Nonprofit Board Crisis

E-Commerce - Is it time for nonprofits to get on board?

According to the New York Times, It's time for nonprofits to make greater use of the efficienceis avilable through use of the interenet and computer technology.  And, according to the differenct folks interviewed fo rthe artcle, nonprofit groups are slowly learnign the benefits -- to service and fund-raising -- of being wired.  For my money, it's about time for all the reasons listed in the article.

Read the whole, long article here.

Formula for Success: Nonprofit Hospital Partners with University Hospital

I'm scratching my head over how this forumla results in success but there's this big proposal facing the legislature that would have the UCONN Health Center become partners with Hartford Hospital.  The proposal has a lot of money in it for the legislature to build a new building for the UCONN Health Center to achieve scale and generate more funds.  And, as I understand it, the Hartford Hospital would then take care of the financial matters for both.

Huh?  This seems like hocus-pocus to me.  Can one nonprofit urban hospital successfully "join" with another nonprofit hospital, after initial subsidy from the State, of course?  There must be a whole lot more to this story than meets the eye.

For more on the story, check out the Hartford Courant.

Founder Syndrome: a Legacy

Millard Fuller of Habitat for Humanity fame died Tuesday.  Mr. Fuller left a legacy on how to rally a whole lot of volunteers to accomplish a really big goal, not to mention of course, the gift of a whole lot of houses.

Alas, Mr. Fuller left other memories that allowed the press, amoung others, to remember other factors beyond his fullest legacy. 

This is too bad, but certainly reminds us that one lesson we learn from Mr. Fuller is that the growth of a nonprofit by a founder can be hard.  A non-profit board must work hard to ensure that there is a succession plan in place and that that succession plan leaves all parties in a good place -- even perhaps thinking about what the memories should be.

Farewell for now Mr. Fuller -- you did a good job.

For one stories about Mr. Fuller, see the Chicago Tribune or Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Firing an ED can have unintended consequences

Based on the facts I had in hand, I wasn't convinced that the firing of Charlotte United Way Executive Director Gloria King was justified.  Ms. King had raised a mega-amount of money but some folks didn't like the pay and benefits she negotiated.  The board originally said it was ok but then decided otherwise and poof, no more Ms. King.

Well, the votes are in and could we say there's been a big show of support for getting rid of Ms. King and/or confidence that this wouldn't happen again?  Nope, not really. 

According to the Philanthropy Journal, "the Charlotte-based United Way of Central Carolinas is taking up to $5 million from its reserves to compensate for a dismal 2008 fundraising campaign, The Charlotte Observer reported Jan. 23 (see reserve story). The agency also plans to cut its full-time staff by up to 30 percent. In part because of fallout over former CEO Gloria Pace King's controversial pay package, the agency's 2008 annual campaign fell $15 million below the previous year's total".  

So, who's to say that the United Way couldn't have simply done a better job of communications?  Who's to say Ms. King couldn't have stayed and kept the peace and doing what she did best - raise money.  For sure, these results certainlly challenge what was done.

More Merits of a nonprofit media

The Washington Post has a good piece by John Podesta titled the Rise of Soft Censorship that chronicled what was effectively happening in the "purchasing of media".

As I have been following the downfall of an independent for-profit press, this article caught my attention when Mr. Podesta highlighted the benefits of a nonprofit media like National Public Radio. 

He wrote: "Another solution that has been put forward is the nonprofit model, akin to National Public Radio in the United States and the British Broadcasting Corp. A newspaper or broadcast station owned by a foundation, an endowment, an academic institution -- and, yes, even the government, if done transparently and through an independent board of directors -- might be better positioned to resist threats of advertising losses. (In recent days, some opinion writers have suggested this as an answer for what ails newspapers in the United States, too.)"

Note the big criteria that made a nonprofit media appealing: transparency through an independent board of directors.

I think: maybe and still suggest that just being nonprofit doesn't ensure sustainability - perhaps quite the contrary.

Book Reveiw: Zone of Insolvency

Ron Mattocks has written a clever little book on governance entitled: The Zone of Insolvency.  For more information about the book, go to www.zoneofinsolvency.com.

This little book offers colorful and entertaining reading, as Mr. Mattocks provides fairly graphic depictions of some of the great (to date) shipwrecks in nonprofit history.  And, as entertaining as the depictions are, Mr. Mattock has gone the extra mile to add about 100 "strategic" questions, offered in groups of 5 following each shipwreck, for nonprofit boards and/or their committees to ask to help them keep their own ships afloat and avoid the submarine-infested waters that even more-so today affect the nonprofit community.

Can I live without Zone of Insolvency - sure?  Would I have missed some interesting storytelling - absolutely.  And, can I benefit from Mr. Mattocks' questions - certainly? 

Why not pick-up a copy?