Laura's Blog

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Laura's Blog
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    • In February of 2007 I had the privilege of writing an article for the local newspaper highlighting the plight of the homeless and the struggle society has in responding and understanding. Fieldstone Alliance has put out some great articles together for nonprofits including Four Key Financial Reports that you can use. Samples of the reports are included in the article!
Thursday, June 17, 2010 @ 11:09:00 AM - Written by Laura Cootsona - 0 comments
For years I've worked with organizations to develop a compelling statement of mission and a list of core values that describe who they are at the center of their identity, how they want to do business in the world. I warn them not to park these statements on a shelf, but to test and evaluate based on them. If trust is a core value that you are instilling in the youth you serve, do you trust your employees? Do they trust one another. Are the core values of your organization informing your way of internally working and treating one another? Are the values operative in the ever-tricky relationship between executive and board of directors? Now we are getting personal.

Well, in the summer edition of the Stanford Social Innovation Review (a must read, btw), David La Piana, a leadership and management specialist in the nonprofit sector, writes about what he calls "The Nonprofit Paradox."

"Yet in my 30 years working in and consulting to nonprofits, I have come to realize that this was not an isolated
incident: Nonprofits tend to recreate within their own organizational cultures the problems they are trying to solve in society. I
call this phenomenon the nonprofit paradox.

Take, for instance, a human rights organization whose mission was to prevent torture. Despite this laudable goal, one of the group’s leaders left subordinates feeling terrorized. Staff members consequently—and without awareness of the irony—described working in the organization as 'torture.'" http://www.ssireview.org/articles/entry/the_nonprofit_paradox/
 
He goes on to discuss the many instances of this showing up in organization after organization. My challenge, is this true for your organization? Or are the core values you live by showing up (getting personal again) in the way you treat your kids? Ok, now I'm getting personal. Certainly worth a little eval-time on this one!
Saturday, June 05, 2010 @ 9:18:00 AM - Written by Laura Cootsona - 0 comments
I've been spending a lot of time recently developing a new service under the umbrella of LRCConsulting. This service will help small to medium sized corporations and high net worth individuals give their money, goods, and time away more intentionally. After all of these years helping nonprofits be intentional about their seeking, it seems symmetrical to look at the other side. Over the next two months, my associate, Katie Raley and I will be meeting with owners of local businesses to see why and how they give. Our hunch is that giving particularly here locally is fairly random and lacks the focus and impact of a more thoughtful approach. My hope is that in working with local companies my firm will benefit nonprofits as they seek donations. They will find companies will clear guidelines and a clear mission that will help a local agency find people that care about what they care about.
Thursday, May 27, 2010 @ 6:27:00 PM - Written by Laura Cootsona - 0 comments

Giving Dropped 4.9% in 2009, Researchers Estimate

By Nicole Wallace

Americans donated $217.3-billion in 2009, a decrease of $11.2-billion or 4.9 percent compared to 2008, according to new estimates from researchers at the Center on Wealth and Philanthropy at Boston College.

The researchers are more optimistic about giving in 2010. They expect giving by individuals to range between $222-billion and $227-billion, an increase of 3 to 4.5 percent.

The estimates -- which exclude grants made by foundations and corporations and bequests from estates -- are based on a model that uses changes in economic data to forecast charitable giving. The model is designed to be modified every three months based on new data, such as price and market indices as well as information about income and net worth.

The researchers note that the 4.9 percent drop in 2009 was in addition to an estimated 6 percent decrease in 2008.

"It will be some time before we can reverse these declines," John J. Havens, senior research associate at the center, said in a written statement. "Fortunately, charitable giving in the first two quarters of 2010 seems to be on an uptick. However, growth may not continue the rest of the year if the fiscal crisis in Europe brings a second recessionary dip to the United States."

A full report on the study will be published in the July/August issue of Advancing Philanthropy, a magazine published by the Association of Fundraising Professionals.

http://philanthropy.com/blogPost/Giving-Dropped-49-in-2009/24346/

Thursday, May 27, 2010 @ 10:06:00 AM - Written by Laura Cootsona - 0 comments
I recently gave an address at the local hospital to a group of stalwart volunteers from throughout the region who work to engage dozens of volunteers in the work of caring in our hospitals. So I suggested that volunteerism (fundraising too!) involves both passion and discipline. I suggested a few ideas about how they might lead with passion. I started with the personal side. I asked them: how are YOU going to change your experience as a volunteer?
  • Know why you are there--what do you contribute?
  1. Do an inventory of the why and the what of your involvement?
  2. Write a mission statement.
  3. Check your motives. Do a little soul searching.
  • Think about who will replace you and what might you do next...from the very beginning. Hold your role lightly. You can and will be replaced
  • Diversify your life: don't put all your eggs in one volunteer basket. There is such a thing as "workoholic volunteers."
  • Think of delegating as sharing. Don't hoard your opportunities--INVOLVE others.
Monday, May 17, 2010 @ 9:18:00 AM - Written by Laura Cootsona - 0 comments
-- Focus. Give bigger gifts to fewer charities. This enables your gifts to have a larger impact, and it also allows you to escape the problem of getting too many solicitations from too many groups. Difficult as it might be, try to choose one main cause from each of two or three categories. For example: one main medical charity, one arts organization, one social issue.

This is just one of the pieces of advice given in a recent Reuters article. Check out this link for more: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64C3HQ20100513?type=GCA-Economy2010
Monday, May 03, 2010 @ 10:56:00 AM - 0 comments

I say often that the word relationship is the watermark of fundraising. It is under all that we say and do when it comes to fundraising. We can talk about all the practical aspects of the disciplines of fundraising, but you must be relational, act relational, and breathe relational to be an effective fundraiser. I am heartened by the fact that at the end of the day, through all of my work in the nonprofit sector, I have many rich friendships—the fruit of fundraising, strategizing and working together. I'd love to hear from others about the relationships you've built and their effect on your organizations!

Friday, March 12, 2010 @ 8:00:00 PM - 0 comments
It is an amazing gift to be able to give. It is life itself. A group of families and our church have put up enough money to enable a group of 25 Honduran families to have an opportunity of a life time. The chance to own and cultivate their own property. In two days, I will co-lead a group of 12 to go and be encouragers to the 120 plus people working day and night to realize this dream. Amigos Bidwell travel to be just that: friends. We will sweat just watching them work their land, milk their cows, plant their plantains. They will sweat to earn the right to own. A right they are not granted, but they earn. I go expecting to be blessed. Blessed in the giving and receiving more than I ever give.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010 @ 10:54:00 AM - 0 comments
I remember 9/11 when trucks poured onto the island filled with supplies from all over America. Most of what was inside was useless to meet the needs of the victims at Ground Zero. How did this happen? Pretty easily. People NEED to help so they fill up trucks and drive them. Did anyone ask? Nope. They just came anyway. This doesn't help. Or is that not obvious? Turns out it happens in every disaster. Check out Nancy Gibbs' advice in a recent time article.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1963749,00.html
Wednesday, February 03, 2010 @ 8:28:00 AM - Written by Laura Cootsona - 0 comments
The bottom line is there is a place for everyone in fundraising. Your leaders are all around you. Your team is the volunteer who answers the phone (first impressions are critical), the board member who is a Rotarian, your office manager who inputs your data. I guess my perspective could be considered skewed. The way I see it: everyone is a fundraiser. Everyone can tell your story and invite people by their example and their hard work to be a part of the vitality of the service you provide. 
 
Now, having said that there potentially is a place for everyone, it is critical to recognize that most people will not agree with you nor will they feel qualified to help in the process of fundraising. So, the answer: proper selection, placement and training. Like any volunteer (or employed) labor, they don't come out of a box with the credentials they need. They may have a willing heart, but they need to have the right place in your system and the appropriate training to be effective. Part of the champion's job is to determine the variety of ways someone can be involved and the needed skills to be helpful.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009 @ 4:40:00 PM - 0 comments
A great post from the Chronicle of Philanthropy...

April 28, 2009
Keep Dire Talk Out of Fund-Raising Letters

As the recession continues to squeeze donations to nonprofit organizations, fund raisers are feeling increased pressure to refer to their economic hardships in their written appeals to donors.

But is it really a smart idea to mention the recession in fundraising letters?

Two prominent direct mail fund raising experts answer that question with a resounding "no".

"I strongly recommend that you do not complain about how hard the recession is impacting your organization," said Mal Warwick, a consultant and author of the new book Fundraising When Money Is Tight: A Strategic and Practical Guide to Surviving Tough Times and Thriving in the Future.

Instead, Mr. Warwick told participants in today's Chronicle live discussion on direct mail appeals to focus their letters on what they're doing to adapt to the tough times.

"Tell your donors what steps you're taking to tighten your operations, trim costs, and deliver services even more efficiently to your beneficiaries," he said. "Tell them how much further their gifts will go now. And make sure they know that 'the need' doesn't simply continue but is more urgently and more widely needed than ever."

Groups that are facing large financial deficits should also resist the urge to cry poor, says Brenda Helget, program manager for annual giving and communications at Methodist Hospital Foundation, in Omaha.

Ms. Helget says telling donors about a financial deficit doesn't encourage them to give. It sends up a red flag that their donation might be going to support a group that isn't fiscally sound.

"Use emotion," she said. "Make it heartwarming-- numbers and statistics aren't heartwarming."

For more advice from Mr. Warwick and Ms. Helget on direct-mail strategies, read the transcript of the live discussion.

--Peter Panepento
Tuesday, March 17, 2009 @ 10:54:00 AM - Written by Laura Cootsona - 0 comments
This is the oldest fundraising adage out there. Yesterday's Chronicle of Philanthropy referenced a study about giving in the recession. Conducted in January by Cygnus Applied Research, the survey polled 17,365 people who had given in the past to charity. The respondents donated an average of $11,490 last year. These studies are fascinating as they appeal to our desire for tea leaves. Our desire to have a crystal ball and look ahead.

You should check out the post on their site for the full article (http://philanthropy.com/news/updates/index.php?id=7442), but be aware that there is still glimmers of hope.

Turns out that people keep giving to people in economic hard times.

While a recession may not seem like the ideal time to seek out new donors, many people in the survey (42.5 percent) said they would give to a charity they had not supported in the past if someone they knew was seeking the gift. Many donors (40.3 percent) said they were also willing to give for the first time if the charity was working directly to help people hurt by the recession.

Turns out that generous people stick with people they trust to give to truly hurting people. This gives me hope and reminds me to stick with relational fundraising. It is all about the people.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009 @ 12:50:00 PM - Written by Laura Cootsona - 1 comments

Here is a common dilemma. The board meets for their monthly meeting and comes up with one more great idea. Or, the executive director and his trusted friend step into the conference room for a quick check-in. The result: another new idea. No problem. We'll just add it on to the list of other projects we have too little time, money, or staff to implement. What is a person to do?

Sound familiar. Oh ya.

We typically look around the room and try to rest our spinner on one of the staff or board already assigned to 16 other tasks. Instead, why don't we turn around 180 degrees and point outside? We might just locate the person to champion that new idea or test it or kill it. Even better, why don't we see if there is another organization, team, or committee that might use their expertise to combine with our enthusiasm?

Here's a tangible example. An organization wants to take their expertise and put it into the classroom. The organization with the expertise has no talent in writing curriculum. Now what? Let's find another group, maybe at our local university, to take on the transfer of knowledge to learning tool.

A collaboration is born.



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