Ron Barrett, COGENCY GLOBAL's Vice President of Nonprofit Services, reflects on his experience participating in the 2018 Standards for Excellence Institute Licensed Consultant Training.[…]

The Standards for Excellence Institute, an initiative designed to help nonprofit organizations operate more ethically and accountably, announces its 2018 Class of Licensed Consultants. […]

A long-tenured executive director is uncertain about how much longer he intends to stay with his organization and has talked with a few members of the staff about the possibility of leaving. He has not spoken to the board or stated a clear intention, and the board is hesitant to address the issue out of respect. How can this board and executive director act ethically? Read this article from the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, a Replication Partner based in Santa Clara, CA, to find out.   […]

Disengaged board members fail to meet their ethical obligations to nonprofit organizations. If the executive director believes their nonprofit could raise more funds and serve more people, but the board's lack of engagement is impacting growth, what options are there? Read this article from the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, a Replication Partner based in Santa Clara, CA, to find out. […]

Boards have an ethical duty to understand and fulfill their responsibilities to a nonprofit, including rigorous financial oversight. If a nonprofit loses $900,000 over eight years due to theft by the executive director, was the board acting unethically?  Check out this article from the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, a Santa Clara, California-based Replication Partner,  to find out.[…]

The Standards for Excellence Institute has been following a news story in Baton Rouge that raises important questions related to best practices in governance and management of nonprofit charitable resources, and provides a sharp example of the importance of embracing best practices, as articulated in the Standards for Excellence: An Ethics and Accountability Code for the Nonprofit Sector.[…]

The role of an Executive Director is to acquire and husband all the resources of an organization, so those resources can best serve the mission. These resources may be dollars, good will, facilities or, most importantly, the people who are making a difference.[…]

Ahh, the glorious feeling of looking at the month after next on your calendar and seeing whole empty days. How easy it is to be magnanimous and say “yes” when asked to take on a job that isn’t due for two months. So we say “yes,” and put it on the calendar. When another someone asks us to do something in the future, we again check our calendar, see that it’s still pretty empty, and again say “yes.” This happens a few more times, and all of a sudden, the 1st week in December starts looking pretty[…]

The Standards for Excellence Institute, an initiative designed to help nonprofit organizations operate more ethically and accountably, announces its 2017 Class of Licensed Consultants. Class members hailing from ten states recently completed the intensive, three-day training seminar and can assist nonprofits nationwide.Standards for Excellence Licensed Consultants use their extensive knowledge of the multi-faceted initiative to help nonprofits strengthen their governance practices and exceed the[…]

The Community Foundation of Anne Arundel County (CFAAC) and the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County (ACAAC) recently announced the selection of eleven nonprofit Arts and Culture organizations to participate in an 18-month program training program with the Standards for Excellence Institute. The training program will run from January 2018 through April 2019.The eleven organizations are the Annapolis Opera, Annapolis Arts District, Annapolis Film Festival, Annapolis Maritime Museum, Chesapeake[…]