HELPFUL LINKS  

Data Use Report

by hal Williams

A critical difference between high and low performance in nonprofit
organizations is the degree to which they manage by information more
than by habit and opinion. It is not the amount of data that is critical but
how people actively use information to improve programs and increase
results. Complete article

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Visualizing Data Helps Charities Get Attention

By Nicole wallace

Graphics give nonprofits an advantage in reaching the public and in
improving their work. Complete article

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How Nonprofits Make Data Fun and Informative

By matthew Scharpnick

Nonprofits have long relied on stories to help stir emotion. However, as
the nonprofit world has evolved, so too has the need to communicate more
than just emotion. Foundations and corporate supporters increasingly want
to see numbers that show that nonprofits are delivering results. Donors
want to see metrics to help them understand why they should contribute
to one cause over another. Complete article

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The Nonprofit Starvation Cycle

By Ann Goggins Gregory & Don Howard

A vicious cycle is leaving nonprofits so hungry for decent infrastructure
that they can barely function as organizations—let alone serve their
beneficiaries. The cycle starts with funders’ unrealistic expectations
about how much running a nonprofit costs, and results in nonprofits’
misrepresenting their costs while skimping on vital systems—acts that
feed funders’ skewed beliefs. To break the nonprofit starvation cycle,
funders must take the lead. Complete Article

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Needs & Challenges of Midsize Nonprofits

by Francie Ostrower

Comparing midsize nonprofits with their larger counterparts, we find
that their boards are less engaged in many basic stewardship responsibilities.
Midsize nonprofits’ boards also have greater difficulty attracting new members.
These comparisons underscore the need for efforts targeted at midsize
nonprofits to help them strengthen their governance. This paper highlights
areas in which that need seems greatest and suggests some strategies
that may help. In particular, the brief addresses the following broad questions.
Complete article

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Two Pockets....and Change

by Fred Smith | Fourth Partner

I don’t think I am the only one who has decided I want to ride
a pony I don’t have to feed.

Many of us have taught nonprofits they should never come to us for
expenses or overhead. Call it something else or move the expense
pocket somewhere I cannot see it. In a perfect world there should be
no expense for doing good. After all, when Jesus fed the 5,000 there
was not only no overhead but there was even a surplus at the end.
That’s the standard many of us hold up as the norm and organizations
try (in vain) to work the numbers to satisfy our unrealistic expectations.
Why is this? I think there are four reasons. Complete article