Resource

Blue Avocado

Refreshingly candid and thoughtful articles, on all sorts of topics to do with boards, with a sense of humor, too. I especially like the voice of Jan Masaoka, in the free newsletter "Board Cafe". A wonderful resource. I turn to Blue Avocado all the time.

TOPICS: governance | board resources

Resource

Glossary

An annotated GLOSSARY of terms about not for profit boards: 
the things I wish someone had explained me 30 years ago.

TOPICS: glossary | definitions | terms

Resource

National Center for Charitable Statistics

The NCCS is the site to go to for all statistics on nonprofits. They consider themselves the national clearinghouse on data and analysis on the not for profit sector, and they've got the numbers. You can find information about any nonprofit organization and see their IRS form 990. Easy to use and with lots of information on trends, facts and figures, and a knowledge center with a wiki, knowledgebase of answers to FAQs, and many links to external resources. (They are a division of the Urban Institute, a bipartisan policy and research center.)

TOPICS: statistics, | data, | financial, | nonprofit | clearinghouse, | resource, | 990, | wiki | databases | uniform standards | 501(c) subsections | nonprofit almanac | file form 990 online | search organization | public charity finances | volunteerism | charitable giving | foundation giving | us nonprofit sector | data analysis tools | state-level reports | national reports | classification tools | geosearch | irs activity codes | ntee search | state profiles

Cough up! Should there be a required contribution for boards?

12 February, 2010

How do you make sure that all board members of a board know what to give? A few years ago a new practice was very much in vogue for board giving: there should be a minimum amount required of all board members for annual donations. Great solution? The suggested donation strategy seems like a safe one, and so simple, too: every board member would know what was expected of them, financially, and the organization could plan in advance for what was coming. People who were thinking of joining the board could be told right off what the standards for giving were. It sounded good. It sounded simple. But it hasn't really worked. Read More

TOPICS: development | board giving | suggested donation | required contribution

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The NonProfit Times

Calls itself "The Leading Business Publication for Nonprofit Management" This means it has a fair number of articles written in business-speak, but it's very useful as a digest and condensation of what's going on in the not for profit world. I subscribe to their weekly e-newsletter, which they send me for free. It's a condensation of articles of interest to nonprofits, but oddly with no links.

TOPICS: publications | newsletter

Resource

Stanford Social Innovation Review

From The Center for Social Innovation at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Subscription for 4 issues a year of a quite glossy and well written magazine: about $44.95. Here's where you get the great ideas about what's driving nonprofits. Wonderful, articulate thinking. Worth the money, although you can see a lot of the review online. (i especially like their blog.) They also have podcasts: www.siconversations.org

TOPICS: publications | podcasts
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The positive
and the possible
in not for profit
leadership

Alexandra Peters

Alexandra Peters
is a writer, board consultant and educator. For the past thirty years, she has been dedicated to building the transformative power of not for profit organizations.

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