ONEplace Blog
News, comments, resources, and more for nonprofits.
The Foundation Center has recently enhanced their website with some great new features. And, although you will still need to visit the Kalamazoo Public Library to search the Foundation Directory for grants, the website offers many other helpful resources you can access from your home or office.
When you first enter the Foundation Center’s website, the amount of information can seem overwhelming. The best place to start is in the mustard yellow tool guide located near the top of the page. The headings listed in the tool guide make navigating through the website as easy as a drop down with a click. Much of the information can be found in multiple areas.
- Get Started heading is a general overview of what the website has to offer as far as resources and tools.
- Some are fee based, but most are free
- Offers information pertaining to specific organizational topics
- Most helpful are the Learn About and Training Courses
- Classroom trainings are only offered in select cities, I recommend going directly to the free training videos and webinar
- Find Funders heading offers a link to the Foundation Center Directory as well as other helpful tools for grant writing
- The Foundation Center is accessible for a fee/ save money by using the computers in ONEplace at no cost
- Related Tools and Check Statistics
- RFP templates and prospect worksheets
- Gain Knowledge. This section is the equivalent of having a nonprofit library at your fingertips.
- A plethora of articles about the economic crisis, global issues, best practices, research reports, and much more
- Glass Pockets and Pub Hub are new programs of the Foundation Center
- FREE Philanthropy News Digest eNewsletter subscription for up-to-date information
- View Events header is useful for accessing archived videos, audio, transcripts, and webinars at no cost
- A lot of what is found in this section can also be found under other headings. Save time by checking the date of the event to prevent duplication
The Foundation Center website can be found at http://foundationcenter.org/. What I found most valuable were the free webinars, videos, and audio recordings; especially the Introduction to Fundraising Planning Online Training Course. Write back and let me know what you found to be most valuable and share your thoughts with other who could benefit from the Foundation Center website.
Book
Foundation Center
foundation-center-logo-2-160
http://foundationcenter.org/
At the meeting of the Kalamazoo Public Library Board of Trustees on July 26, I presented a summary of the results received through our ONEplace ONEyear Survey, conducted in early March, 2010. It is a snapshot of the start-up and growth of Kalamazoo County’s new nonprofit management support organization (MSO) from the Grand Opening in March, 2009, through one full year in operation. While we continue to grow and improve programs and services, and increase service contacts, capturing the impact of the first year has proven valuable and informative.
Executive Summary of ONEplace ONEyear Survey
ONEplace is a management support organization, operated by the Kalamazoo Public Library and funded by the Irving S. Gilmore and Kalamazoo Community Foundations, that focuses on building personnel (staff and volunteers) skills and organizational capacities of nonprofits in Kalamazoo, Michigan.
First Year Activity Levels
In its first year of operation, ONEplace was operated by one full-time and two 10/hr/wk staff (approx 9 mos/each pt position). Over 200 requests per month (2400/yr) for technical assistance from nonprofit staff, board members, volunteers, or people seeking to start a nonprofit were addressed in-person, by phone, or email---surpassing its goal of 75/mo during the first year. Over 100 workshops and webinars were provided, with more than 1,400 people attending. Services and programs far outpaced original expectations.
As the first anniversary approached we took the opportunity to systematically gather data to better assess ONEplace’s efforts and local nonprofit needs for future planning.
Working with an evaluator from the WMU Evaluations Center, the ONEplace ONEyear Survey was sent to 1,100 people to gather feedback on the services ONEplace offers. In total, 229 people completed the short survey, for a response rate of 20.8 percent. Most respondents were from organizations more than 16 years old. They represented a wide range of roles, with the most common respondents holding paid staff positions.
Findings
Most Frequently Used Services: ONEplace’s website, workshops, and one-on-one, in-person technical assistance.
Least Frequently Used Services: webinars and ONEplace’s nonprofit collection.
Overall Rating: Satisfaction with ONEplace’s services, programs, resources, and staff was very high; the value to the community was repeatedly cited in question responses and comments.
Regardless of respondent’s personal participation in ONEplace offerings, their faith in its role in Kalamazoo was strong. Many of the comments read similarly to this one: “Really, I cannot think of anything [to improve]. This is such a wonderful resource for our community. I hope there is a plan to duplicate the model and spread it across the country. ONEplace is a true ally of the nonprofit. Thank you!”
Suggestions for the Future:
- Provide a more complete schedule further ahead of time for adequate planning
- Archive materials from webinars and workshops for digital access
- Respondents asked for specific additional training topics
- Advanced training for mature organizations
- Professional development or orientation for board members
- Offer services outside of normal business hours
The results mirrored the perceptions of ONEplace staff from feedback throughout the year. Even prior to this survey, advanced training, board development, enhanced calendar, and greater focus on the collection were folded into the plans for year two. Archiving presenter materials is currently done in hardcopy and under consideration for web access. Some possible actions, such as expanding service hours, are unlikely given the limited staffing of ONEplace. Thus, the focus will be on utilizing technology to more efficiently address client needs for access to information whenever they need it.
Summary of Statistics:
- Respondents included: paid staff (60.7%); volunteers (10.5%); board members (17%); consultants (8.3%); unaffiliated community members (3.5%)
- Organizational age: less than a year (2.6%); 1-5 yrs (17.5%); 6-10 yrs (11.8%); 11-15 yrs (6.1%); more than 16 yrs (58.5%)
- One-on-one assistance (in person): 1-5 times (35.7%); 6 or more (1%); never (63.3%)
- One-on-one assistance (phone/email): 1-5 times (33.2%); 6 or more (2.9%); never (61.1%)
- Role-specific network attendance: 1-5 times (27.3%); 6 or more (6.2%); never (63.6%)
- Workshop attendance: 1-5 times (66.2%); 6 or more (10.3%); never (23.5%)
- Webinar attendance: 1-5 (32.2%); never (64.4%)
- Website visits: 1-5 times (48.8%); 6 or more (40.8%); never (10.3%)
- Frequency of checking out a book from the collection: 1- 10 times (30%); never (66.7%)
- Referred colleagues to ONEplace: 1-5 (51.2%); 6 or more (27.4%); none (19.1%)
- Increase in professional skills because of participation in ONEplace programs/services: on a scale of 1-10 (10 high) 70% rated their skill increase at 5 or greater; 2 or greater (84.5%); none (15.5% [may not have participated])
- Increase in organizational capacity: on a scale of 1-10 (10 high) 57.5% rated their capacity increase at 5 or greater; 2 or greater (78%); none (22% [may not have participated])
A Few Comments and Specific Requests to the Question “What One Thing Would Make ONEplace More Useful to You?:
- I can’t think of a thing to change
- I just need to find time to pursue your many resources
- Don’t forget ‘all volunteer’ organizations
- More varied workshop times
- Archive workshop materials online
- Send out regular emails of upcoming events
- I think it’s fantastic and moving in the right direction. It has been very useful.
- Do MORE of what you are doing!
- Offer more grant seeking labs
- Start a blog
- More in-depth workshops; skill building tools
- Education about how to network with other organizations
If you have questions or comments about this information or ONEplace, in general, please contact us.
Bobbe A. Luce, director of ONEplace@kpl
Book
ONEplace @ KPL
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/ONEplace/
At ONEplace we're all about the value of volunteering...helping nonprofits connect with volunteers, and vice versa. However, as we all know, one of the challenges of relying on the talent and commitment of volunteers is that they don't always have as much time as we'd like, to help nonprofit organizations turn their visions into reality.
That is precisely the issue that led to the creation of The Extraordinaries, a web-based platform for micro-volunteering that launched about a year ago. According to the Stanford Social Innovation Review, a periodical we receive at ONEplace, "[t]he goal is to harness thousands of currently untapped hours by making volunteering fast, convenient, and bite-sized. While waiting for a bus or cooling your heels at the dentist's office, you could be using your smart phone to tag photos for the Smithsoinian, send a study tip to an at-risk student, or map your local parks. 'We want volunteering to be as fun and ubiquitous as playing a game,' explains Sundeep Ahuja, cofounder and president of the San Francisco-based business."
As soon as I read about The Extraordinaries, I went to the site, signed up, searched some of the more popular projects, and was soon busy tagging photographic images for the Library of Congress. And it did feel like I was playing a game, but I knew I was doing much more. I was really making a difference. I look forward to digging a little deeper into the site and searching for other projects, which are listed by categories such as climate, animals or education.
And of course, there is a social media angle to this effort as well. Participants can share their Extraordinaries activities with friends via Facebook, Twitter, and the like. This means that the brief volunteer contribution by one person could easily multiply, inspiring more to do the same. And all it takes is a few minutes. Ingenius!
Book
The Extraordinaries
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http://app.beextra.org/home/
The start of a new decade means it's time to prepare for another Census questionnaire. And we at ONEplace want to make sure that nonprofit organizations do everything they can to ensure that the people they serve are counted in 2010. Why? Because ten years ago, in the 2000 Census, it is estimated that Michigan was undercounted by about 70,000 people, resulting in a loss of millions of dollars in federal funding.
According to Sam Singh, census consultant for the Michigan Nonprofit Association, "Census data is used to determine political representation; where to build new roads, schools, and businesses; where services for the elderly and the homeless are necessary; and where job and job programs are needed." And when people are missed in the total count, often the services that have been created to help those very people end up suffering.
"The nonprofit community is uniquely positioned to dramatically strengthen and improve this year's census participation because you often directly serve these hard-to-count populations. Michigan's historically undercounted residents - immigrants, people of color, low-income families, and those who are highly mobile and live in complex households" are the people who, every day, walk in and out of the door of nonprofits. What better way to directly impact the funding those agencies receive than to take advantage of every opportunity to talk with services recipients about the Census, explain the benefits of a complete count, and actively promote their participation.
To help nonprofits reach their constituents, the Nonprofits Count! in Michigan campaign has an online Census Toolkit. Available in English and Spanish, the materials in this toolkit include, among other things, more details about the Census questionnaire, which is now a simple 10-question survey; as well as more information about the confidentiality of Census responses.
Please take a minute to look at these materials and make use of as many of them as possible at your site. The end result will benefit not only your organization but our entire community and the state of Michigan.
Book
2010 Census: Nonprofits Count
2010-census-badge
http://www.nonprofitscount.org/
At a recent New ED Network discussion centered on board composition and how to move from having ‘warm bodies’ or ‘social friends’ of current board members to purposefully composing a balanced, engaged, effective board.
First, board members must believe in the mission and work of the organization, serve the best interests of the organization and not personal agendas, and actively contribute their skills and funds to assure current and long-term sustainability. In addition, a balance of skills and demographic characteristics are essential in developing true capacity-building boards.
While different skills are needed at different stages of a nonprofit’s lifecycle (moving from hands-on in start-ups to policy making with little hands-on in maturity), the following skills need to be present on all boards.
- Financial expertise / Investment experience
- Fundraising experience
- Legal expertise: knowledge of legal issues and requirements for nonprofits
- Property and facility management and construction (depending on facilities and capital planning)
- Marketing and Communication
- Small business experience/ entrepreneurship
- Personnel / HR practices
- Nonprofit management; systems
- Governance: policy development; roles and responsibilities of board; strategic thinking
- *Program/service knowledge
Demographics should reflect the community you serve and/or want to serve. Take some time as a board and ED to determine the demographics needed to bring a balance of perspectives to the table when strategically governing the organization. Some demographic characteristics include: hands-on or policy focused; business/community leaders; racial/ethnic diversity; age, education, wealth diversity; English/foreign languages; educational levels; for-profit, nonprofit, faith-based; male/female/LGBT; community connections; personal networks. Boards should not be made up of people just because they ‘like’ each other; this is important (volunteer) governance work, not social engagement.
A grid can be made with these skills and desired balance of demographic characteristics across the top and names of current board members and their term ending dates down the side. *Program/service knowledge is helpful, especially in the early start-up stage; once established, the staff will be more important in this area than board members. Other skills may be needed depending on your particular situation.
Check all the skills and demographics each person brings to the board. Then, look for holes and recruit only people with the needed skills or demographic (hopefully contributing in both skills and demographics) profiles.
Give it a try. It’s quite revealing and powerful in helping you think strategically about recruiting new board members or replacing term-limited positions.
Finding people to fill specific positions can be challenging and will take outreach and active listening by the board members and executive director on an ongoing basis to gather names of potential recruits without ‘inviting’ them to join the board.
The process of formally recruiting is the role of the board nominating committee. Prior to the annual meeting and elections, they convene to assess the current grid and potential recruits that fit needed profiles, prioritize people to approach for each position, and develop a plan for who will do the asking of each person and in what order. The process includes sharing information about the mission and constituents, programs and services, board service requirements, and realistic expectations of time, activities, and financial contributions.
A proactive, systematic process and formal procedures for identifying, recruiting, and educating potential board members will help enlist people who will truly help advance your mission and secure the organization’s future.
Book
A balanced, engaged, effective board.
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http://www.kpl.gov/oneplace/roundtable/new-ed.aspx
I was very fortunate to attend the National Independent Sector/Council of Michigan Foundations Annual Conference in Detroit earlier this month. It was inspiring to be among the 1,100 people from over 30 states who came together to share insights, build collaborative skills through interactive sessions, and delve into issues facing the nonprofit sector today.
Many of the themes of the three-day conference aligned with a plenary presentation made by Diana Aviv, president of Independent Sector:
- It’s past time to really work together across the ‘silos’ of business, government, and nonprofit; and
- As individuals, organizations, and collaborations, we must think and act for the ‘big picture’ because, to survive and thrive, we must acknowledge our interdependence.
Below is a summary of her comments as published in the Chronicle of Philanthropy.
--Bobbe A. Luce, ONEplace @ kpl
Nonprofit Leaders Urged to Rethink Their Role in Society
Independent Sector
Expanding on a key theme of this year’s Independent Sector conference, Diana Aviv, the group’s president, called on nonprofit leaders at all organizations – regardless of size or mission – to take a broad view of their work and their responsibility to help make society better.
“We do not and cannot work in a vacuum,” she told participants at the gathering of charities and grant makers, which drew some about 1,100 attendees in all.
“If our employees and their families can’t afford medical care, it limits their productivity,” she said. “If our transportation infrastructure makes it hard to get to work, it affects people’s performance. If we don’t collectively attend to the harm inflicted on our environment, polluted air and climate change will ultimately damage everyone’s work. And if we don’t demand greater civility in Congress and in the public square, we diminish our ability to achieve our aims.”
Ms. Aviv urged nonprofit leaders “to attend to these larger issues long before they threaten our work.”
As an example of the consequences of not doing so, she cited the experiences of health and human-services groups that now must take on loans as state and local governments increasingly delay payments for services already provided.
“Except for a sliver of public-interest organizations, at no time did we step up and try to fix a system that we have known to be problematic for years,” she said. “Why was this the case? Because we have long believed that these larger issues were not our responsibility.”
She called on participants to go back to their organizations and have at least one board meeting within the next year to define a role for their groups beyond their specific issue or cause.
“My point is that excelling at your particular mission is key – but so too is attending to the wider societal issues of the world you inhabit,” she said. “Active engagement with these issues is part of the price we pay for this special place we, as a community, have been afforded by society.”
— Jennifer Moore
Book
Independent Sector and Council of Michigan Foundations Annual Conference
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http://www.independentsector.org/AnnualConference/2009/
TIME SENSITIVE NEWS:
Recover Michigan and Michigan NOW! Programs Offer Capacity Building Opportunities to Small Nonprofits in Kalamazoo County and Across Michigan
NOTE: Attending an Orientation session for the programs is mandatory. ONEplace is hosting an orientation session on Friday, October 30, from 10 to noon in the Van Deusen Room of Kalamazoo Public Library, Central. Additional Orientation sessions will be held between October 26 and November 5 across the state. See the websites below for additional information or contact ONEplace at 553-7910.
Recover Michigan is a three phase program implemented by the Michigan Nonprofit Association and seven Management Support Organizations throughout the State of Michigan. During the eleven-month three-phase program, community and faith based nonprofit organizations will position themselves to strengthen their effectiveness to address the broad economic recovery issues present in their communities.
Services Offered at No-Fee
Trainings, Consulting, and Grant Opportunities (sub awards) in the areas of:
- Program Development
- Evaluation
- Leadership Development
- Collaboration and Community Engagement
- Organizational Development
Who Can Apply?
Incorporated community and faith based Michigan nonprofit organizations with a budget less than $500,000, and specializing in assisting low-income individuals in the following areas are welcome to apply:
- secure and retain employment
- earn higher wages
- obtain better quality jobs
- gain greater access to state and federal benefits, and tax credits
Recover Michigan is a federally funded under the authority of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 – Strengthening Communities Fund (SCF).
Michigan NOW! is a three phase program implemented by the Michigan Nonprofit Association and five Management Support Organizations throughout the State of Michigan. During the eleven-month three-phase program, community and faith based nonprofit organizations will position themselves to strengthen their effectiveness to address the broad social issues present in their communities.
Services Offered at No-Fee
Trainings, Consulting, and Grant Opportunities (sub awards) in the areas of:
- Program Development
- Revenue Development
- Leadership Development
- Collaboration and Community Engagement
- Organizational Development
Who Can Apply?
Incorporated, Michigan nonprofit organizations, with a budget less than $500,000, and specialize in assisting the following populations are welcome to apply:
- at-risk youth
- the homeless
- seniors/elders in need
- welfare to work transitions
- those in need of intensive rehabilitation
- couples who choose marriage
- prisoner reentry initiatives
- children of incarcerated individuals
Michigan NOW! is a federally funded under the authority of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Office of Community Services, Compassion Capital Fund Demonstration Program (CCF).
Book
Recover Michigan and Michigan NOW! Programs
michigan-map-160
/ONEplace/
Is your nonprofit using social media tools like Facebook and Twitter to draw attention to your organization, mission, programs, and services? To reach out to your target audiences: clients, donors, volunteers, potential employees? Do you advocate for your cause using social media tools?
Or, are you still wondering what the return on investment may really be? How much staff time it will consume? If it’s the best use of your limited resources? And, what would you ‘say,’ anyway?
Case Foundation has scheduled online ‘chats with experts’ that may help. You can write in your specific questions as well as learn from questions others submit. The Ask the Guru sessions are part of their Gear up for Giving series (the schedule is located on their website).
Do you use social media in your nonprofit? If so, what and how do you put it to work for you? How do you communicate? How much time does it take to keep it active and interactive? These questions came up in a recent ONEplace Roundtable of PR and Marketing. Write back and share your experiences.
Book
Gear Up For Giving
gear-up-for-giving-160
http://www.casefoundation.org/projects/gear-giving
Several people (Executive Directors and Board members) have contacted ONEplace recently asking how to increase consistent attendance and follow though with their nonprofit’s Board members.
On many (maybe ‘most’) boards, a core of people participate in every board meeting/action, every assigned committee, and contribute time, talents, and money to additional activities that support the organization. Many (most) boards also have members who, while ‘supportive,’ are sporadic in both their attendance and follow-through, leaving the active core to carry out the governance responsibilities on behalf of the entire board and the constituents of the nonprofit.
Why People Don’t Build the Attendance Commitment Into Their Schedule
Board members may be less than 100% committed to attending meetings for a number of reasons. Let’s look at a few.
They don’t know it’s expected.
- Are there board attendance policies? Bylaws specifying attendance? If so, were they clearly outlined during recruitment and orientations?
- Is it their ‘experience’ that attendance isn’t taken seriously by other board members, especially the chair?
- Is there a provision for ‘unexcused’ versus ‘excused’ (the member is still missing) absences?
- Are there any consequences for missing meetings? Have they ever been enforced?
They are ‘too busy’ to make every meeting.
- Everyone is busy, over-busy. Sometimes balancing work, volunteer activities, and family responsibilities is difficult (they may think, ‘impossible’) for everyone.
- The time of meetings doesn’t work in their schedule well. Has the board defined a mutually agreeable time for everyone and planned for a year at a time?
- They are ‘volunteering’ and this organization/board is not as high a priority as ‘conflicting’ events.
They don’t find the meetings motivating.
- Meetings are ‘boring’ or ‘rubber stamp’ sessions for committee and staff reports.
- Meetings are dominated by a few members and their input isn’t sought or valued.
- The connection between their role and the organization’s mission and outcomes for constituents isn’t clear, emotionally or intellectually.
What To Do
BoardSource recently sent an announcement on a new book (which is on order for ONEplace) with the lead-in: Board Meeting Attendance Is Not Optional, So Meet Smarter.
The book, titled Meeting and Exceeding Expectations, A Guide to Successful Nonprofit Board Meetings, encourages meetings that are “inspiring, productive, and efficient”:
- Establish a ‘consensus agenda’ board meeting format in which reports are sent out ahead of meetings and approved as a bundle, and meetings are only focused on in-depth mission-driven policy or issue discussions and action items.
- Elect a ‘devil’s advocate of the day’ to take a contrary stance on the issues under discussion in order to keep thinking fresh and discussions productive.
- Elect a ‘devil’s inquisitor of the day’ to ask difficult questions; to keep all arguments on the table and non-personal. Better governance emerges from open, challenging discussions.
- Clarify legal and ethical responsibilities each board member committed to when s/he agreed to serve.
In addition, invite board members who miss even a couple meetings (for any reason) to evaluate their ability to keep the commitment to actively serve on the board, and let them know it is ‘okay’ to resign. Lives change, schedules change, interests change: it's okay to give up your board seat for your own good, and the good of the organization.
Board members who aren’t in attendance aren’t available to provide input from their unique perspectives and expertise; aren’t available to vote on issues; aren’t available to learn from the other board members and staff. They are missing and missed.
Here are some additional resources and ideas to help strengthen attendance at board meetings and, therefore, governance of nonprofits, even in a world of busy board members.
Resource in ONEplace:
On the web:
Book
Meeting, and Exceeding Expectations: A Guide to Successful Nonprofit Board Meetings, Second Edition by Outi Flynn
meeting-exceeding-expectations-160
http://www.boardsource.org/Bookstore.asp?Item=1095
Just as important―and some would say more important―as a fund development audit, is a risk management audit.
Nonprofits are governed by many of the same laws and liabilities as for-profit businesses, and some additional ones related to tax-exempt status and charitable donations. Whether newly-formed or operating for years, many nonprofits neglect the business side of their organizations because they “don't know what they don't know” or are concentrating so hard on doing their mission-driven work. Especially vulnerable are long-time all-volunteer organizations.
If your organization hasn't conducted a risk assessment or audit in the past year, or ever, now is the time, before a crisis occurs. Like a fund development audit, it starts with an evaluation of your organization’s governance decisions, policies, and insurance coverage to determine which ones are working for you or against you or missing all together.
Nonprofit Roundtable
On July 15, Dan Willson of Lighthouse Agency will lead our Roundtable discussion on the risk management side of operating a nonprofit and answer your liability exposure and coverage questions. He will provide a checklist of items to review for a variety of situations so you can start an audit immediately.
Date, Location
Additional Resources
Additional resources are available at the Nonprofit Risk Management Center website which, this summer, is focusing on employment law issues for nonprofits. A big question being covered is: Are summer interns considered employees under state and federal laws? Visit www.nonprofitrisk.org for the answer.
Book
Nonprofit Roundtable
oneplace-umbrella-160
http://www.kpl.gov/ONEplace/nonprofit-risk.aspx