Is Paper Chasing Your New Mission?

We’ve all heard it said, “Money is the root of all evil.” And if that is true, I guess it is also one of those “necessary evils” we also hear about.

Money is a necessary means for getting what we need and what we want. Though nonprofits are not in the business to “make a profit” but to “do good”, doing good requires money. And it could be argued that the more money that an organization has, the more good it can do.

I wouldn’t argue with that statement, but for some nonprofits, the mission (the good they seek to do) gets lost in their pursuit of the funds they need to accomplish the good.  

For some nonprofits, the recent recession has resulted in a shift in mission. Instead of focusing their efforts on effective and efficient programs and services that further their missions and seeking funding that that aligns well with their missions, they are focused on paper chasing – going after money anywhere they can find it – with the hope that they can “make it fit”.

A few years back, rapper-turned-business man Percy Robert Miller (aka Master P) released Paper Chasing. I’m no expert on the song, but no one has to be an expert to get the point. Here’s the chorus:

I gotta gets the money
Gotta gets the money cause I needs the cash cash, c'mon geah
I gotta gets the money
Gotta gets the money cause I needs the cash cash, c'mon geah
You know I need the money
Gotta get the money cause I needs the cash cash c'mon
You know I need the money
Gotta get the money cause I needs the cash cash

For a rapper turned business man, this attitude works. But for nonprofits, fundraising has to be about more than “paper chasing”.  

The Association of Fundraising Professionals offers a wealth of information and resources for ethical and effective fundraising.

Board Membership -- A Commitment Not To Be Taken Lightly

This has been a busy week, but not too busy to focus on a topic very important to me – board membership. I recently completely the Associated Black Charities Board Pipeline, a leadership development project designed to develop a pipeline of professionals from racially under-represented communities to serve on boards in the Baltimore metropolitan area. Since completing the training, I have been seeking board membership opportunities. This week, a national nonprofit dedicated to raising the visibility of domestic violence in the same way as breast cancer awareness, Saving Promise, expressed interest in me joining their board. I had an hour-long telephone conversation speaking with L.Y. Marlow, the founder of Saving Promise. Being our first conversation (I applied via a volunteer recruitment website), she detailed the history, mission, vision and future plans for the organization. Our discussion was candid and full of questions and answers (from the both of us). Though we both agreed that I will likely be a good fit, we also agreed to meet in person and exchange further information before either of us would make a decision.

Board membership is not something to be taken lightly--by the prospective board member or the organization. A nonprofit board has responsibility for taking care that the organization's mission is achieved by ensuring that the programs and services are effective in furthering the mission; ensuring adequate financial resources; and protecting the organization's assets and legal standing. With so much as stake, nonprofits should have a structured process for selecting board members. Additionally, prospects should know exactly what will be required of them before making the commitment.

Today, I read an interesting article regarding nonprofit boards in New Hampshire. The article, New Hampshire Bill Requires Board Training for Nonprofits, discusses a recent NH Senate bill that passed—requiring at least one member of each nonprofit board to go through training sessions emphasizing fiscal management and ethics. There is a lot of controversy regarding the bill, particularly because of the expense nonprofits will have to incur to satisfy the requirement; however, I can appreciate the sentiment. Over my many years in the nonprofit sector, I have seen first-hand far too many nonprofits with poorly performing boards. Boards comprised of members “in name only” to members with passion but lacking the technical skills the board needs.  

Nonprofits need to be organized and intentional when recruiting and selecting board members. Here are a few tips for board member recruitment:

 

1.      Internal Assessment - Nonprofits should complete an internal assessment before recruitment begins. Know what skills are needed so that you can target your recruiting. Although raising financial resources is important, nonprofits should not target people solely for their deep pockets and/or connections. But if someone with the skills and attributes you need just happens to have deep pockets and connections -- win, win!

 

2.      Membership Application & Interview – The board member selection process should be very similar to the hiring process. Have prospects complete an application. The application should ask them to detail their qualifications, interests, and the skills they wish to utilize as a board member. This information will help the selection committee (yes, you should have one) to determine if the prospect has and wishes to use the skills your board needs. Much like in the hiring process, the prospect should be interviewed. He or she should meet with, at a minimum, the Board Chair and Executive Director. Other members of the board that serve on the selection committee should also have the opportunity to meet with and assess the prospect’s qualifications for joining the board.

3.       Explanation of Expectations – Ideally, the board should have position descriptions for all members of the board. The prospect should receive a copy of the position description for which he is being considered (i.e., Treasurer, Member-At-Large) as well as organizational documents (i.e., Bylaws, Articles of Incorporation, and the most recent financials (Form 990 will do)). The selection committee should make clear what the prospect would be expected to do as a member (i.e., meeting attendance, personal contribution, fundraising).

A strong board is critical to the sustainability of any organization. I recognize that recruiting the “right people” can be a challenge, but it is a challenge worth giving the extra effort. A number of nonprofits have learned the hard way. Aloof board members did not see and, therefore did not prepare, for a budget crisis that had been looming for months. Disengaged board members refuse to pitch-in, do not promote the organization, and have poor attendance. “Lifer” board members have long-lost their passion for the mission and organization years ago but for whatever reason feel compelled to stay on. People who will be energized and active can be found, but the worse offense of them all is bringing the energized person on to work with aloof, disengaged lifers.

BoardSource offers a wealth of information and resources on board development.

Tips for Effective Nonprofit Partnerships

Strong partnerships are crucial to all successful ventures.

Over the past 15 years, I have participated in hundreds of meetings with the goal to develop new or cultivate existing partnerships between nonprofits (and some for profits). Out of these meetings came new strategies for better serving clients, furthering the missions of all parties, and developing new and exciting strategies for having greater impact. Oftentimes, these were meetings between organizations with complementary missions—offering some of the same services to the same target audiences. Yet, these partnerships were not only developed but became lasting successes.

Here are three proven tips for creating effective partnerships between nonprofits.

Tip One: Be informed. Before reaching out to any prospective partner, do your homework—internally and externally. You should have a clear understanding of what you want/need out of the partnership and how the partnership will affect your operations, programs, and stakeholders.

Tip Two: Be open and flexible. The worst thing to do in meeting with any prospective partner is to be closed-minded and focused solely on the partnership idea you walked in the door with. I have had countless meetings where the partnership idea I walked in the door with bloomed into something greater than I could have imagined possible. When both parties are willing to have an open discussion and to “throw ideas on the wall and see what sticks” the possibilities are endless.

Tip Three: Be human. Partnerships are relationships, and relationships occur between people.

People give to people they like.

People work with people they trust.

People partner with people the like and trust.

 This is a summary of a report I have prepared on this subject. Email me at mnusum@thewordwomanllc.com for a free copy (PDF) of the report.

Michelle Nusum
The Word Woman
www.thewordwomanllc.com

The Word Woman LLC is a full-service consulting firm specializing assisting emerging and established nonprofit organizations as well as federal, state and local government agencies in achieving their missions and goals for public good.

Staying Focused: Mission Driven Work Must Be Driven By the Mission

Let's take a look at how nonprofits can stay focused.

A nonprofit must have a well-crafted, well-understood and supported mission statement that drives everything the organization does. Before any partnership is entered into, before any new product or service is offered, before anything is done, there is a question that must always be asked and answered (with justification) – Is this helping to further our mission?

If this question goes unasked (or unanswered for that matter), an organization can find itself engaged in activities that have nothing to do with its mission.

For example, would it help an organization whose mission it is "to promote physical activity and reduce childhood obesity in urban communities" to apply for funding where the priority is to "increase the number of college graduates in disadvantaged communities"? Sure, a grant proposal could be submitted outlining a strategy to incorporate higher education promotion in the organization's activities, but what would that have to do with physical activity or childhood obesity? Also, how would the organization follow the children and ensure that they not only enrolled in college but also graduated? And how would any of these activities help to further their mission to promote physical activity and reduce childhood obesity? Luckily, an organization in this situation would most likely not have to worry about any of these issues because it is highly unlikely that they would get funded.

In these tough economic times, many nonprofits find themselves desperately seeking to replace funding that has been lost due to budget cuts and drops in donations. I can understand the inclination to go after funding "wherever we can get it". But this strategy-- applying for funds when it is clearly a s-t-r-e-t-c-h to link the organization's mission with the funder's mission and priorities--is a waste of time and resources. Organizations in this situation would fair better by looking for opportunities to partner, to consolidate, and/or to develop new streams of income, such as selling products or services.

Is your organization having to make up lost funding? What strategies have you used to close the gap? Please share your successes and failures. What didn't work for you might work for others?

 PS. Here is a great article, "How to Avoid Nonprofit Mission Creep"

http://nonprofit.about.com/od/nonprofitmanagement/tp/Mission-Creep.htm

Michelle Nusum

The Word Woman