Regina Pinney
Executive Director
Have you ever had one of those board meetings—the kind that makes you question if you are the right person for the job, if you have the stamina to continue, or if anyone in the room is on the same page about anything? The kind of meeting that makes you wonder if working at one of those 9-5 for profit jobs is fulfilling?
You know—one of "those" meetings.
Sharon Castle
Capacity Builder
Question: On a scale of 1 – 10, how important is a nonprofit board of directors?
Answer: 10+
If building a strong board is tantamount to running a healthy, vibrant, and successful nonprofit organization, how do we build a dynamic board?
While the answer is complex, there are strategies you can use to enhance your success.
Stormy Trotter, PhD.
Nonprofit Consultant
Nonprofit organizations (NPO’s) are essential to our communities and strive to advocate for causes, fill existing gaps, and provide meaningful resources. Many are successful in delivering programs and servicing needs, but are still often underrecognized and under supported.
Katena Cain, PhD.
Nonprofit Management Consultant
Starting a nonprofit organization is an exciting way to make an impact in your community. Who wouldn’t want to be a part of this community of do-gooders? Well, with over 1.5 million nonprofits in the United States and roughly 52,000 (up from 49K in 2020) in Michigan, ensuring the sustainability and longevity of a nonprofit are not easy tasks. Especially with the recent decline we've seen with the pandemic.
Tom Williams
Retired Consultant
It’ been awhile since I blogged on embezzlement and regrettably, I’m feeling compelled to revisit this dark topic. The recent situation that sparked this writing is my learning of a familiar organization experiencing a valued staffer that embezzled a six figure amount of the money donated to their mission. As I shared in my previous blog, this sickens me professionally and saddens me for the work of all the great people that raised hundreds of thousands of dollars now being for naught. Disgustingly this action succeeds when we drop our complete nonstop attention to safeguards.
While I certainly encourage you to dig through our Nonprofit Network blog library and read “3 Dangerous Myths About Nonprofit Embezzlement”, today I want to share a different insight that may generate conversations within your organization.
Did you know that 93% of people who embezzled funds NEVER had a criminal record before? This fact from Marquette Report on Embezzlement is one that deserves some sincere reflection. Ponder the implications of this data about the 3,000+ embezzlers the Michigan State Police see annually (for profit and nonprofit). This means that all our safeguards are not to stop criminals from taking our organization’s hard earned money. Our safeguards are actually intended to eliminate an opportunity for a “trusted” person to take advantage of our negligence and take their first step over to the dark side.
Tom Williams
Consultant
Typically, I like to use this blog space to share eye-opening ideas and tools to build your organization’s capacity so that more good is done in your community. But today I am compelled to step away from that and reflect on the ugly side of nonprofit life that ties my stomach in knots: embezzlement. Please, let me be clear: I am driven to share this, not for any sense of sensationalism, but rather because if you are aware and informed, you will be better prepared to prevent, detect, and recover any losses in the event that your organization is victimized in an embezzlement scheme.
