Updating Leveraging and Sustainability

On January 13, I wrote about a client from New York who was very involved in rights and entitlements, and I discussed how he had formed a partnership with a major hospital in Israel to develop a service to inform patients and their families about all their rights and their entitlements to services through the government, health maintenance organizations, and other providers. Based on this article a frequent reader to eJewishPhilanthropy.com made a connection between two Israeli hi-tech business people-philanthropists who were involved in setting up a comprehensive website focused on rights and entitlements and me. Following an initial phone conversation I met with them and then my client spoke with them. These conversations opened the door to possible collaboration and joining of efforts. My client... Continue Reading

Breaking the Ice: Cold Calling Does Not Do It!

In working with one of my clients over the last few weeks an issue was raised about how to reach out to potential donors. There was a discussion about 1) what strategy should be used when reaching out to these people to approach them for a donation, and 2) who should make the first contact? I would like to explore these questions and provide some suggestions for reaching out to people who do not have a relationship with the organization. Often the executive, the financial resource development professional or a volunteer fundraiser in an organization will receive the name of a person and be told that he/she is interested in the population that the agency serves. It will be suggested that one of these people call the potential donor and speak to them about a donation. Another well known scenario is... Continue Reading

Board Members as Pro-Bono Consultants

Board Members Who Function as Pro-Bono Consultants May Not Necessarily Be The Best Way To Go I was approached a short time ago by a director of a non-profit organization who wanted to know if it was appropriate to avail herself of the pro-bono services of her board members who were lawyers, accountants, financial advisors and those with other skills that can cost the agency a lot of money during the course of a budget year. There are implications for the director, the staff and the board when pro-bono services are utilized. Prior to making the decision to use the services of these, and other professionals, who are on the board of directors, there are a number of issues that should be carefully considered. The role of a board member who is a professional in her own field and who has expertise in a particular... Continue Reading

Solicitations That Challenge

When I Solicit Donors for a Bequest It Doesn’t Mean I Want Them to Pass On I am often asked how do non-profit organizations set up endowment funds and solicit donors for bequests. Although the two are not necessarily related frequently donors connect setting up an endowment with their passing on. Often endowment funds are set up when organizations or donors want to arrange to use the earned interest and not the principal of a contribution. Committed donors bequeath funds to organizations and sometimes stipulate the funds should be invested and the interest should be used either for the annual budget or for a specific program in the agency. When the donors make a request for the funds to be invested and for the interest to be used by the non-profit then the agency has to set up a vehicle to... Continue Reading

Fundraising Professional or Fundraising Consultant

Hiring a Fundraising Professional or Engaging a Fundraising Consultant: What to Do and When to Do It? I receive a number of inquiries each month from directors of non-profit organizations and from volunteer leaders concerning how to increase the number and size of contributions they receive. Often the questions focus on whether they should hire a half-time or full-time fundraising professional for the agency or whether they should engage a consultant to assist them in thinking through a strategy and specific actions they should take to increase the donations they receive during the year. Through my experiences I have found that the organization’s professional and volunteer leadership has to go through a planning process in order to decide if and when a professional fundraiser and/or a fundraising... Continue Reading

Managing Volunteers: Making the Most of a Valuable Resource

A significant number of non-profit organizations in voluntary organizations around the world recruit and use volunteers to deliver vital services to their clients. Engaging volunteers is not just a matter of enlisting people and assigning them to various tasks. In order for there to be an effective and efficient use of volunteers it is important for the agency to plan for their training, assignments, and ongoing supervision, as well as, developing a way to acknowledge their contribution. In times of limited resources and increased requests for services board members often think that engaging volunteers to “fill in the gaps” is a way to go in order to maintain the agency’s functioning. When we consider the use of volunteers it is necessary to recognize not only the needs of the clients who we... Continue Reading

Fundraising by Boards Is Not Universally Accepted

Last week I had the opportunity to meet with a group of colleagues who were involved in fundraising for non-profit organizations in Israel. They represented a cross section of Israeli organizations that provide social, educational, health and welfare services to clients and members across the social and religious spectrum of the country. It was clear to me, and it would be clear to anyone who was sitting in the room that these people are committed to their jobs, as well as the organizations, and they have the highest professional values and great enthusiasm for their work. The focus of the discussion was on the role of the board of directors in the financial resource development of the organization. Although a number of the people in the room had been with their agencies for years, it was not taken... Continue Reading

The Supervision Challenge

Task or Developmental Supervision: What Works Best and Has Lasting Results? Voluntary organizations are both feeling the “financial pinch” and dealing with fewer staff members handling increased responsibilities. Exactly how do a limited number of workers deal with fulfilling the expanding expectations established by their employers? This question is faced by most non-profit agencies as they stretch to provide needed services while dealing with limited resources. I would like to look at the human resources component in the “equation of financial resources plus human resources equals provision of human services.” Most organizations work with a hierarchical structure that places a department head or unit supervisor in the position of supervising a number of staff members. As time has become... Continue Reading

Leveraging and Sustainability: A Way to Build Partnerships and Continuity

During the last week and a half I have been attending a series of meetings with a client who is an American Jewish philanthropist and funds a number of innovative and creative programs in Israel. He has a special interest in furthering the development of programs that focus on providing people with greater access to their rights and entitlements. The funding decisions he makes enable organizations to disseminate information so that people know more about the services they can receive and they have knowledge about those services. It has been a struggle in the United States and Israel to convince both public and voluntary organizations of the importance of making information accessible to clients of public and voluntary agencies and patients in hospitals in Israel. Over the last 30 years the contributor... Continue Reading

Working with Foundations: Never Taking Support for Granted

A colleague called me and asked me to consult with her about an interesting situation. An organization she works with had been receiving support for a number of years from a well established foundation. There was a strong connection between the foundation’s staff and the organization’s professional staff and board members. Over the years the foundation expressed their commitment to the organization’s purposes and goals not only financially but also through their partnership in encouraging the growth and development of the non-profit agency. The foundation strongly identified with the organization’s values as well as their programs and felt a strong sense of pride in being able to contribute to the development of Israeli society through their support. The foundation’s leadership never hesitated... Continue Reading

Next Page »