Reaching Across Generations

How are you involving millenials in your organization's work? This is a question we've all been hearing a lot lately. But I'm not sure that I like some of the answers.

I've been in several conversations and meetings in recent months where the idea of creating a "millenial advisory group" was brought up. It was generally agreed among my peers (those of us between 40 and 65) that the younger generation may not be ready for the responsibility of being on a board of directors.

"Oh, they're too busy with their careers, or starting families, or doing whatever it is they do with their tweet machines..." And yet, everybody nods and agrees that without the active involvement of millenials, their development of new donors and volunteers is dead in the water.

And so, the Millenial Advisory Group. A group of young folk to come up with recommendations for the groups of older folk to consider: a committee to involve millenials without actually having to talk to them directly.

At one recent meeting where this idea was being presented, I turned to the 20-something person beside me and asked, "Does any of this sound at all patronizing to you?" She glanced quickly to each side before giving a quick nod and quietly saying, "A little bit."

The question isn't whether or not you're going to invite millenials to the table. The question is whether you're going to invite them to the adults table in the dining room, or send them off to the kids table in the kitchen.

Instead of a "Millenial Advisory Committee" why not just add a few millenials to your existing Volunteer Outreach Committee or your Development & Communications Committee? And if you don't have any such committees already, maybe that's why your organization is failing to attract new donors or volunteers.

Just a thought...

How Philanthropy Destroys Charity & More on Volunteer Giving

I have two short items to blog about today. The first is to point you to an article in the Guardian (UK) called "Why business won't save the world," in which the author talks about efforts, such as the Gates Foundation's work in vaccine development, and asks some very good questions about the effect on nonprofit work when a few wealthy individuals drive the nonprofit sector's agenda.

At the heart of the issue is the "philanthro-capitalists' desire for data and control" taking precedent over considerations of need. As the author states:

Investing in new vaccines against malaria is great, but there's no vaccine against poverty, inequality, violence or corruption, areas in which there are no "short-term returns on investment", only a long, hard slog through politics and social change. Does that mean only the easiest causes will be funded?

This is something I've felt and feared myself for some time, as the agencies I work with strive "to reach their numbers" and potentially loose sight of the individuals those numbers represent.

The other short note I wanted to post was to share a comment Monica posted on a previous blog here, "Money Follows Involvement." In that post, I restated my conviction that volunteers have already shown their dedication and interest in your cause, and that not asking them for donations was leaving money on the table.

Monica wrote (in part):

I have been volunteering with one specific organization for over a year and they have yet to ask me to donate... If this organization has not asked me, I bet that they haven't asked other volunteers either - effectively missing a large pool of constituents.  ... Hank Rosso suggests that the most likely potential donors have three characteristics – linkage, ability, and interest. Since the volunteer is involved it is clear that linkage to the organization and interest in mission are already in place. The remaining characteristic is ability. Often an organization will know if their volunteer has the ability to give, if the organization doesn’t know, the only way to find out is to ask. ...

I usually think of the "linkage, ability, and interest" equation as the "Triple A Qualifications: Ability, Affinity, & Access." Whichever terms you use to remember this by, it's excellent advice. And thank you, Monica, for sharing your story.

Money Follows Involvement

All too often, I hear people saying that they're afraid to ask their volunteers for donations, because "they've already given so much" with their time. On the contrary, I have always been a firm believer in the idea that money follows involvement, and the rule of thumb that 90% of volunteers will also become donors. Today comes another study to confirm this vital link between your organization's volunteer and fundraising activities.

The new study, by Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund and VolunteerMatch, found that volunteers give 10 times as much to charity as non-volunteers, and that two thirds of those volunteers contributed to the the same nonprofits where they donated their time. Could that figure have been higher if we were not so shy about asking our volunteers for donations? I believe so.

The pool of volunteers (and potential volunteers) out there is huge:

The study showed that 72% of adult Americans (18 years old and older) have volunteered at some point in their lives, and 43% are currently volunteering or have within the past 12 months. More than a fourth (28%) have never volunteered.

Don't think that the 28% indicates any lack of interest. For many of them, it's simply a matter of not knowing how to connect, or being offered the right opportunity. Only one third of the non-volunteers indicated a "lack of interest" as their primary reason for not volunteering.

So, what's your excuse for not using more volunteers in your organization, or for not including them in your fundraising campaigns?

What are your volunteers worth?

According to the Independent Sector, the estimated dollar value of volunteer time for 2008 is $20.25 per hour. According the report, this value

"...is based on the average hourly earnings of all production and nonsupervisory workers on private nonfarm payrolls (as determined by the Bureau of Labor Statistics). Independent Sector takes this figure and increases it by 12 percent to estimate for fringe benefits."

Of course, for specialized work (lawyers, architects, etc.) the BLS assigns higher average rates, but only use them when the specialist is volunteering in their professional capacity (IE: Don't value a Doctor's work at the higher rate if she's helping with the filing).

Why are these values important? Because volunteer time is part of how we in the nonprofit sector leverage donor dollars. It's part of the story of how we can get $10 worth of services out of a $5 gift. Donors, large and small, private and institutional, want to hear that their investment in your organization is helping to bring in additional resources.

Track the hours and assignments of your volunteers, and include that value in budgets as an in-kind donation. Tout that figure in newsletters and annual reports. But, according to FASB (the Financial Accounting Standards Board), only include the figure in official reporting if "the organization would have purchased the services if they had not been donated."

So, what do you think of the $20.25/hour figure? Too high? Too low?

Thinking of the small, local nonprofit where I'm currently the Interim Executive Director, and other like-sized organizations, I wondered if we were now valuing the volunteers more than the staff.

Our average wage for non-supervisory staff would be about $15/hour, adding 12% as Independent Sector did for "benefits" (really, just payroll taxes, SSI, etc. - most of these staff are part-time and not receiving health insurance, etc.), that bring our figure up to $16.80/hour.

Do we now need to launch into a conversation about how we value our staffs?

Washing Away in a Flood of Volunteers

Has your nonprofit been overrun and overwhelmed recently with a flood of new volunteers? The New York Times reports on the influx of the unemployed into volunteer service and its effects, both positive and negative.

The two forces feeding this growing volunteerism are, of course, the recession leaving many people with more free time than they'd care to have, coupled with inspiration from President Obama's call to service.

Here in the Bay Area, the Taproot Foundation - who help with organizational effectiveness by placing skilled professionals in volunteer positions - had more people sign up on one day earlier this year than in an entire month a year ago.

For those larger organizations, who are able to properly train, manage, and use these new volunteers, this is a wonderful resource. But what hit home for me was this paragraph:

... others grumbled that the current love affair with volunteerism ... can be a mixed blessing. Smaller organizations, with staffs of fewer than 20 and no full-time volunteer coordinator, have struggled to absorb the influx, especially since many of them have simultaneously had to cut back on projects in the face of dwindling donations and government grants.

“Can you make them stop calling?” groused one nonprofit executive, who spoke on the condition of anonymity...

I'm currently serving as Interim Executive Director at an agency with nine staff members. The Volunteer Coordinator left that position in December and because of budget restrictions has not been replaced. We now have a backlog of volunteers to follow up with, and limited resources to put them into positions where they can be of service.

Taproot has had to scale back on their recruitment of professionals:

“It’s like a Greek tragedy,” according to Lindsay Firestone, who manages pro bono projects for Taproot. “We’re thrilled to have all of these volunteers. But now organizations are stuck not being able to take advantage of it because they don’t have adequate funding.”

But, as much as we may complain now, we know it won't continue forever. The media focus on volunteerism will wane as another issue comes into vogue, and the economy will pick up sooner or later (sooner, please!) sending these volunteers off to their paid positions.

How we handle these eager volunteers now will greatly influence how we can use them and interact with them later.

Bertina Ceccarelli, a senior vice president at the United Way in New York, sums it up this way:

“My hope is when they decide it’s time to do something else, they have fond memories of what they learned at United Way... Maybe they’ll even become a donor..."

Of course, we all know, nobody just "becomes" a donor. Donors must be cultivated. Sending a potential volunteer away today may mean you're turning down a future donation. Something to think about.

National Volunteer Week is Coming...

National Volunteer Week is coming up this April 27-May 3. It's the biggest volunteering event on the calendar, and it's a great opportunity for you to encourage socially minded folks (like your organization's supporters) to participate in local activities.

Head on over to the VolunteerMatch web site and read the press release to find out more about National Volunteer Week, and how your nonprofit can tie into this promotion.

“National Volunteer Week is a terrific opportunity to harness the growing, nationwide surge in volunteerism,” said Greg Baldwin, president of VolunteerMatch. “It affords a chance for individuals to reach out and discover fun and meaningful volunteer activities in their own neighborhoods.”
...
VolunteerMatch is helping transform the landscape of nonprofit outreach—connecting good people directly with good causes, and providing access to an entirely new generation of volunteers who are eager to contribute. Since 1998, volunteers have generated just over 3.4 million matches to the 56,784 local nonprofits registered with VolunteerMatch.

On a personal note, I generally do not use my blog to simply edit and repost press releases I receive in my email (if I did, I'd be posting three or four blogs a day). When I do pass along information from a press release it is because it is an organization or a cause that I believe in and find value in.

I have used VolunteerMatch to find volunteers for several nonprofit organizations and have found it easy to use and highly effective in recruiting quality volunteers. If you can possibly use the theme of National Volunteer Week in your recruitment efforts, I think you will find it well worth your effort.

Taking Part in the Human Race

One of my current nonprofit consulting clients is Grail Family Services in San Jose (GFS), California. I am helping them out as the Interim Executive Director while we work on some long-term strategic issues and decisions.

GFS does great work the East San Jose area, focusing on early childhood literacy, parenting, and family empowerment. All the programs are created with community input, and include strong evaluation components to track what works, and what doesn't. It's a fabulous organization that I am proud to be a part of.

This month we are participating in the Human Race fundraising event that is put on by the Volunteer Center of Silicon Valley. The Human Race is your basic pledge walk/run with a 5K walk and 5K and 10K runs. You've seen these before; we have a group of board members, staff, and volunteers who will be walking or running and we're asking for your support by pledging a donation.

There will be Human Race events going on all over the country this month. Most are put on by the local volunteer centers. If you'd like to enter your organization in the Human Race, try a Google search to find an event in your area.

If you'd like more information, or to make a donation, please click on this link to go to my pledge page. Thank you for your support!

Two in three Americans volunteer - Good news or bad?

According to a new survey by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, 64% of American adults had "performed some type of volunteer activity in 2006". So, is this good news and bad? How about both...

It's great news! A sizable majority of your community members, constituents, potential supporters, and neighbors are actively involved in helping nonprofit organizations achieve their missions.

This means that if you have volunteer needs in your organization (and if not, why not?), then you should have an eager army of people ready and willing to perform for you.

It's awful news! As impressive as 64% volunteering sounds, it's actually significantly less the number who wanted to volunteer! The Thrivent survey found that 86% would have volunteered, if the opportunities had been available.

This means that we, as a sector, are doing a rotten job of either providing the right opportunities, or of promoting and recruiting for those opportunities, or both.

Does every mailing and newsletter that goes out from your nonprofit include a phone number and name of the person to contact for volunteer opportunities?

Does the front page of your web site include information on volunteer opportunities, and a one-click means of finding out how to take part?

Or are you afraid of over-promoting these, because you prefer to promote giving opportunities? Well, consider this old axiom: money follows involvement. 90% of volunteers are potential donors. If you get them volunteering, the donation ask actually gets easier!

And that is good news all around

(Thanks to Dave Rustad for the link!)

Joining a Nonprofit Board of Directors: The Why and How of It

(This is another older article that I'm posting to the blog to add it to the archives. This one was written for the January 2004 edition of "The Learning Curve" - The monthly newsletter of the Silicon Valley Chapter of ASTD (American Society for Training and Development).

Perhaps you have had some experience giving your time and efforts to local nonprofit organizations, but find something lacking in the experience. Perhaps you are looking to add a leadership component to your volunteer activities and resume. This article will introduce you to a higher level of community involvement: joining a nonprofit Board of Directors.

As a director you are responsible for setting the organization's mission and guiding it in accomplishing its vision. Legally speaking, you are also the public's eye on the organization, ensuring that it is managed in a fiscally sound manner, and that all funds are used for charitable or educational purposes.

Rewards of Service

These are serious tasks, but Board service also brings with it many rewards. You will have the opportunity to use your special knowledge - be it in marketing, finance, or event planning - in a manner that will help shape the organization for years to come. You will also meet new people who share your interests, since you signed up for the same cause, and earn a true sense of making a difference in your community.

As a Board member you will be asked to participate in some sort of fundraising activity. This scares many people away - we are all a bit nervous about having to ask our friends and family for money - but it needn't be frightening. Your participation could be through inviting people to the annual dinner, or in some other way that eases "the ask."

It's Not About Money

The most important thing to remember in the fundraising role is to concentrate on why you support the organization and not to worry about the money. I have served on the board of a local adoption and foster family agency. I love to tell people about what a great job they do with hard-to-place kids who have been through the family court system and need special assistance, but I never mention money.

While buying my house a couple of years ago, I talked enthusiastically about this organization to my realtor. A couple of months later, she told me that her company wanted to start a grant program and was asking each office to recommend a charity. We were invited to give a presentation that resulted in a $20,000 donation to my organization. This happened because I shared my enthusiasm for the cause first and let the money follow.

First Steps

To find Board opportunities, begin with asking at the organizations you are already involved with, then turn to your professional network to get other recommendations. Your local Volunteer Center may also be aware of boards that are recruiting new members. Typically, the Executive Director and the Board Chair will want to interview you. Use this as an opportunity to ask about the organization. Don't be shy here; as a Director you will be expected to ask probing questions and demonstrate your responsibility.

Assuming the interview goes well, you may have a site visit, then be invited to sit in on a Board meeting. After that, the Board will formally vote on your membership. Be aware that if the Board you are interested in only meets quarterly, there could be a lag of several months between your interview and when you are officially a member. Use this time to step up your volunteer involvement and learn more about the group.

Once on Board

The primary role of the Board of Directors, and the reason why the IRS requires nonprofits to have a Board, is governance. That means that you represent the public in making sure that the organization lives up to its mission and is deserving of tax-exempt status.

You will be reviewing annual budgets, making sure the agency has a sustainable income, and watching that it doesn't spend beyond its means. Additionally, the Board is responsible for hiring and supervising the Chief Executive, and conducting his or her annual performance review.

While these are important and necessary tasks, Board service also offers opportunity for leadership, creativity, and fun. You will be able to help with fundraising ideas and events, brainstorming ways to better serve your community, and know that your involvement is helping a cause you care about in a very real way.

Conclusion

If you are looking for opportunities for professional development, experience with team building and decision-making, and a way to make a long-term difference in your community, joining a nonprofit Board of Directors may be for you. Board membership is a great resume builder that also offers great personal and professional rewards.

Online Resources:

• Joining a Board - BoardNetUSA - www.boardnetusa.org
• Support for Board Members - Board Cafe e-newsletter - www.boardcafe.org

Full Disclosure in Board Recruitment

Liz Heath, executive director of The Nonprofit Center in Tacoma, Washington, has an article in the Tacoma News Tribune advising nonprofits to let future board members in on whole truth.

This seems like it should be such obvious advice, but it is unfortunately necessary. Many times we're anxious to recruit new talent to our boards, so we soft-pedal the requirements and expectations. Worse, we are not honest about the challenges facing our organizations and paint a rosy picture of fiscal health and sustainability that may not be entirely true.

We do the new member and ourselves a disservice when we operate that way. First we surprise them with fundraising responsibilities that they're not properly trained for, then we hit them with budget realities and possible cuts in services. The new member feels they were lied to, and wonders what else is coming around the next corner. Our relationship with this new member is compromised from day one.

On the other hand, a board prospect who was briefed on all aspects of board service - the rewards and the challenges - comes to the first meeting ready to work, and prepared to take on the tough decisions (and maybe write a check).

Nobody likes to be surprised by additional work or questions they have not had time to consider. Proper preparation and full disclosure makes board life run much smoother and is the key to good governance.

Board Member Compensation

The subject of board member compensation came up in a conversation I was having yesterday, and then this morning I came across an article about it in Philanthropy News Digest, "Nonprofit Board Compensation Continues to Spur Debate."

For the organizations that I work with - mostly small to mid-sized community organizations - it would be a shock to find that any of them pay their board members. For many of the largest nonprofits (hospitals, universities, some foundations), however, compensation is considered a requirement in order to "attract the best talent."

My personal feeling is in agreement with Daniel Borochoff, president of the Chicago-based charity watchdog American Institute of Philanthropy,"If a board is not willing to volunteer, why should anyone else?"

I spend a good part of my time emphasizing why every board member needs to commit to making a significant financial contribution to their organization. I can't imagine any scenario where I'd encourage them to ask for a paycheck.

Okay, for a national or regional board I can accept limited reimbursement of travel expenses to an annual meeting, but even then I'd expect most board members to refuse it. For a board where all members are locals, I wouldn't even go along with that level of reimbursement. Such expenses are tax-deductible by the individual members as the cost of volunteering; they don't need to be paid back by the nonprofit that they are supposed to be governing.

What do you think? Am I taking too much of a hard line on this issue? Do you compensate your nonprofit board members? Write to me (email link below) and let me know.

Also see Paid boards spur not-for-profit debate