonorDreams blog has only been around for two years, and I am a staunch believer in celebrating the small victories along with the big ones.

Ahhhhhh, that victory lap certainly was sweet. Thanks for indulging me.

Now, let me take a moment to recognize those people who made it possible to celebrate.

YOU

That’s right. None of this would’ve been possible if not for you and all of the other DonorDreams blog subscribers, social media followers, readers and guest bloggers.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you very much for tuning in and reading this blog. Thank you for your comments. Thank you for your subscriptions. Thank you for your LIKES and RETWEETS.

This victory lap isn’t mine. It is OURS.

OK . . . I’m done (until the next milestone is eclipsed). 😉

With all of that being said, I would be remiss if I didn’t end this post with a thought provoking question:

“What do you do at your agency to celebrate and recognize achievement of milestones, goals, and successes with your board volunteers? Do you have any good examples that you are willing to share with your fellow non-profit professionals?”

Please mull this over for a moment and take a second out of your busy day to share your response in the comment box below.

Here’s to your health!

May 2013 Nonprofit Blog Carnival

May 29, 2013 erik Board development, Board governance, Fundraising, organizational development, technology, volunteers

Step right up . . . step right up! It is time for the May 2013 Nonprofit Blog Carnival.

You will be amazed by what many non-profit experts had to say in an open letter they composed to non-profit board volunteers.

What is even more unbelievable is how some of this month’s carnival participants were able to skillfully weave Dr. Seuss inspired ideas into their posts.

“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” ~Dr. Seuss

Jeff Brooks at Future Fundraising Now wrote his letter to board members who don’t like your fundraising program. Did I mention how much he seems to like eating green eggs and ham?

The always positive and upbeat Marc Pitman (aka The Fundraising Coach) addressed the issue of board volunteers who are reluctant to fundraise. He included a neat link to a free asking styles profile tool at the end of his post. You gotta check it out!

On mBlog, Jenifer Snyder wrote her post to board volunteers on the value of getting more involved in mobile. I was especially impressed with this post because it is composed 100% in Dr. Seuss rhyme format. Big gold star for Jennifer!

Susan Chavez also earned a big gold star for writing her post in rhyme and offering social media advice to non-profit board volunteers.

Over at Wild Apricot blog, Lori Halley’s letter was written from the perspective of a new volunteer who openly wonders why veteran board volunteers sometimes resist new ideas and cloak themselves in the old fashion “that’s not how we do it here” defense.

Two Plus Two Can Be Five blog wrote their letter to board volunteers from the perspective of an ex-board volunteer who is one of those silent volunteers who has much to offer but never gets properly engaged. They ask the always powerful question: “Have you ever wondered why people resign from the board and move on like I’m going to?”

Sandy Rees at Get Fully Funded blog also took inspiration from a variety of different Dr. Seuss quotations. Her letter was written to new board volunteers and offered a treasure trove of advice on how to be a great non-profit board volunteer. She ends her post with an awesome training link that speaks to the topic of basic board roles and responsibilities.

Terri Holland wrote her letter from her own perspective as a fundraising professional. She ticks off four very common things that get in between boards and resource development staff, and she asks for their understanding and cooperation. This post is very honest and refreshing.

While not in the form of a letter, our friends at Big Duck blog offered “Three tips to help reinvigorate your board meetings“. This post reads like a letter to board volunteers. I included it in the Nonprofit Blog Carnival because I thought some of you might want to share it with your board governance committee and board president.

Love letters to board volunteers

One of my favorite bloggers of all time, Joanne Fritz at about.com, wrote “A Love Letter to My First Board of Directors“. Joanne undoubtedly speaks for all of us who’ve had the luxury of hindsight to look back at our past experiences.

Over at Non Profit Evolution, Dani Robbins also penned a love letter to her former board and exclaimed from the mountaintops: “I am the leader I am today because of the tools you gave me. I promise to pay it forward.”

At the Laramie Board Learning Project blog, Dr. Debra Beck penned an Open letter to an exemplar board expressing her appreciation to a board for allowing her to study their work, their learning processes and their motivations to serve (and serve well) for her doctoral dissertation research.

But wait . . . there’s more!

As many of you know, DonorDreams blog dedicated the entire month of May to non-profit professionals and volunteers who wanted to write anonymous letters to their boards.

There were a ton of great entries, and I encourage you to click over and start reading. However, for those of you with limited time for reading blogs, the following were the top six most popular posts:

Again, these submissions were not from bloggers. These letters were from real, live non-profit professionals and board volunteers. Their honesty is a window upon which you can see the things with which the non-profit sector struggles every day.

So what should you do next?

Dr. Seuss reminds us:

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You’re on your own, and you know what you know. And you are the guy who’ll decide where to go.”

In yesterday’s DonorDreams post titled “I meant what I said and I said what I meant! ~Dr. Seuss,” I encouraged everyone who wrote letters (and those of you who have unwritten letters in your heads) to take it a step further and TAKE ACTION. Take a moment to click over to this post and give some consideration to what you’re next steps should be. Architects for change (as was Dr. Seuss) would consider this moment of reflection necessary if you plan on growing the organizational capacity of your agency.

Our fellow blogger Febe Galvez-Voth at www.thecaseforsupport.com might have summed it up best when she submitted the following Dr. Seuss inspired entry about developing your organization’s case for support (which I encourage you to read in a broader context of developing a case for addressing any of these board issues):

Wherever you are

State your case
On a bus in a fuss
Tell the world that you care
Tell the world why you share

State your case
In a chute in a suit
Make your smarts lead the way
Make your smarts sway the nay

State your case
In a home with a gnome
Speak with love and respect
Speak with love and connect

State your case
In a room with a broom
Lead away from the fray
You’ll go up, up and away

State your case!

“Today was good. Today was fun. Tomorrow is another one.” ~Dr. Seuss

OK . . . I am stretching this quotation from Dr. Seuss a little far. There is not another Nonprofit Blog Carnival tomorrow, but there will be another one in June (as there is every month).

Lori Halley at Wild Apricot blog will be next months host the next Nonprofit Blog Carnival. The theme will be “Data for Good“. Click here for more details and how to submit your blog entry for consideration.

As I say at the end of all my blog posts . . .

Here’s to your health!

“I meant what I said and I said what I meant!” ~Dr. Seuss

May 28, 2013 erik Board development, Board governance, volunteers

For those of you who regularly follow DonorDreams blog, you know that for the last month I’ve been publishing real letters from real non-profit people. These letters have been anonymous and all center on the theme of things that non-profit boards do that drive the letter writer a little nuts. Rather than just making this a good old fashion “rant,” each author was asked to incorporate a suggested solution into their letter.

I hope you enjoyed this month’s series. If the data analytics for this site are any indication, it looks like many of you enjoyed it A LOT!

As you can see from all of this month’s posts, I incorporated a “mask” theme for a few reasons.

This theme was inspired by the fact that I am the Nonprofit Blog Carnival host this month, and I thought incorporating masks as a visual would tie the ideas of “carnival” and “anonymous letters” together perfectly.
Additionally, humans have used masks for an assortment of things for millennia including ceremonies, protection, medical protection from plagues, disguise, and performance.

Interestingly, I’ve been on an Alaskan cruise for the last two weeks (I just got home last night), and everywhere I turned in all of the gift shops I encountered native Alaskan masks. So, for your enjoyment, I snapped a whole bunch of pictures and included them at the bottom of this post for your enjoyment. (Keep scrolling down below my signature block to enjoy those pictures)

Tomorrow is Wednesday, May 29th, and it is the day we’ve all been waiting for. Tomorrow is the day we celebrate the Nonprofit Blog Carnival. As you know, I asked the nonprofit blogosphere to consider writing an open letter to non-profit boards about something concerning to them along with a suggested solution. I also challenged them to incorporate something from Dr. Seuss into their post because this iconic children’s author is considered by many people to be an “architect of social change“.

If you couldn’t tell, I am hoping this month’s series of posts culminating with tomorrow’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival will become a blueprint for “change” regarding how you engage your non-profit board on a variety of issues.

I titled this blog post with an inspirational quotation from Dr. Seuss that I believe sums up this entire exercise.

“I meant what I said and I said what I meant!“

Now that we’ve got whatever it was off of our chest, I encourage you to shift your thinking to the following questions:

What will you do about it?
How will you tactfully engage your board in addressing the issue you’ve identified as critical?
Can some of these issues become generative questions and conversations that get incorporated into your board meetings?
Do you have a board governance committee that does more than just recruit new board volunteers? If so, what is their role in addressing some of these issues?
How can you use this exercise to develop a system focused on continual organizational improvement?
Have you given any thought to asking your board volunteers to write anonymous letters to you with suggestions on how to improve aspects of your job?

I hope you’re looking forward to tomorrow’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival hosted here at DonorDreams blog. I’ve seen the submissions, and I’m hopeful that you will enjoy them as much as I have. In the meantime, please start thinking about the questions I just posed and use the comment box below to weigh-in with your thoughts keeping the following quotation from Dr. Seuss in mind:

“Step with care and great tact. And remember that life’s a great balancing act.”

Here’s to your health . . . See you tomorrow at the carnival!

If you are a lover of this kind of art from the Northwest coast, then I suggest you visit Hill’s Native Art online to check out their large selection.

Dear board volunteers . . . let’s get on the same page, please?

May 27, 2013 erik Board development, Board governance, volunteers

DonorDreams blog is honored to be hosting the May 2013 Nonprofit Blog Carnival. The theme this month is “Dear board volunteer . . .” and the idea is “If you could write an anonymous letter to a nonprofit board about something they do that drives you crazy, what would that letter look like and what suggested solutions would you include?” If you are a blogger and would like more information on how to participate and submit a post for consideration, please click here to learn more.

I wanted to expand the Nonprofit Blog Carnival concept in May. So, I reached out to real non-profit professionals and asked them to also write an anonymous letter to their board volunteers. These people are executive directors, fundraising professionals, board members, donors, community volunteers, consultants and front line staff. I promised everyone anonymity in exchange for their submissions.

We will celebrate May’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival on Wednesday, May 29, 2013. Up to that fun-filled day, I will publish real anonymous letters every day from real non-profit professionals right here at DonorDreams blog.

I hope you enjoy this real look at real issues that our community deals with on a daily basis.

Here is today’s letter:

Dear Board Volunteer:

Together, we share a partnership. We are in this together.

I realize that you can only devote a portion of your life to our mutual cause and that it is my full-time responsibility, and then some. I am mindful and respectful of your time, and I hope that likewise you are respectful of mine. However, if and when (probably more like when) we are in “crisis mode” when we need each other, then we are available for one another regardless.

Our relationship needs to be one that is open, honest, and brutally frank. We both want the best for our organization and we both work hard to achieve excellence. I will always tell you the absolute truth, never hiding any information or embellishing it on all topics. I expect the same from you.

I can’t do the job by myself. I rely on our staff and I also rely on you as well as our other volunteers to make it work. Working together collaboratively gets a lot more done and in faster time.

If you’ve had issues as an organization before I got here, don’t expect that just by hiring me that the problem will all quickly go away. I know how to fix them, but I will need your support and the staff’s support to really get the job done — and it will take time because we are dealing with a cultural change of doing things differently to improve the results. Some “sacred cows” will have to be slaughtered along the way and not everybody will be happy, but the organization will be stronger in the end as a net result.

You are paying for my leadership, experience, advice, and expert counsel. Please pay attention and follow my recommendations to help improve the organization. These recommendations are based on years of experience, sound business principles, and best practices.

Our board should be composed of people of influence and affluence. We can have other groups that are “working groups”, but our board needs to be the absolute top of the community power structure for our organization to thrive. If we have a board composed of less than that, then we will not be maximizing our organization’s full potential.

My view is that the board establishes a vision for the organization, oversees its governance, approves an annual budget, raises funds for the organization, and employs the Executive Director. The staff is hired by and reports to the Executive Director to execute the plan for the organization. The staff runs the day-to-day operation of the organization within the confines of the established budget and resources. The staff does NOT report to the board, but to the Executive Director.

There will come a time when we disagree with one another on something important. To the best of our abilities, we will do so privately, iron out those differences behind closed doors, and then come out publicly with one agreed upon course of action.

Thank you for being a board member of our great organization!

Best regards,
Your Executive Director

If you have some advice for the author of our anonymous letter, please share it in the comment box at the bottom of this post in a respectful manner. If you want to submit an anonymous letter for consideration this month, please email it to me at the address in your signature block below. If you are a blogger looking to participate in this month’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival and want to learn more, then please click here.

Here’s to your health!

Dear board volunteers . . . tips from the outgoing CEO

May 24, 2013 erik Board development, Board governance, Fundraising, Planning, volunteers

I wanted to expand the Nonprofit Blog Carnival concept in May. So, I reached out to real non-profit people and asked them to also write an anonymous letter to their board volunteers. These folks are executive directors, fundraising professionals, board members, donors, community volunteers, consultants and front line staff. I promised everyone anonymity in exchange for their submissions.

We will celebrate May’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival on Wednesday, May 29, 2013. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this real look at real issues that our community deals with on a daily basis.

Here is today’s letter:

Dear Board of Directors,

I want to thank you for my time and opportunity with your organization and community. I have learned a great many things during my time here. My hope is that you share these things with your new Executive Director, so that he/she may succeed and serve the clients who need us the most.

First, they’ll need your attention. You need to give them your attention inside and outside the board room, paying attention to key metrics – are we meeting the mission? Are we raising enough financial support – money – to allow the staff to meet that mission? Are you responding to hard and soft metrics with a cause of action – simply put, are you doing things daily/weekly/monthly that help our clients?

Second, they’ll need your advocacy. Are we visible in the community – staff & board together – as advocates of our cause? Are you proud to tell your friends, co-workers and associates that you’re part of our organization? Do you bring people to see our mission in action, either during events or during our day-to-day operations?

Third, they’ll need your aspirations for the organization. Do you think about where we should be in five years? Can you share that with them? Can you share that with your associates? Can you put that into action?

The successful organizations in your community are doing these things, and are thriving. In fact, your lack of attention, advocacy and aspirations are noticeably absent to many others in the community. I’ve been told many, many times during my time here that my passion was appreciated by many, but wasn’t visible in any noticeable quantity from the board leadership. That sent a clear message to them that if our clients weren’t worthy of your passion & talents, as the true leaders of the organization, theirs wasn’t either.

My hope is that you find the staff leader that you’re looking for, as well as that they find the leadership in you that they’re looking for and need as well.

Respectfully,
Your Former Executive Director

If you have some advice for the author of our anonymous letter, please share it in the comment box at the bottom of this post in a respectful manner. If you want to submit an anonymous letter for consideration this month, please email it to me at the address in your signature block below.If you are a blogger looking to participate in this month’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival and want to learn more, then please click here.

Here’s to your health!

Dear board volunteers . . . Your community isn’t as UNIQUE as you think.

May 23, 2013 erik Board development, Fundraising, volunteers

We will celebrate May’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival on Wednesday, May 29, 2013. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this real look at real issues that our community deals with on a daily basis.

Here is today’s letter:

Dear board volunteer:

If I hear you say one more time, “This process may work everywhere else in the country, but it won’t work here because we are different. Our community is unique.” I think I am going to explode. Guess what…you’re community isn’t different because in the end it is made of people and people are more or less the same wherever you go.

You have the home grown people that have been in the community for 50+ years and know everyone. You have the implants that have been in the community longer than they have been out, and the newbies; both groups who will say that unless you are from here, you are treated as an outsider.

You have people who are political, people who are generous, people who are mean, people who need your services, people who are religious, people who don’t care, people who are leaders, people who are followers, people who say they will do something and don’t, people who will take action, people who say they will take action and don’t, people who work and people that don’t work.

I go crazy when a board volunteer says, “that is great that you can raise that kind of money in that community, but you can’t do that here because we are different.” You’re right; you can’t do it HERE with that attitude.

If you would only realize that because something DOES work somewhere else, with the right leadership and strategies, IT WILL more than likely work here.

So, please quit being the one putting on the brakes and get off the bus.

I know that change is not easy, but we need to push forward towards a solution. Here are just a few simple suggestions that I have: 1) let’s move a few of our more resistant board volunteers off of the board and onto another task force or advisory council; 2) let’s shake up our board leadership; 3) let’s add a few fresh faces by recruiting two or three new board volunteers; and 4) let’s find a donor who is willing to make a challenge gift that is tied to implementation of our original plan.

Sincerely,
Your friendly neighborhood Spiderman

If you have some advice for the author of our anonymous letter, please share it in the comment box at the bottom of this post in a respectful manner. If you want to submit an anonymous letter for consideration this month, please email it to me at the address in your signature block below.If you are a blogger looking to participate in this month’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival and want to learn more, then please click here.

Here’s to your health!

Dear board volunteers . . . Can we stop the paralysis by analysis, please?

May 22, 2013 erik Fundraising, volunteers

I hope you enjoy this real look at real issues that our community deals with on a daily basis.

Here is today’s letter:

Dear Resource Development Committee,

I would like to thank each and every one of who have given so much time, effort and discussion to our new Resource Development Plan. The countless meetings and suggestions on what the appropriate sponsorship level should be for each event has truly been riveting. I am glad that we spent 28 months analyzing the numerous drafts. I also consider the six months of research on organizations within a 625-mile radius a productive use of my time.

I understand the concerns expressed by several board members that if we increase the hole sponsorship or foursome by the astronomical sum of $25.00, we might jeopardize the fundraising of the entire organization. “I told you so” is always a possibility, but if we get unanimous approval, I am confident that we can overcome the steep increases and have successful special events that will generate sufficient income for us.

Maybe we could analyze this plan for a few more months before bringing to the full board and wait for the Marketing Committee to roll out their plan. I am so confident that the new PR plan will be so well received that our RD plan will be a perfect fit. We probably will not have to make any of those dreaded face-to-face asks and not even bother with the time consuming thank you letters.

The goal of a 1.8% increase in giving is not a reach if we stick to the plan and depend on my staff to accomplish it. We are more than willing to make the calls for you due to your hectic schedule and being uncomfortable with asking for money.

If this plan does not work (in which case I would be shocked), I do have a few suggestions for the next one:

No more paralysis by over analysis. Let’s create a plan knowing that it is not perfect and we may have to “tweak” it once or twice.

Make it an action plan with specific steps and dates and hold Directors accountable to them.

Cultivate and get to know our potential donors so we know what they want and what motivates them to give (one size does not fit all when it comes to giving).

There is no “magic” marketing plan . . . show the outcomes of the organization but most importantly show the donor our facility.

Complete a 12-month stewardship calendar for different levels of cultivation.

I have a few other ideas, but those will have to wait just in case our original plan succeeds.

Thank you for all your support,

Sincerely,
Really? All that over a $25 increase?

If you have some advice for the author of our anonymous letter, please share it in the comment box at the bottom of this post in a respectful manner. If you want to submit an anonymous letter for consideration this month, please email it to me at the address in your signature block below.If you are a blogger looking to participate in this month’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival and want to learn more, then please click here.

Here’s to your health!