Boards Need to Center the Mission

Categories: Best Nonprofit Practices · Board Member Roles · Good Board Practices · LeadershipTags: · · Leave a comment

I spoke to a board member of a large organization that hosted a big event every few years. The event was cancelled during COVID. Board members had given extra restricted donations because of the event. When asked if they wanted the money back, the board member remembered why she joined the board in the first place. She and her fellow board members centered on the mission. As told by a board member somewhere in the USA. The Event That Never Happened I serve on the Foundation Board for a large national organization. This is the fundraising board—not the governing board—so… Read more

Be Comfortable with Culture Before Joining a Board

Categories: Board Member Roles · Good Board Practices · Prospective Board MembersTags: Leave a comment

In this post, I share a story of a board member who was skeptical about joining a board because of its reputation as risk averse and mostly white male. But after she did some research and asked many questions, she realized the organization’s reputation was outdated. The story is a positive one. After joining, she discovers a thoughtful and well-functioning board. Consider an Invitation to Join a Board As told by a Board Member somewhere in the United States. I was invited to join the board of a fairly large and prominent nonprofit working in the education space. The board… Read more

Navigating Uncertainty: Lead with Strategy and Compassion, Not Fear

Categories: Best Nonprofit Practices · Board Member Roles · Board, Board Chair, ED/CEO Roles · Good Board Practices · LeadershipTags: · Leave a comment

In this post, I focus on how nonprofits can remain resilient and impactful in uncertain times by addressing both sides of the financial equation: revenue and expenses. In my last post, I wrote about on Risk Management, in the one before on Financial Fraud, and the one before that on Managing Critical Business Accounts.  All these areas are important to ensure your organization can face challenges due to external factors such as the economy and internal ones due to staffing changes. Focus on Both Revenue and Expenses Nonprofits are being squeezed from both sides. Government and foundation funding are declining,… Read more

Risk Management in Uncertain Times

Categories: Best Nonprofit Practices · Good Board Practices · LeadershipTags: · · · · · · 1 Comment

In today’s uncertain times, everyone needs to think about risk. This includes financial fraud or cyber security risks, which I wrote about in my last post. Additionally, economic downturns can increase the demand for services while simultaneously straining donors’ financial capacity. I hope to address this in a future post. In this post, I want to focus on proactive steps organizations can take in case they come under government scrutiny.  Thorough preparation and attention to detail minimize your risks.  I have actionable ideas for both boards and staff. I also addressed some of these issues in a previous post. Governance… Read more

Avoid Chaos by Managing Critical Business Accounts

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Working with business accounts in an organization can be challenging, especially when dealing with transitions or limited staffing. The Challenge I was involved with a small nonprofit organization that had only two employees. When one staff person left unexpectedly and was mostly unavailable, I stepped up – on an interim basis – to manage finance and operations. The process was more difficult than I expected. For example, I discovered that we lacked a shared contact list for key vendors, such as our attorney, insurance agent, and CPA. I had to piece together information from emails and invoices. Furthermore, the previous… Read more