Why Do Businesses Need Nonprofits? Not long along, only a few enlightened businesses actively promoted social issues as part of their marketing and branding. Today, corporate philanthropy and corporate social responsibility are integral parts of almost every serious business plan. Corporate philanthropy used to primarily take the form of a financial contribution and to a … Continue Reading
While most companies are becoming greener, some businesses are actually baking sustainability into their businesses to create breakthrough innovations, larger profits, and infectious social good. These ecologically-minded organizations are magnetizing consumers with a similar worldview to buy their products. And together with other like-minded individuals and entities, they are creating a “sustainable” community to help … Continue Reading
The phrase “trust but verify” was made famous by Ronald Reagan after the signing of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Treaty with Mikhail Gorbachev in December 1987. At the time, the Soviet General Secretary bantered, “You repeat that at every meeting.” Reagan replied, “I like it.” What was President Reagan really saying? He was saying, “I trust … Continue Reading
Lagging indicators are easy to measure but can be hard to influence. For nonprofits, a clear lagging indicator that is easy to measure but hard to improve on is donations. The problem with lagging indicators is, well, they’re lagging. It’s not too tricky when we are experiencing year-over-year increases in revenues but it quickly becomes … Continue Reading
According to “Overcoming Barriers to Giving,” Fidelity Charitable’s study of over 3,200 donors, 64% of donors want to give more. While your donors may have other questions and concerns, demonstrating your nonprofit’s effectiveness has the greatest potential of encouraging your funders to increase their gift size or giving frequency, or both. That’s where we can … Continue Reading
You are not alone. When it comes to getting an objective view of your organization’s operations, most nonprofit executives and board members are too close to judge. One of the hardest parts is determining where the gaps are and what to do about them. Until very recently, the only real option was to have a … Continue Reading
Is there competition between nonprofits? Probably, even if it is not head-to-head competition. Here’s why: In short, more nonprofits are seeking funds, less money is being donated, and fewer major donors are redistributing the same amounts of money. The Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University reported that 20 million fewer households gave in … Continue Reading
Seventy-three percent of your funders say it is “very important” to trust a nonprofit before giving, yet only 19% say they “highly trust” you and 10% are optimistic about the sector becoming “more trustworthy” over time. Wait, what? I’ll say it another way. This research was first reported in The Chronicle of Philanthropy: What have … Continue Reading
Business leader and philanthropist Bill Gates said, “I have been struck again and again by how important measurement is to improving the human condition.” Thought provoking, isn’t it? I wonder what questions the founder of the largest software company and largest private foundation in the world would ask your nonprofit (or the one you fund)? … Continue Reading
All nonprofits want to operate effectively and efficiently. Most do not. According to the Harvard Business Review, 94% of all managers assume that they are operating above operational competency. They are not. Given its systemic nature, this must be an extremely difficult problem to solve. It is not. What Gets Measured Gets Managed The complete … Continue Reading
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