Tag Archive for Nonprofit

Rise, Knight of the Nonprofit Round-Table

No, King Arthur hasn’t been reborn nor are we in Camelot. Heck, we’re not even in Kansas. What this is, though, is a serious attempt by the Israel Government and a number of foundations that operate in Israel to increase the cooperation, strength, and transparency of Israel’s nonprofit sector.

The Great Balancing Act: Public Offical or Social Innovator

For years we have been witnessing charitable institutions hiring business executives in order to increase fundraising or professionalize the organization. I remember the big news when the President of Columbia University, George Rupp, accepted the presidency of the International Relief Committee in 2002. Some of us alumni were bewildered by the move — leaving the private sector for the public sector, unheard of!?!? However, what seemed like an isolated incident then, was actually indicative of many nonprofit organizations.

But is the reverse true? Are the corporate and public sectors luring away nonprofit executives in the hope of improving their social standing and/or activities?

An Employee's Small Gesture Can Send a Big Message

Fundraising is done at every level of the organization. Every employee that interacts with a donor can impact the constituent’s relationship with the charity. To highlight this point I would like to share a short story that happened to me just a few days ago. I think it illustrates how even small gestures can have large (and negative) consequences.

Rate My Nonprofit! Why Online Surveys Aren’t Worth the Click

The sheer number of sites that allow a viewer to rate nonprofits has my mouse trigger happy, my head spinning, and my brain questioning the openness of the internet.

I started this soul searching recently after speaking to a nonprofit founder/CEO about the current (and extended) GreatNonprofits: Jewish Choice Awards 2009 campaign. After the conversation I was left with questions that have led me to believe that these types on online contests are not the best to spread the word about the world’s great charities nor are these polls a fair judge. Allow me to elaborate:

Today's US Dollar & How it Affects Your (Nonprofit's) Budget

What we in the nonprofit world need to realize is that the problems with the dollar are much larger than the USD/NIS rate of exchange. Changes in the dollar affect the world – Israel is just one of many. The Bank of Israel’s moves to buy dollars might be helping a little and the in the short term stemming the decline of the greenback, but Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer is similar to David trying to fight Goliath armed with only a rubber band. Many argue that the problems of the US dollar are larger in scope and strength than anything that Fischer can throw at it.