Technology has changed the game. Be it as a news resource, a program or service provider, or just interacting with your friends on FaceBook, we live in an on-demand, 24/7 world. And, in such an environment, the question continuously arises, how does an organization best serve its stakeholders and advance their mission? The PresenTense Group has come up with one way through the launch of their PT Investor website - an online resource restricted to their funders and investors, that increases transparency by providing real-time information to this group of stakeholders. According to PT's Aharon Horwitz, "PresenTense strives to be highly transparent to its community - our quarterlies, budgets and work-plans are available for the public at-large. The investor portal includes those things as well as … Continue Reading
Times Have Changed; the Value of Trust
Trust: the assured reliance on the character, ability, strength or truth of someone or something Harry Hurwitz, z"l, the well-respected founding director of the Menachem Begin Heritage Center, would often encounter potential donors who would ask how their donations would be utilized. Putting his arm around the individual's shoulder, Harry would reply, "trust me". Well, the world has changed, and Harry's response no longer makes the cut (though, unfortunately, some of our oldest organizations still have not internalized this). Today, trust is perhaps the most valuable asset any organization can have. And like a reputation, it often takes years to build, yet can disappear overnight. Trust comes in a variety of flavors, designed to satisfy all organizations and circumstances. Trust includes … Continue Reading
60 Minutes Puts All Charities Under Magnifying Glass
While the recent scrutiny over the U.S. based Central Asia Institute is based on questions of personnel gain, all nonprofits need to internalize the need to be not only consistent and clear about their actions, but aggressive in countering the negative publicity (even on the blogs they claim not to read). In our post-Madoff world, transparency isn't going away - and it's past time for the professional and lay leaders of all our communal organizations to take note. from The Chronicle of Philanthropy: 'Three Cups of Tea' Scandal Offers Lessons for Charities and Trustees At a time when trust in charities has eroded, the scandal over the Central Asia Institute, the nonprofit founded by Greg Mortenson author of Three Cups of Tea, threatens to cause even more questions for organizations of all … Continue Reading
Israeli NGOs and Foreign-Government Funding: The Real Story and its Significance
by Shuey Fogel I am donning my Superman cape (doesn’t everyone have one?) in the hopes of accomplishing the near-impossible task of setting the record straight on what could potentially be a turning-point for Israeli charities. Since early January of this year, the topic of Funding from Foreign Governments to Israeli NGO’s (Non-Governmental Organization) has been making headlines. Two initiatives promoting Transparency though in very different contexts - a proposal put forth in January and a bill approved in February - have politicians, nonprofits, and European Governments lamenting the destruction of democracy and human-rights in Israel. However, the pursuant rhetoric, innuendos, politicking, and here-say makes it near impossible to filter out fact from fiction and to distinguish these … Continue Reading
A Deeper Look Into 11 Ideas for 2011
A Deeper Look Into 11 Ideas for 2011, Starting With The Basics: Financial Transparency and Face-to-face Outreach by Robert I. Evans and Avrum D. Lapin In January as the new calendar year began we offered our "11 Ideas for 2011" and projected how these insights would help to guide and hopefully reinvigorate non-profits for 2011 and beyond. While we recognize that there are endless strategies and techniques for non-profits to employ - especially as we experience a slowly recovering economy - we stress these fundamental points to incorporate into every fundraising program. While some are simple and basic, many non- profit leaders tend to overlook them ... which is why we will focus on each of these “ideas” throughout 2011 and hopefully shed some light on their importance. (For those who have … Continue Reading
US Charitable Deduction Issue Looms Large for Churches Also
Synagogues are not the only religious institutions caught in the current economic downturn. The past three years have also been financially tough for America's churches. But just as a glimmer of hope began to surface this past year, the federal government's desire to tinker with the charitable tax deduction has most church leaders concerned. According to the just released "State of the Plate" constituency survey of more than 1,500 congregations, 43 percent saw giving increase this past year (up from 36 percent last year). When asked about the federal government's plan to modify the rules concerning charitable tax deductions, 91 percent of church leaders expressed concern that this would negatively affect giving. This year's State of the Plate research also showed that 39 percent of churches … Continue Reading
New York Rabbi Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering
New Book and New Guilty Plea Cast Syrian Jewish Community Back in Spotlight by Joy Resmovits A prominent Syrian rabbi’s recent guilty plea and a new tell-all book that probes the underside of his insular community appear likely to confront Syrian Jews once more with a scandal that just won’t go away. On Monday, March 28, Rabbi Saul Kassin, age 89, pleaded guilty to one count of unauthorized money transmitting - in layman’s language, money laundering. Kassin, who holds the title of chief rabbi of the community, confessed to using a charity he ran, the Magen Israel Society, to channel money from illegal sources and receive a 10% cut. Under a plea deal, the elderly cleric is expected to be spared jail time but to be put on probation and fined. Kassin’s plea is the latest development … Continue Reading
Foundation Management Survey Reveals Governance and Expenses of Foundation Boards
The Council on Foundations released its three-part 2010 Foundation Management Series, which provides a snapshot of governance practices and administrative expenses. The findings enable foundations to benchmark their practices against peer organizations in the field, which in turn informs their efforts to strengthen leadership and governance. The Management Series, prepared in cooperation with the Foundation Center, comprises three reports: “Board Composition and Compensation,” “Administrative and Investment Expenses,” and “Fiscal Oversight.” More than 500 foundations provided information, when available, on their boards’ demographics, compensation and reimbursement practices, ethics and diversity policies, and fiscal and administrative activities through 2009, the most recent … Continue Reading
Charities and Transparency on Investments
A new survey, What is the UK public’s opinion of charitable investments, found that 78% of the UK public would think worse of a charity if they found out it had funds invested in activities contrary to its specific work and values. The survey, conducted by the EIRIS foundation and the Holly Hill Charitable Trust, aimed to gauge current opinions of charitable investments. Other findings include: 84% of people agreed that charities should be fully transparent about their investments; 74% of people agreed that large charities should adopt ethical investment policies prohibiting investment in activities that are contrary to their specific work and values; and 71% agreed that large charities or their fund managers should be pro-active shareholders, engaging with companies to demand high … Continue Reading
Resource Links
If you are not familiar with our Resource Library, have a look. We developed this section as a way to assist you in connecting with others, reaching a greater audience and keeping current on the newest tends. We also encourage you to check back often as new links are added on a regular basis. Some recent additions: IRS Tax-Exempt Status Newly revised, the process for dealing with the IRS to obtain tax-exempt status (October 2010) Finding the Right Transparency Today, more than ever, the public and government agencies are demanding nonprofits to be transparent. But concerns about having a realistic picture of internal operations, where money is going, and the effectiveness of the programs are countered by concerns of overburdened staff, increased administrative costs, and an invitation to … Continue Reading
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