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 habits at work aren’t just common; they’re harmful to every nonprofit or business. By making simple changes, we can break bad habits at work and increase our efficiency …
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
November 13 is World Kindness Day, an annual celebration hosted by the Random Acts of Kindness Foundation to help 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 …
4 Simple Strategies to Improve Team Communication at Work
You’ve probably heard the English proverb, “You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.” Just as relationships in life are often better when approached with a smile rather than a scowl, the same is true in business. When kindness is at the forefront of our mind and daily interactions, we focus on the power of “we” over “I.” …
What Businesses Want from Nonprofit Partners
If you’re like many nonprofits, you’ve heard the term Corporate Social Responsibility, or CSR. It’s the phrase used to refer to a business approach that aims to positively contribute to our society. While initially a form of corporate self-regulation to promote sustainable business practices, CSR is no longer a single-issue effort or ad hoc attempt by a company’s marketing department …
Find Your Nonprofit Fit: 10 Questions to Ask Before Serving on a Nonprofit Board
Behind every great nonprofit organization is a great board of directors. While many business and community leaders pursue board positions because they genuinely want to make a difference, research from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, in collaboration with BoardSource and GuideStar, suggests that far too many boards lack the sufficient skills, resources and experiences to meet the needs of …