October Frontline Perspectives

View as Webpage

November 2019

October 2020

Bryan Orander, President, Charitable Advisors

Next critical step for board members

is to look forward with the mission in mind

Under the best of circumstances, small- to mid-sized nonprofits can only take occasional timeouts from “getting the work done” to look into the future, clarifying whether they are on the ideal trajectory to advance their mission.

With an unprecedented crisis like COVID-19, the delivery models of most nonprofits have been disrupted. You’ve encountered an onslaught of messages about pivoting, reinventing or “not wasting a crisis” in the wake of the pandemic.

Now that initial crisis adjustments have been made, one of the board’s most important roles is to determine what comes next for the organization — even if that is six months from now instead of a more customary 3 to 5 years. In general, board members are up to the task. The board can advance meaningful conversations with staff leaders without being as confined to how the organization has typically done things. Board members can also be trusted to have the best interests of the organization and clients/consumers/patrons as a top priority.

If you haven’t already, it’s time for a board conversation, online or in-person, to assess your mission, vision, and values and how they translate to circumstances of today and beyond the current pandemic. It will be important to separate your mission/vision from the current programs staff members are accustomed to delivering and engage in discussions about what other paths could get you to your destination. While the pandemic has closed many physical doors, it also has paved the way to incredible opportunities because of the expanding ways people connect, work, communicate, and learn.

For example, your mission might be to “Equip young people to complete high school and find success in college and career”. Your mission doesn’t say, “We exist to run tutoring programs in our building from 3-5 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays and do a service project every other Saturday.” Facing new circumstances, you have to be open to new ways you can deliver on that mission.

Bottom line, now more than ever, nonprofits need board members to be looking to the future. Here’s an interesting article from a ministry context. Leverage the 80/20 Rule in the Boardroom: Invest 80 percent of your board work on future opportunities — not rehashing the past.

To learn more, please contact Bryan Orander or 317-752-7153.

Bryan Orander, President

[email protected]

317-752-7153

Nonprofit Pandemic Resource Page - Every nonprofit leader is dealing with the impacts of the pandemic. Charitable Advisors is continually reviewing available information, adding it to our resource page and sharing it in the Not-for-profit News.

Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action (ARNOVA) virtual conference from Nov. 11-13. You may not be familiar ARNOVA but it can be a great information resource and may be more accessible to you this year than typically. The ARNOVA conference is designed to create a public conversation and present research about pressing issues and vital opportunities facing the voluntary or nonprofit sector. This virtual three-day event includes two plenary sessions, 180+ panel and/or paper presentation sessions, a poster session and numerous opportunities for networking and idea sharing.

Learn more

Donor stewardship: How to keep your donors giving year after year webinar on Oct. 30, from 8:30-10:00 a.m. Stewardship is one of the most important components of the fundraising process. Find out what stewardship really is and what you need to be doing now. Register

Are you planning your 2021 conference? Let us know and we can help promote it. Please email [email protected] with your top picks.

We want to recognize board leaders

For most board members, board leadership roles come with a commitment and investment of time and resources to support a cause they care about. However, for the individual who steps up to serve as board president or chair, the role comes with the assumption of overall responsibility for the nonprofit and guiding the organization’s path forward.

As we continue to share news of board leaders who have taken the helm, we encourage you to recognize and thank these individual for tackling the role, because as a community member you recognize the value of his or her investment to help keep the sector strong.

If you want to announce your organization’s new board leader, please send name, position and a head shot HERE.

We are open to other ways we can support and recognize board leaders. Send us your thoughts or tell us a story about a board leader who has made a difference in your organization. Share your ideas with Bryan Orander, president.