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As the year comes to and end, we are highlighting our best posts and the nonprofit practices that we should all carry into the new year. |
It's been an impactful year of blogs, guides, and webinars from our team. This week we're sharing the posts that you all found most helpful. Scroll through this list and choose one new action to take with you into the coming year.
1. Activate Your Board
How is your board doing? Are they going strong?
Or are they faltering, a bit tired, or even stagnating?
Many non-profit boards are struggling right now. While volunteers showed up fiercely to support their organizations during the early days of the pandemic, now that it’s stretched out over two years, the flames of inspiration and engagement are diminishing.
Even the most hearty and focused volunteers are exhausted. It’s become more challenging to engage people in the virtual space. This has been a long run for leadership at all levels.
So how might you breathe some new life into your board and help activate all board members more fully?
Here are some ideas to infuse some energy in 2022:
2. 4 Financial Policies of an Effective Nonprofit DEI Program
As your organization leans into Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) work it’s important to remember that financial policies can either advance or hinder the progress you are making. Aligning financial practices with the strategic goals of the organization will always take you further faster. Here are a few things to consider:
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3. 5 Burning Nonprofit Finance Questions to Ask Before You Talk To Your Bank
There are times when your organization will have strategic reasons to tap into the debt marketplace. The best time to start thinking about this is well before you actually need any funding.
Whether you are seeking an operating line of credit, a bridge loan for a construction project, or permanent financing to complete your capital stack, it is important to begin by asking yourself and your team a series of critical questions.
In this post, we're looking into the 5 critical questions you should answer internally before you talk to a bank and how to get those answers so you can wisely position your nonprofit for future successes.
- What is the organizational tolerance for debt?
- What does our cash flow look like?
- What is our collateral worth?
- What does the broader credit market look like?
- What terms and conditions would we be most comfortable with?
4. What Leadership Really Looks Like
Many people have the misconception that leadership is a title or a role. They think it’s about always knowing what to do and doing it well every time.
Being a leader is about more than having a fancy title. A healthy organization has leaders at every level, all working to make their department or area of influence better.
Recently I shared this graphic with my team. I think it speaks to what leadership really looks like. Behind every successful initiative or decisive move is a whole lot of trial-and-error, hard-won experience, and preparation.
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5. How has the Changing Economy Impacted Fundraising
As we seem to be emerging from the pandemic, the economy appears to have caught the flu. Inflation, the cost of money, the cost of everything is going up and charting the markets looks like an EKG. Are there storm clouds ahead or more than that? How does this affect donors and our varied fundraising campaigns?
These are just some of the questions I’m getting lately. Let’s explore a few of the answers together.
