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(This is another older article that I'm posting to the blog to add it to the archives. This one was written for the January 2004 edition of "The Learning Curve" - The monthly newsletter of the Silicon Valley Chapter of ASTD (American Society for Training and Development). Perhaps you have had some experience giving your time and efforts to local nonprofit organizations, but find something lacking in the experience.
On August 31 I will be teaching a workshop on Introduction to Fundraising Planning at the Peninsula Community Foundation in San Mateo, CA. The PCF workshops are organized in partnership with CompassPoint Nonprofit Services. The three-hour workshop (9:30 AM - 12:30 PM) will cover material from my book on Fund Development Planning. I've taught it for CompassPoint/PCF several times before, and it's always a great, motivating, event.
The other day, I posted here about a collaborative writing tool called "writeboard." Today, I want to continue on the track of online collaborative software, and tell you about Google Spreadsheets. I have to confess that I'm a bit of an Excel geek. I don't know why, but I love spreadsheets. Google is on the road of eliminating Excel from life. Google Spreadsheets look and behave like an Excel spreadsheet in almost every aspect.
Have you ever wanted to find an easier way to collaborate on a document with somebody - or even several people? Do you find it gets cumbersome to be comparing different drafts being emailed back and forth from different sources? What I'd really love to find is a full-featured word processor that can be accessed online, with documents stored on the server where multiple authors could write and edit and always know what the latest version is.
AI adoption is reshaping sales and marketing. But is it delivering real results? We surveyed 1,000+ GTM professionals to find out. The data is clear: AI users report 47% higher productivity and an average of 12 hours saved per week. But leaders say mainstream AI tools still fall short on accuracy and business impact. Download the full report today to see how AI is being used — and where go-to-market professionals think there are gaps and opportunities.
If you've been reading this blog regularly, you know that I like small nonprofits, and am wary of merger-fever. Deborah Elizabeth Finn seems to agree with me, and has written specifically about the technology needs of small nonprofits. In Consolidate or die: Will it come to that, for small nonprofit organizations? she writes that "An amazing number of nonprofit projects are run by one noble soul, working with great dedication from the coffee table in his or her living room.
The third edition of the Carnival of Nonprofit Consultants has been posted over at the Nonprofit Communications blog. Once again, this blog has been honored with one of my posts being chosen for inclusion. Check out the Carnival, and all the great writing from my colleagues around the country.
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The third edition of the Carnival of Nonprofit Consultants has been posted over at the Nonprofit Communications blog. Once again, this blog has been honored with one of my posts being chosen for inclusion. Check out the Carnival, and all the great writing from my colleagues around the country.
A topic that has come up in several conversations lately is "how restricted are your unrestricted funds?" First, of course, you have to understand what we mean by "restricted" funds. I usually assume that all nonprofit managers and fundraisers know what I'm talking about, but there are those who don't. When you apply for a grant for a specific program the funds you receive are restricted for use only in that program.
This morning I attended a "Meet the Grantmakers" panel in San Mateo, sponsored by the Foundation Center and the Peninsula Community Foundation (PCF). These sorts of events are always helpful. Having the program officers right there to answer your questions is obviously much more helpful than written guidelines can ever be. A lot of the information was specific to this geographic area and the today's topic (In-School & After-School Programs), but here's some of their advice that is good to rememb
At today's monthly meeting of the AFP Silicon Valley (Association of Fundraising Professionals), the guest speaker was Kay Sprinkel Grace on the topic of Fundraising Mistakes That Bedevil All Boards (And Staff Too). Kay is always a wonderful presenter, and this topic - based on her book of the same title - was particularly well received. The mistakes that Kay identifies, or in some cases popular myths, include: People will give just because yours is a good cause, Donors are drawn to organization
The annual Giving USA Foundation survey is being released today, and includes some impressive and very positive numbers. Overall giving increased by about $15 billion. Approximately half of that figure was dedicated to relief for Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. That hurricane relief collected a large amount, those who feared that it would cut into other donations can finally exhale knowing that giving increased in all areas.
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(This is actually an article I wrote a few months before I started the blog. I'm re-posting it here to make it part of the archives.) Many times in my work as a grant writer and consultant, I am asked by my clients to contact a foundation about potential funding. I am happy to do this; it is part of my job and it helps for me to directly ask the questions that will affect what I write in the grant proposal, but I sometimes wonder if the client isn't missing an opportunity by making that connecti
I promise to get off this topic in the next post, but first, just one more point on the "too many nonprofits" debate: JW of "Selfish Giving" added a comment to yesterday's post on the subject pointing to his excellent blog on the same topic (I've just added his site to the blogroll). He quotes a Wall Street Journal article complaining about all the "fun runs" and "charity walks" that clog up urban streets every weekend, and then blames the traffic on "too many nonprofits.
My post last week on the subject of "too many nonprofits" (I came on the side of defending duplicate services) has received a bit of attention on other sites. Leila Johnson of Datascribe says : Here in New Mexico, there are over 7,000 nonprofit organizations. We are a fairly small state, so I know that services are being duplicated. We've encountered that with some of our clients.
DonorsChoose a new web site that connects online donors directly to classroom projects that need private support. Teachers post their projects along with a budget. DonorsChoose vets the projects and posts them to the web site. Individuals can then search by geographic region, subject matter, budget, or a combination of factors to find projects that they want to support.
Mastering data visualization in PowerPoint will help accelerate your career because it positions you as someone who can present data that drives business decisions forward. think-cell's PowerPoint Best Practices eBook was created specifically for professionals aiming to master the art and science of data-driven storytelling. What’s inside: Practical Insights: Uncover valuable tips for crafting engaging and persuasive presentations.
The first edition of the Carnival of Nonprofit Consultants has been posted over at writing911.com. Many articles were submitted, and the seven best have been selected - including one of mine: Too Many Nonprofits? The other six articles all look very interesting, and I look forward to reading them later today! Also, I've just learned of a new resource blog: the Nonprofit Management and Operations Blog from Aspiration, a nonprofit software solutions company.
One of my current grant writing clients is the Saint Francis Center of Redwood City. They provide food and clothing to over 500 families each month, run a small school that educates a cohort of 12 children, along with ESL, literacy, and adult education classes for their mothers, offer shower and laundry facilities, a toy give-away program, a community garden project, and emergency vouchers for housing, medicine, and gasoline.
A posting on About Nonprofit Charitable Orgs quotes an AARP Bulletin that says donors are "scared of scammers. " The original AARP alert, " Plucking Your Heart - and Purse - Strings ," tells of con artists who prey on the elderly by posing as a charity and asking for a donation. The organization names the scammers use are similar to those of actualy charities in order to deliberately add to the confusion.
The Where Most Needed blog has an excellent posting on Charity Mergers Booming on Both Coasts. There are plenty of references to recent articles about particular mergers, and some of the issues involved. The author also points out that one of the best times for such a move is when the chief executive of one of the partners has just left, or is planning on transitioning out.
Savings Consultants are needed in today’s market more than ever. With an increase in expenses, businesses are looking for opportunities to save. Often unknown to businesses are savings in expense reduction, specialized tax savings, specialized savings including medical underpayments, health benefits cost reduction, zero cost processing, and more. Blue Coast Savings, with over 20 years in business, assists Savings Consultants in helping these companies move toward more profitable businesses.
If your organization still does not have a web presence, and you still believe you don't have the money or the time to invest in getting a web site, you have no more excuses. OrgSites.com is offering a free, template-driven web site to all nonprofit organizations. There are not a lot of options for page design or layout, but it's quick and easy to set up, and it's free.
In my post on Tuesday, I used the "maximizing synergies for optimum resulting outcomes" as an example of a lousy, jargon-laden mission statement. I just came across a software tool that promises to help get rid of the jargon in your writing. "Bullfighter" is a Windows program that works with MS Word to find the jargon in your documents and help you eliminate it.
By now I'm sure you've all heard of MySpace.com, even if you haven't taken the time to see what it is all about. What you might know is that it is very popular with high school and college kids who use it to meet friends, find out about new bands, build community, and socialize online. What you might not know is that MySpace members include much more than teenagers.
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