Although the coronavirus pandemic currently prevents us from connecting in person, team collaboration has never been more important, especially for nonprofits. Bringing leaders together virtually is critical as nonprofits navigate important business decisions, a new fundraising environment and the safety of employees and constituents. Here are seven tips for hosting effective online board meetings for nonprofits as you continue to …
How to Work from Home Effectively: 10 Tips for Working Remotely
Working remotely has been on the uptick in the United States, well before the coronavirus pandemic forced employees from every sector and city to turn their homes into temporary offices. According to the Federal Reserve, the share of the labor force that works from home tripled during the past 15 years. Despite this growing movement, many people still find themselves …
How to Fundraise in Uncertain Times: 10 Ways to Mitigate Revenue Loss from the Coronavirus
Health advisories from federal, state and local officials in response to the Coronavirus outbreak (COVID-19) have resulted in school closures, event cancellations, travel bans and many other containment measures across our nation. [You can read NLC’s response here.] Nonprofit special events and fundraising activities are among the many events that have been canceled or postponed, representing the potential loss of …
4 Tips for Breaking Bad Habits in the Workplace
We all know a coworker who is consistently late for meetings, a colleague who takes days to respond to emails or the team member who has a negative response for everything. Bad work habits aren’t just common; they’re harmful to every nonprofit or business. But breaking bad habits at work is possible, and it will lead to increased efficiency and …
Why Nonprofits Must Think Differently About Measuring and Reporting Impact
In 2008, author and renowned philanthropy expert Dan Pallotta challenged nonprofits to find a better way to communicate organizational impact. More than a decade later, our sector continues to struggle with communicating how our work truly makes a difference. How should nonprofits measure and articulate their impact? How do we communicate what social returns on investment look like? As a …
Four Skills Nonprofit Leaders Must Embrace to be Successful in 2020
After more than 40 years as a nonprofit leader, turning the page to a new calendar year is always a sobering moment for me because everything resets to zero — success metrics, revenue performance and participation impact. The pace of change in our society and nonprofit sector is dizzying. The one thing I know for sure is that our plans …
How to Craft an Effective Out-of-Office Message
If you’re getting ready for some time away from the office, setting an out-of-office message on your email and voicemail is important to manage expectations for those who may contact you while you’re gone. It’s especially critical so that donors, corporate partners or constituents who reach out don’t think you’re unresponsive or uninterested in their message, questions or needs. So …
7 Secrets to a Successful Year-end Fundraising Letter
Do you ever wish you could send a year-end fundraising letter to existing donors that says: “Hi friend. It’s that time of year. This is your reminder to give. Please give again this year.” If only it were that easy! Unfortunately, the “just-send-money” approach doesn’t work. Charitable giving is much different than paying a bill or meeting an obligation. It’s …
The Secret Year-End Fundraising Tool Most Nonprofits Overlook
I sat at my desk with a feeling of dread in the pit of my stomach. How do I raise enough gifts to meet our year-end fundraising goal? My team and I had hosted a donor appreciation event and conducted a mailing, but there were still donors who hadn’t yet made a gift. As I reviewed my donor list, I …
8 Ways to Make Kindness the Norm
Kindness, empathy and caring about the needs of others above our own are at the core of our nonprofit sector. In an ever-changing world where kindness seems to be in short supply, here are eight simple ways to incorporate kindness into your day, today and every day. Tell someone you care. Send someone you care about an email or text …