Podcasts - Project Pivot

How does a nonprofit determine what each of its programs contributes to the organization’s bottom line? How do boards relate program costs to the organization’s mission impact and financial sustainability? Steve Zimmerman, Spectrum Nonprofit Services, talks about the quest to calculate each program’s true costs.

Continuing his discussion of the new IRS Form 990, CPA Scott Haumersen identifies additional changes of special interest to nonprofit boards. Which directors are independent? What questions are raised about the compensation of employees or directors and officers? What unrelated business income information must be disclosed?

While legislative advocacy is an acceptable activity for 501(c)3 organizations under the tax law, IRS penalties for excessive lobbying can be harsh. Linda Honold talks about the difference between advocacy and lobbying, and related rules and reporting requirements with which nonprofit organizations should be acquainted.

In this day and age of increasing calls for accountability and transparency in the nonprofit sector, more and more attention is being paid to issues of Conflict of Interest. Sometimes it's easy to tell when there is a conflict, but at other times there is a legitimate question about conflict. IN this podcast, Justice Janine Geske has a refreshingly candid conversation with BoardStar about it.

An author of Governance as Leadership: Reframing the Work of Nonprofit Boards, William P. Ryan describes the powerful nature of generative work and how effective Boards work in multiple modes can be: fiduciary, strategic, and generative, to govern the organizations they serve. Governance as Leadership is published by John Wiley & Sons.

Before a nonprofit pursues a social enterprise strategy, its leaders must reflect on what the nonprofit is trying to accomplish. What are the organization’s core competencies and how can they best be leveraged into a social enterprise? Kathryn Dunn talks about social entrepreneurship and the board’s role in navigating the important factors associated with a new enterprise.

We all know that fundraising is one of the critical responsibilities of a Board of Directors. We also know that donor relations is one of the most important parts of fundraising. In this podcast, Jean Kenney Dole, Assistant VP of University Advancement at Marquette University, talks about how a Board can become involved in this important job.

Thinking creatively about a nonprofit organization’s community connections may uncover new threads of support. Sam Macklem talks about how board directors can expand the reach of their nonprofit with the goal of strengthening its web of wealth.

Effective preparation of Board packets and appropriate use of consent agendas, executive sessions, and mini-evaluations can boost the productivity of your Board meetings.

Effective preparation of Board packets and appropriate use of consent agendas, executive sessions, and mini-evaluations can boost the productivity of your Board meetings.

How does a nonprofit Board seeking a new chief executive work with an independent party to find the best candidates? Dr. Richard Barnes of Barnes Development Group talks about the services a nonprofit Board or its search committee can tap in support of the executive recruitment and selection process.

Former Milwaukee Public Museum President Dan Finley assumed his leadership position during the organization’s 2005 financial crisis. Here he shares valuable reminders about the responsibilities of all nonprofit governing Boards as he describes how he and the Milwaukee Public Museum Board worked together to restore the organization’s financial stability and leadership credibility.

Nonprofit staff members are crucial to a well functioning Board. The executive director not only attends meetings, but coordinates and contributes to the Board's overall success. Pat Wyzbinski of the Nonprofit Management Fund discusses this crucial relationship with KWH consultant Karen Higgins, and the role that staff play in supporting the mission of the board.

Why do so many well-intentioned leaders miss the point when it comes to diversifying a nonprofit Board? Social Development Commission Chief Executive Officer Deborah Blanks, author of Weaving Diversity into the Fabric of America, talks engaging individuals with varying skill sets, backgrounds, and perspectives, how to find them, and how they help a Board make great decisions.

Board leaders, nonprofit executives, and governance professionals attending the 2006 Board Development Conference share tips about measuring organizational effectiveness. Representatives from the Over Head Players at the Sixth Street Theatre, Racine Theatre Guild, Literacy Services of Wisconsin, Milwaukee Center for Independence, Young Professionals of Racine, Recreational Activities for the Developmentally Disabled, and the University of Wisconsin-Parkside discuss.

Pat Wyzbinski of the Nonprofit Management Fund travels to the 2006 Board Development Conference to interview keynote Jason Saul, managing director of Mission Management, and author of Benchmarking for Nonprofits. How to Measure, Manage, and Improve Performance.

Impressed by the successful use of “topgrading” in his workplace, Board Chair Greg Herrle proposed criteria for recruiting “A” players to the board of Journey House, a nonprofit organization in Milwaukee. He talks about the clarity thoughtful criteria have brought to the board recruiting process.

From the history of nonprofits to the dynamics of collective decision making , a course in nonprofit governance offers a fascinating array of teaching and learning opportunities. UWM Professor Douglas M. Ihrke talks about his approach to teaching nonprofit governance, as well as board diversity and conflict, and the chief executive/board leadership balance.

Good annual planning not only identifies a baseline and defines what an organization hopes to accomplish, it effectively documents goals and objectives that unify the organization’s focus and purpose for the next 12 months. Presenting annual planning as a top priority for a nonprofit Board of Directors, Scott Gelzer discusses.

It is not unusual for the identity of a founder to be tied very closely to the identity an organization, but difficulties can arise when, over time, those identities are not individuated. Susan Kenny Stevens has studied nonprofit founders and is herself a founder. She talks about founder's syndrome and the challenges Boards face in governing a organization run by its founder.

Do you want to create a buzz around your cause? Marketing an organization’s mission is key to its success, but a nonprofit may struggle with identifying its true message and how to effectively share that message with the public. Gary Mueller, of BVK and SERVE, Inc., addresses the role of a Board in marketing the mission.

What picture emerges when a nonprofit’s programs and finances are examined in the deep, interconnected way they really work? Steve Zimmerman, co-author of Nonprofit Sustainability: Making Strategic Decisions for Financial Viability, talks about how each activity in which a nonprofit engages contributes to both the impact and the financial viability of the organization.

Building a strong Board is one of the hardest, most complex jobs at a nonprofit organization. BoardStar's José Vásquez and Pat Wyzbinski of the Nonprofit Management Fund discuss the Board development process, including questions that can be used to evaluate Board candidates as well as criteria that contribute to balanced representation on a Board.