Local Education Foundations: Unrealized Fundraising Potential

By Hank Lewis, MA, CFRM on August 21, 2012

There’s a phenomenon in our communities — local-or-public education foundations (PEFs or LEFs) that have been created/designed with political agendas — the politics of education, and the politics of inclusion. People in communities all over the country, espousing one educational philosophy or another, are working to influence their school boards and local political structures to […]

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How Many “Hats” Can A Nonprofit Professional Wear?

By Tony Poderis on August 14, 2012

I have found it necessary, far too many times during my years in the non-profit world, to face/deal with the nearly impossible challenge of helping an organization to maximize efficiency and effectiveness when a single person is required to be the executive director, the fund-raising development professional and the marketing/communications/PR professional … all at the […]

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How’d We Do In The Combined Federal Campaign ??

By Carter McNamara on August 7, 2012

CFC Charity Results In my last post (June 28), I reviewed some of the general CFC statistics, and the results for the 2011 campaign. But, while overall campaign totals may be interesting, what every CFC charity wants to know is, “What are our results?” CFC charities receive this information in the April/May timeframe, first with […]

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The Shipley Proposal Guide 4.0 – A Book Review

By Jayme Sokolow on July 31, 2012

I Recommend The Guide One of the many pleasures in attending the recent national conference of the Association of Proposal Management Professionals (APMP) in Dallas was visiting the Shipley Associates booth. Over the past few decades, Steve Shipley and Shipley Associates have probably done more to advance the proposal profession than any other company. The […]

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Corporate Giving: Foundation Grants vs. Sponsorships

By Lynn deLearie on July 24, 2012

As your NPO looks to increase its revenue from corporations, it is important to distinguish between grants from corporate foundations and corporate sponsorships. Both are important sources of revenue, and both come from corporations – many even from the same corporation… But, since they differ in many significant ways, it will impact how you prospect, […]

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We Want To Do The Study Ourselves !!

By Hank Lewis, MA, CFRM on July 17, 2012

We are preparing to enter into a capital campaign for a Christian Camp. We do not have a budget for a feasibility study, but we do have some capable people. What resources or materials can you recommend for us to do a feasibility study ourselves? ======================================== I have two immediate/automatic reactions to that question: 1. […]

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Praise for the Professional Director of Development

By Tony Poderis on July 10, 2012

For a very long time I wanted to write something which championed the cause of overworked, underpaid, and under appreciated staff development professionals. But while I was still working as a member of that glorious “clan,” I felt that I was not in the best position to make the case for my many (often) under-appreciated […]

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The Combined Federal Campaign — 2011 Giving Greater than all but 13 Foundations

By Carter McNamara on June 28, 2012

“There are lies, damned lies and statistics.” -– Mark Twain Here are some statistics about the CFC, and some common sense observations as to why you should almost always not base your actions on numbers that reflect the entire non-profit sector. It would be like getting a weather report for the Northern Hemisphere, perhaps interesting, […]

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A Salary Question – For Someone New to Development

By Hank Lewis, MA, CFRM on June 26, 2012

From an email: I am scheduled to interview with a staffing company who is helping a non-profit organization fill the position of Director of Programs and Grant Development for a Chicago nonprofit. I’ve never held this position before, but I have over 10 years of IT experience and over 8 years of Sales experience. What […]

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Your Federal Grant Proposals Should Not Be Clichés

By Jayme Sokolow on June 21, 2012

Because words are so important in federal grant proposals, your proposal narrative should avoid clichés – words/phrases that have been worn out and have lost their meaning and effectiveness … especially the latter. Clichés distract reviewers from the core of your proposal. They also waste the reviewer’s time, which can be very frustrating. Eliminating clichés, […]

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