Note: This post is adapted from an online conversation among Train Your Board partners Bob Osborne, Laurel McCombs, and Andy Robinson. Join the discussion! Andy I'm hearing from clients and colleagues that it's difficult to hire professional fundraisers – and when you do hire them, they tend to move on to other organizations. This is … [Read more...]
Beyond the 501(c)(3): Other models for social change
After 44 years of working with nonprofits, here’s my confession: I’m sort of done with the normal nonprofit structure. You know what I’m talking about, but just to be clear: These organizations … Are incorporated in their respective states and granted tax exempt status by the federal government. Are governed by a volunteer … [Read more...]
Two ways that the best boards are getting better
Note: This guest post is from Renee Rubin Ross of the Ross Collective. Thanks, Renee! One of the questions we often hear is, “What are the most excellent boards doing right?” A while back, my colleagues and I wrote a series on the practices of high-performing boards. As we shared, high-performing boards successfully incorporate three … [Read more...]
Core elements of fundraising success: Trust, engagement, impact (part 3)
Note: This post – the third in a three-part series – is by Train Your Board partner Laurel McCombs. Thanks, Laurel! I’m excited to share the latest installment on how you can engage your supporters in authentic and meaningful ways. Since my last post, the 2023 Giving USA results were released. The data demonstrates what we’ve been … [Read more...]
What is fundability – and how do I get some?
Many years ago, when I was employed as a development director, I would gather the program staff once a year and ask the following question: “If we had unlimited amounts of money, what work would we do – and how would we do it?” In other words, I gave them explicit permission to go crazy. To dream without limits. To speak those dreams … [Read more...]
Board meetings can be fabulous
Note: This guest post is from Heather Yandow and Meredith Emmett of Third Space Studio. Thank you! Picture this: It's 6:30pm on a Tuesday evening and time for your board meeting. Board members drift in late, two join via Zoom, while others are spread around a large conference table. Same old, same old Once a quorum is present, the … [Read more...]
Core elements of fundraising success: Trust, engagement, impact (Part 2)
Note: This post – the second in a three-part series – is by Train Your Board partner Laurel McCombs. Thanks, Laurel! In part one of this series, we discussed the declining number of donors and contributed dollars across the nonprofit sector. Since then, the Fundraising Effectiveness Project released their Q4 report, confirming that these … [Read more...]
Do we really need boards? Let’s debate (Part 2)
Note: This is the second of two posts adapted from an online conversation between Train Your Board partners Bob Osborne and Andy Robinson. You can find the first portion here. Join the debate! We welcome your comments. Bob Any alternative structure – different from the traditional 501(c)(3) – would need to address fundraising. If an … [Read more...]
Do we really need boards? Let’s debate (Part 1)
Note: This two-part post is adapted from an online conversation between Train Your Board partners Bob Osborne and Andy Robinson. Join the debate! We welcome your comments. Bob Andy, I know you believe that our current model of board and nonprofit governance may be broken, and that you've been exploring alternative models. It's an … [Read more...]
Training for movements, not just organizations
In 1980, a few weeks after Ronald Reagan was first elected president, I answered a classified advertisement (remember classified ads?) in my local newspaper. The first word was Activist. I can’t remember the rest of the ad, but the idea was that I would be paid to work for social justice. I was adrift and anxious about the future, and … [Read more...]
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