With so many people trying to predict the future of giving in the United States, maybe someone should start making book in Las Vegas, with the winning proceeds pledged to charity. The latest “prediction”—and relatively good news—comes from The Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund, which bills itself as the nation’s largest donor-advised program.

A just-completed survey shows that a majority of Americans (55 percent) plan to give at the same level in the fourth quarter of 2010, and some 8 percent will give more because they feel “the need for help is more acute”. The last three months of the year, known in fund-raising circles as the “Giving Season,” is a critical period for many nonprofits. More than one-third (36 percent) said they are giving less this year during that period.

Reasons range from “financial limitations” to an “uncertain tax climate.” Still, even those giving less plan to help out in other ways. The survey found that two-thirds (66 percent) of donors in this group are considering offering other types of assistance instead of cash. Nearly 60 percent say they would give their time and skills, and one-in-five (21 percent) say they are likely to give other assets, such as cars or antiques.

Among other findings is the relatively minor impact tax planning has on charitable giving. Fidelity’s survey shows that only one-third (31 percent) of all donors said receiving a tax deduction was important. That number was slightly higher (42 percent) for households with more than $100,000 in income. Even the likelihood of higher taxes in 2011 is probably not going to change how donors give. Some 88 percent reported say they expect to give at the same level even if there is a tax hike.

Source: The Nonprofit Quarterly

Women are more likely to give to charity and give more on average than men across nearly every income level, a new study conducted by the Women’s Philanthropy Institute at the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University finds.

According to the study, Women Give 2010, in every income bracket, a higher percentage of women than men give to charity. Moreover, women in the lowest ($23,509 and under per year), middle (between $43,501 and $67,532), and top income brackets (more than $103,000) give nearly twice as much as their male counterparts. The exception is women in the second-lowest quintile (between $23,510 and $43,499), who are 32 percent more likely to give than men but also give 32 percent less.

Using data from the Center on Philanthropy Panel Study, the report analyzed giving by households headed by single men and women — as data on giving by married couples can obscure the effects of gender — and controlled for factors including income, age, race/ethnicity, education, and number of children. It found that never-married and divorced women are more likely to give — and give more — than men of the same marital status. However, widowers are more likely to give and give more than widows.

“These findings have the potential to affect both donors and charities significantly,” said the report’s author, Debra J. Mesch, director of the Women’s Philanthropy Institute. “Understanding the power of their giving may encourage more women to consider the difference they can make with their giving. Nonprofits may see this as a reminder to pay closer attention to the philanthropic power of women and the importance of developing fundraising strategies that will appeal to their priorities.”

Source: Philanthropy News Digest

Philanthropic investment in advocacy work yields big returns, a new report says.

Analyzing advocacy work by 20 local nonprofits in four states in the Pacific Northwest supported with a total of $23.2 million in foundation funding from 2007 to 2009, the report by the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy says those groups helped generated over $5 billion in benefits to poor and marginalized people.

For every dollar invested in advocacy, community-organizing and civic-engagement activities of those 20 local groups, the return was $150 in benefits such as wages, expanded services, state housing investments in Washington, Oregon, Montana and Idaho, says the report, Strengthening Democracy, Increasing Opportunities.

Direct beneficiaries of the advocacy and community-involvement work ranged from all residents of each state to underserved communities such as the poor, families and children, immigrants, Native Americans, Latinos and other people of color, and lesbian and gay people.

“The true test of a philanthropy’s success, in our view, boils down to this: Does their giving help stimulate real solutions and long-term results that actually touch the lives of people who need help,” Aaron Dorfman, executive director of the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, says in a statement. “I’m happy to say that in the Northwest, we found evidence that this is happening.

The report urges grantmakers to put more dollars into community organization and advocacy, and not just on a short-term basis, to address the needs of underserved and marginalized people.

Source: Philanthropy Journal

By Chelle Shell

At the beginning of the month Opportunity Knocks attended the 2010 Nonprofit HR Solutions Conference in Washington DC. This conference provided participants with HR education and networking opportunities specifically designed for the nonprofit sector. These tracks were developed to assist mission-driven organizations to more effectively carry out their visions and goals and, according to Nonprofit HR Solutions it is the only US conference of its kind.

I had the opportunity to chat with several of the HR folks in attendance as well as a few people after the conference and found that everyone I spoke with was extremely satisfied with their take-aways.

All were in agreement that Pratichi Shah, who presented Building a Talent Management Strategy; Shaping a Culture, had an extremely useful and important message. Krista Francis, the HR Director at the Jubilee Association of Maryland, blogged, “I love Pratichi Shah’s mantra: ‘Ask bigger questions. Provide bigger answers. Think consultatively.’ “

Matthew Burns, the Assistant Director of HR at GMHC added that Shah was very engaging and the interactive groups they broke into were extremely helpful. This Talent Management topic particularly peaked his interest prior to the conference and he was very pleased with the helpful information he was given both by Shah and his conference peers during the group portion of the track.

To no surprise, when I asked conference goers what they considered to be the biggest challenge nonprofit HR departments will face in the upcoming months, the single answer I got every time was retention. There seemed to be two different retention concerns. The first topic of retention anxiety is the retirement of the exorbitant number of baby boomers currently in the US workforce. The second, of course, is that gloom and despair issue of so many disengaged employees during this bad economy crisis.

Michael Watson, the VP of Human Resources for the Girls Club of America and a valued advocate of Opportunity Knocks, presented a track titled Retaining Your Best Talent When the Economy Recovers. Watson put a very interesting twist on this retention issue. He turned this negative outlook in a positive manner and said that nonprofits have a great advantage over other businesses in that our employees come already engaged with the organization’s mission in mind and that the work is very often meaningful to them. Watson asked what are HR professionals doing with this and how are they using it to their advantage.

Overall it seems most of the participants were very pleased with this conference, the speakers and the content as well as the variety of networking opportunities. 100% of them who were surveyed after the conference reported that the overall quality of the conference was good to excellent – a pretty impressive stat I must say.

You can attend all of the conferences across the nation; and you can participate in interactive groups and panels. You can take online training classes and read blogs all day long but until you ask questions within your own organization to your employees you will never be able to utilize the invaluable information that you collect. So I ask you – What are you doing?


About the Author
Michelle “Chelle” Shell has worked in management for over 14 years in positions ranging from recruitment to public relations. In her current role as Client Development Manager for Opportunity Knocks she assists national nonprofit organizations and recruitment agencies connect with talented, qualified nonprofit professionals and HR management solutions. Chelle is active in her transitioning neighborhood association as well as local tennis associations. She is also a Board Member of ANP, Atlanta Nonprofit Professionals.

For questions and/or comments for Chelle please click on “comments” below and start typing away. Many of you have the same concerns and this will allow you to read what others have to say as well as help the masses. And don’t worry, you don’t have to identify yourself if you would like to remain anonymous.

Comment below on your thoughts on Nonprofit Retention!

Human-service nonprofits reeling from the troubled economy are reporting “serious and widespread” problems with government contracts and grants, a new study says.

Forty-one percent of human-service nonprofits say government agencies made late payments in 2009, for example, while 24 percent say delinquent payments are a big problem, according to the study by the Urban Institute.

With over 40 percent of nonprofits saying they faced a deficit in 2009 as a result of the recession, 56 percent reported less revenue from state governments, 49 percent from local governments, and 31 percent from the federal government, says the study, Human Service Nonprofits and Government Collaboration: Findings from the 2010 National Survey of Nonprofit Government Contracting and Grants.

Overall, nearly 33,000 human-service nonprofits had government contracts and grants that totaled roughly $100 billion last year and provided the single largest source of revenue for 62 percent of them, the study says.

All levels of government were slow to send checks, with state governments most likely to be over 90 days late.

Sixty-eight percent of nonprofits say they were hurt by federal, state or local government payments that do not cover the full costs of contracted services, with 44 percent saying that practice was a major problem.

Fifty-seven percent reported problems with governments changing contract terms in the middle of the contract, including cancellations, reduced payments and postponements, with 26 percent saying the mid-stream changes were a serious problem.

And 76 percent of nonprofits reported problems causes by complicated, time-consuming applications, with the same percentage citing complex reporting demands.

In both cases, 37 percent say those problems are big ones.

Overall, 31 percent of nonprofits nationally say their experiences with government contracting in 2009 were worse than in previous years, with 82 percent reporting one or more contracting problems, and 66 percent reporting at least one big problem.

To cope with the financial stress from the economy, 82 percent of human-service providers reduced their operations, with 50 percent freezing or reducing salaries, 39 percent tapping financial reserves, and 38 percent reducing staff.

Nonprofits that reported changes in government contracts and grants, late payments or insufficient payments were much more likely to make cutbacks than groups without changes or problems.

“Government processes differ from agency to agency and often from contract to contract, which exacts a heavy toll on nonprofit providers,” the study’s research team says in a companion brief.

If donations and investment income decline while demand for services increases in addition to projected state budget shortfalls for fiscal 2011 and 2012, many nonprofits will reach the “breaking point,” the study says.

“Of greater concern is the hollowing of organizational capacity that may take years, if ever, to rebuild,” it says.

Nonprofits in some states reported fewer problems than in others, providing “bright spots” that could provide “models for involving nonprofit-government funding relationships,” the researchers say.

“Nonprofits and government agencies at all levels must work together to identify and implement workable solutions to the problems documented here,” the study says.

Source: Philanthropy Journal

Four in five charitable fundraisers face ethical challenges once a month or less, a new survey says.

According to the informal survey, which was conducted online in August by the Association of Fundraising Professional and generated 493 responses, 58 percent faced an ethical challenge, situation or dilemma less than once a month, and 24 percent faced an ethical question once month.

Eight percent said they encountered ethical challenges two or three times a month, while 10 percent reported facing ethical challenges at least once a week.

“Ethics is critical to the success of fundraising and philanthropy, so it’s important to understand just how often fundraisers face ethical situations so we can have resources ready,” Paulette V. Maehara, president and CEO of the Association for Fundraising Professionals, says in a statement.

The survey results, she said, serve as a “reminder that while ethical challenges and dilemmas are not the norm for most charities, they happen enough that ethical guidance and direction are always needed.”

Maehara also says the survey results show that ethical practices are commonplace throughout the sector and are accepted not just by fundraisers, but by boards, volunteers and others.

“I think fundraisers aren’t facing more ethical challenges because, by and large, people understand more and more what is and is not acceptable,” she says. “That’s a good sign for the profession and something we’ll continue to work on.”

Source: Philanthropy Journal