Category: nonprofit-board-members

Inside Look... This guide will cover the following topics: Introduction Understanding the job description Having clarity about the mission of the organization How the organization is governed The basics of nonprofit law and accounting Where to find needed information How to be a great ambassador for the organization Time Management Summary

Free Nonprofit Webinar! How to Conduct Nonprofit Board Recruitment in 3 Easy Steps As nonprofit professionals, we may spend our time recruiting talent or volunteers. And when anyone mentions recruiting, that may be the first thing we think of. But there’s another part of a nonprofit organization that requires plenty of thought – nonprofit board recruitment. Your nonprofit board is a group of people who focus on the overall strategy and accountability of your organization. While your volunteers and staff oversee day-to-day operations, your nonprofit board manages the bigger picture. So having the right nonprofit board members is crucial to running the organization the best way possible....

01 | Introduction Boards and fundraising, I find, often mix as well as water and oil. You know this. You’ve seen it. Perhaps you are living it, dealing with board members who say “I’ll do anything but fundraise” and who tell you that they couldn’t possibly give you the name of one person who might care enough about what you do to make a charitable gift. Believe me, you are not alone. I do a lot of board training. Typically, I walk into a room full of lively, engaged people. Then I get introduced, and someone says, “Janet is here to talk with you about fundraising.“ And suddenly, these engaged people cross their arms and legs, purse their lips, and resolutely stare at the floor. Boards are...

Blog post by Brian Saber We all know that asking doesn’t just happen out of nowhere. Your organization and staff have to embrace asking for donations clear across the board in order for you to develop a strong culture of asking. Think of what it would mean if you did have a culture of asking for donations. First and foremost, fundraising would stop being a dirty word! We all know that as soon as we mention the word fundraising most people cringe. Well, that isn’t going to get us anywhere, is it? Here are seven ways to shape a culture of asking and a strong fundraising future at your organization. 1) View capital campaigns as the standard During a capital campaign we invest a tremendous...

This is a guest post by Brian Saber Most fundraising professionals would prefer to do just about anything than ask someone for money face-to-face. Even for those who find it somewhat “easy,” it can be awkward and anxiety-inducing to ask for money, regardless of how good your cause is. Yet, deep down, we know asking for donations face to face for your nonprofit will end up making a huge impact… and the facts back that up. Asking in-person is proven to have the highest rate of success among all methods. Kent Dove of the Indiana University Foundation analyzed different ways of giving. Direct mail has the lowest success rate of the traditional fundraising methods –just 1-2%. Phone calls – not...

This is a guest blog post by Brian Saber, Cofounder of Asking Matters. If we think we can send board members out to fundraise without giving them tools, we might need some analysis. What are we thinking?! It’s a license for complete failure, and the proof is in the pudding. Time and again our board members fail to partner successfully with staff to develop the organization’s resources because we never show them how or provide the training. But They’re So Successful! Yes, we ask people to join our boards because we think highly of them. They might be successful businesspeople or impassioned community activists or enthusiastic volunteers. They might be articulate believers or prominent...