Society Notebook: It's a gift | The Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram

Society Notebook: It's a gift | The Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram: n order to do so, he told us that we must realize that "money does not matter as much as influence and time" and that giving to "fewer things in a bigger way for a longer period of time" is a proven way to get better results. He also pointed out that a nonprofit organization's overhead and administrative costs shouldn't be judged solely based on its percentage of total costs, because staffing is a crucial area when it comes to an organization's effectiveness.

Metrics Can Be a Grant Writer’s Nightmare | Fundraising Non-Profit Fund-raising Resource – Tony Poderis

Metrics Can Be a Grant Writer’s Nightmare | Fundraising Non-Profit Fund-raising Resource – Tony Poderis: I don’t think there could be three more dismaying demands. Using any of these too common absolutist metrics to evaluate a grant seeker’s performance is more than formidable. Depending on how the fill-in-the-blank numbers are determined, it can be flat out damning.

Such demands, more often than not, lack a footing in reality. They are unlikely to show even a rudimentary understanding of which grant-making organizations are awarding grants to what initiatives, projects, and organizations.

Local nonprofits hope ‘Give’ day helps fundraising | St. Cloud TIMES | sctimes.com

Local nonprofits hope ‘Give’ day helps fundraising | St. Cloud TIMES | sctimes.com: Local nonprofit organizations are hoping a statewide online initiative will help raise much-needed funds.

GiveMN.org, will host its Give to the Max Day on Wednesday. GiveMN.org offers nonprofits an online presence for donors.

On Giving - Reporting and discussion about philanthropy and social entrepreneurship.

New section of the Washington Post

On Giving becomes the newest addition to The Post's popular On Topics channels, which include On Leadership, On Faith, on Innovation and On Small Business.


On Giving - Reporting and discussion about philanthropy and social entrepreneurship.

lifetime value formula

lifetime value formula: In a previous blog post, Reinier wrote about the importance of assessing LTV. He brings as an example a corporate case study, and says “It’s not the calculation that is so interesting […]What is most interesting is that this infograpic underlines the importance of using Lifetime Value (LTV) in your acquisition strategy.”

Accounting Board to Research Nonprofit Financial Standards - News - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas

Accounting Board to Research Nonprofit Financial Standards - News - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas: The group that establishes standards for financial accounting and reporting has approved two new projects that seek to streamline the way nonprofits complete their annual financial statements.

The Washington Post launches On Giving - The Washington Post

The Washington Post launches On Giving - The Washington Post: Today The Washington Post launches “On Giving,” a new section devoted to coverage of corporate giving and social responsibility, social entrepreneurship, charitable actions and personal finance. The section features original Washington Post reporting and guest contributions from philanthropists, global development leaders, social entrepreneurs, academics and researchers.

End-of-Year Fundraising Campaigns that Will Rock Your World | NetWitsThinkTank.com

End-of-Year Fundraising Campaigns that Will Rock Your World | NetWitsThinkTank.com: End-of-year is a very busy time for fundraisers.

Lots of ideas are bouncing around, campaigns that have been run for years are spinning up, and new end-of-year fundraising campaigns are coming to life. Many will eventually be pushed out the door with the hope of great results.

(free 50 minute webinar recording at bottom of post)

Univ. works to include students in fundraising - News - The Diamondback - University of Maryland

Univ. works to include students in fundraising - News - The Diamondback - University of Maryland: Last week, the university's Alumni Association hosted PHILanthropy Week, where students participated in free events and wrote thank you notes to alumni and donors. Because 30 percent of the university's 2011 fiscal year budget came from private gifts and philanthropy, it's important for students to value these donations — especially in a time when they are dwindling, according to university officials.

Philanthropy is about more than giving – the outcome of the action is essential | Voluntary Sector Network | Guardian Professional

Philanthropy is about more than giving – the outcome of the action is essential | Voluntary Sector Network | Guardian Professional: The death of Steve Jobs has resulted in numerous commentaries on his apparent lack of philanthropy – both personal and corporate, through Apple. I see this as a positive step that the new norm for wealthy and successful individuals is to also be philanthropic. There is a growing trend towards asking "why not?" rather than "why?" when it comes to charitable giving.

How a New Foundation Listens to Its Community - Making Change - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas

How a New Foundation Listens to Its Community - Making Change - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas: For a startup community foundation, serving the needs of a single county can be a challenge. The Community Foundation of South Jersey is finding ways to work with eight counties, encompassing both impoverished rural regions and wealthy suburbs.

The foundation, now in its second year of operations, is finding that its best strategy is to listen and be flexible.

Give to the Max: Greater Washington: Thank you to the 17,839 people who gave "to the Max" on November 9th! Your incredible generosity helped raise $1,886,584 and strengthen the nonprofits who make our community a great place to live and work. Including the $148,000 in award money, Greater Washington raised $2,034,584 for regional nonprofits!

Charities Participate in 'Give to the Max' Day - Fairfax Station, VA Patch

Charities Participate in 'Give to the Max' Day - Fairfax Station, VA Patch: Today is ‘Give to the Max Day,’ a one-day fundraising online event that unites local Virginia, Maryland, and Washington D.C..

As part of Give to the Max Day: nonprofits large and small can earn their share of $125,000 in cash awards, including up to $25,000 for nonprofits with the most individual donors and the most money donated. The individuals who bring the most donors on behalf of their cause can add an extra $10,000 to their donation.

massnonprofit.org ::

massnonprofit.org ::: November 6, 2011 — The Peabody Essex Museum in Salem has raised $550 million toward a $650 million goal, the largest capital campaign ever undertaken by a Massachusetts museum, which, when completed, will give it the largest endowment of any museum in the state and one of the top 10 in the country.

Proceeds from the Peabody Essex Museum capital campaign, reportedly underway since 2006, announced in The Boston Globe today, will be used as

Nashville Fundraiser Wins International Award for Service to the Profession - Press - AFP

Nashville Fundraiser Wins International Award for Service to the Profession - Press - AFP: Nashville Fundraiser Wins International Award for Service to the Profession

November 4, 2011

(Arlington, Va.) The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) has bestowed the Barbara Marion Award for Outstanding Leadership to AFP, the association’s highest volunteer and leadership recognition, to Susan Earl Hosbach, CFRE, of Nashville, Tenn.

Hosbach is currently the executive director and CEO of The Minnie Pearl Cancer Foundation and has been a member of AFP since 1994, serving in a variety of leadership positions and spearheading several important initiatives for the association.

Test Your Knowledge Of The Nonprofit World - TheNonProfitTimes

Test Your Knowledge Of The Nonprofit World - TheNonProfitTimes: More than 1.4 million nonprofits were registered with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in 2009, an increase of 19 percent between 1999 and 2009. Total giving in 2010 reached $290.89 billion, up 2 percent from the estimate provided in 2009, after adjusting for inflation.

And, volunteers contributed 15 billion volunteer hours during 2010, worth $283.84 billion. The amount is calculated at $21.36 an hour, established by Independent Sector as the estimated dollar value of a volunteer hour. The rate will vary by state.

People earning less than �32k 'give higher proportion of their income than others' - Third Sector

People earning less than �32k 'give higher proportion of their income than others' - Third Sector: People earning less than �32,000 give on average more than 1 per cent of their income to charity, whereas those on more than �52,000 typically give only 0.8 per cent, according to research by the Charities Aid Foundation and the National Council for Voluntary Organisations.

The Basics of Charity Registration - Tony Martignetti

The Basics of Charity Registration - Tony Martignetti

The Charlotte Post - Promoting passion of philanthropy

The Charlotte Post - Promoting passion of philanthropy: Giving back is good for the mind and soul.

Philanthropy, defined as “the effort or inclination to increase the well-being of humankind, as by charitable aid or donations,” is generally associated with the wealthy, but one doesn’t have to be wealthy to give away some of their money, time or resources.

It could mean donating an umbrella to a homeless person or $10 for a pair of children’s shoes or recognizing a person in need and helping them plug into services.

$1.5M gift to help center study religious giving - 13 WTHR

$1.5M gift to help center study religious giving - 13 WTHR: INDIANAPOLIS - A $1.5 million donation will endow the directorship at the nation's only university-based institute dedicated to exploring the relationship between faith and philanthropy.

Study finds charitable giving remains stagnant | Campus | Indiana Daily Student

Study finds charitable giving remains stagnant | Campus | Indiana Daily Student: Charitable giving in the United States has remained stagnant in the past 40 years.

This continues to be true despite the number of natural disasters tripling and the number of armed conflicts nearly doubling, according to a report released Friday by two IU professors.

The Nonprofit Quarterly | @npquarterly | Innovation and Impact: Enough Talk, More Do

The Nonprofit Quarterly | @npquarterly | Innovation and Impact: Enough Talk, More Do: If you’re a nonprofit news junkie, you know it’s nearly impossible to go a day without reading or hearing the words “innovation” and “impact.” Just check out the feeds of the nonprofit Twitteratti, where those complex concepts are distilled to 140 characters or less every day.

But for those of us who care about linking rigor to innovation and impact (especially impact assessment), making them more operational, and integrating them more systematically into nonprofit/philanthropic practice, it’s hard to find serious discussion that is more about practice and less about how savvy some of the folks who opine about these concepts want to appear.

Fort Worth Zoo visitors check out exhibits online, virtual video conference | The Republic

Fort Worth Zoo visitors check out exhibits online, virtual video conference | The Republic: The answer for Dorris came by investing in much-needed technology and joining Connect 2 Texas, a network of museums and scientific nonprofit organizations that provide lessons via video conferencing for a relatively modest fee.

These "virtual field trips" have been available, for example, at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art, the Sid Richardson Museum, the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History and the Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas for several years.

Warren Hellman – bluegrass philanthropist funds annual festival

Warren Hellman – bluegrass philanthropist funds annual festival: Hellman – one of the wealthiest citizens of San Francisco – is widely known as a philanthropist and financier. He is the great-grandson of Isaias W. Hellman, a prominent Banker and philanthropist, and a founding father of the University of Southern California.

For the past 11 years, as part of his philanthropic agenda, Warren Hellman has held this free music festival – Hardly, Strictly Bluegrass.

Fundraising Atlas Does More Than Shrug | The Agitator - Fundraising, Direct Marketing and Advocacy Strategies for Nonprofits

Fundraising Atlas Does More Than Shrug | The Agitator - Fundraising, Direct Marketing and Advocacy Strategies for Nonprofits: Fundraising Atlas Does More Than Shrug
By rcraver | November 2, 2011

At the end of April I reported on a new forecasting service, The Atlas of Giving.

I called it an important innovation because fundraisers have largely sought guidance through the rear view mirror of past performance, as opposed to steering through the windshield of the present and future. After all, ‘til the Atlas of Giving came along, all we had to rely on were ‘old’ services like Giving USA and the various Blackbaud Charitable Indexes.

The AFP Blog: Bill Drayton and the Next Generation

The AFP Blog: Bill Drayton and the Next Generation: For many of us this is a hard lesson to learn. For the next generation of fundraisers it's instinctive—hardwired into their systems. Let's have the humility to learn from them.

If you haven't already, check out the Ashoka website and get to know Bill Drayton. When you have, you'll wish you'd done it many years ago.

Family Dollar Founder Takes Hands-On Approach to Giving - NYTimes.com

Family Dollar Founder Takes Hands-On Approach to Giving - NYTimes.com: Leon’s gone after philanthropy in much the same way as he did making money,” said Hugh L. McColl Jr., former chief executive of Bank of America, which is based in Charlotte. “He sees donations as investments in worthwhile projects, he does a lot of due diligence when looking at potential recipients, and he’s diligent about holding their feet to the fire about doing what the money is supposed to do.”

Kindness: Charity, Philanthropy, & Social Responsibility - USATODAY.com

Kindness: Charity, Philanthropy, & Social Responsibility - USATODAY.com: But the real headliner? Cash made a comeback in 2010. Indeed, while many corporations pulled back on cash grants during the recent economic crisis, 61% of companies increased cash contributions last year, focusing on such items like disaster relief and matching gift contributions.

While not back to pre-recession levels, this is an important reversal of a trend that has plagued charitable fundraising efforts at many U.S.-based non-profits in recent years.

Other highlights from the report? From the CECP report:

All pledge all the time | Marketplace From American Public Media

All pledge all the time | Marketplace From American Public Media: Kai Ryssdal: I'm about to speak two of the most dreaded words in public broadcasting. Here you go.

Pledge drive.

No, it's not that time again. But there is a cable station launching today in Pittsburgh, Penn., where it's that time all the time. Yeah, you heard it right: A public television station that reruns nothing but pledge drives -- all day long.

Tess Finkle: Cause ... It Matters

Tess Finkle: Cause ... It Matters: This transition within the corporate giving structure is being expedited by the up rise of the Millennial Generation -- young people/consumers who demand more responsibility from "the man." Which is awesome.

So, my team and I spend our days helping brands recognize they need to support causes their customers advocate in a way that is genuine and effective do just that, but also making sure their needs as a business are met. Additionally, we identify a clear call to action that helps the cause partner reach its goals within this alliance. More times than not, part of my company's role in addition to partnering and strategizing is to procure celebrities to engage on some level of the campaign to attract media and mobilize the masses.