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nonprofit boards

Board Ts and Ts

Within the nonprofit sector, three words – time, talent, and treasure (sometimes restated as work, wisdom, and wealth) – are used as a short-hand definition… Read More »Board Ts and Ts

Strategies for avoiding meddling by meeting

As part of prepping for a workshop with a nonprofit board that’s new to me, I asked the chair to name his must-be-addressed topic for the day. Almost before the question was out of my mouth, he shot back his answer. “I need help in structuring meetings so that the board stays out of administrative detail.” He went on to describe the tedium of agendas dominated by staff reports and the frustration of never enough time to focus on the future.

If misery loves company, this chair has it – in droves. Or so suggests a long-running exchange over at the BoardSource LinkedIn discussion group. The conversation began in June 2011 with the question, “Does anyone have an example of a board agenda that helps steer the conversation towards strategy and away from operations? A year later that starting query continues to generate comments (more than 600 to date).Read More »Strategies for avoiding meddling by meeting

Donors may not care about results, but boards should

“Despite years of claiming the contrary, donors still don’t really care about nonprofit performance or impact.” In fact, as blogger and student of philanthropy Tim Ogden reports, a majority of donors believe there “isn’t much difference between nonprofits, that any giving is good, and performance measures are a waste of time and money.”

For all the calls for proof of impact, for most folks, a touching story trumps facts most of the time.  It’s what Ogden refers to as the “Lake Wobegon problem: the idea that all the nonprofits I give to are above average” so don’t bother me with dry details. Read More »Donors may not care about results, but boards should

Get governance or get off

I feel the pain of nonprofit CEOs and development staff who rail about board members’ reluctance to step up to the fundraising challenge.

I’ve served on the development staffs of three private colleges, including a short stint as a VP for Advancement. For the past 15 years, I’ve provided development counsel to faith-based nonprofits. I’ve authored dozens of articles about the board and fundraising and presented hundreds of workshops on the topic. And, as the member of one nonprofit board after another, I’ve sat through many fundraising pep talks delivered by other consultants.

In short, I’ve experienced this subject from every angle, first-hand. I’m familiar with every argument, every plea.Read More »Get governance or get off