"On social media, images and hashtags can spread like wildfire. Posts that go viral are usually those that prompt a visceral reaction from users who feel moved to reshare and, in the best cases, take action based on a post. The scale, reach, and free nature of social media make it lucrative for nonprofits on tight budgets to leverage it as a platform for soliciting donations and raising awareness through storytelling." Anita Varma, the assistant director of Social Sector Ethics, as well as[…]

 "The vast majority of nonprofits use multiple forms of social media to raise money, find volunteers, or take some action on behalf of the organization, with the goal of advancing objectives. Is your social media program fulfilling your mission? You need to ask yourself three questions." Joan Harrington, the director of Social Sector Ethics at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, a Replication Partner of the Standards for Excellence Institute wrote a blog on the Ethics of Social Media and[…]

This is part of a special series, brought to you by the Standards for Excellence Institute, to provide nonprofit leaders with a brief nonprofit governance and management tip weekly over the course of 2020. We hope these short tips will be helpful to you and the nonprofits you serve. If you have suggestions for future topics, please forward these to acmadsen@standardsforexcellence.org.When I started with the Standards for Excellence in April 2019, one of my first tasks was to draft the 2018[…]

This is part of a special series, brought to you by the Standards for Excellence Institute, to provide nonprofit leaders with a brief nonprofit governance and management tip weekly over the course of 2020. We hope these short tips will be helpful to you and the nonprofits you serve. If you have suggestions for future topics, please forward these to acmadsen@standardsforexcellence.org.Earlier this week, I answered my home phone and a paid fundraiser working for a nonprofit that my family and I[…]

This is part of a special series, brought to you by the Standards for Excellence Institute, to provide nonprofit leaders with a brief nonprofit governance and management tip weekly over the course of 2020. We hope these short tips will be helpful to you and the nonprofits you serve. If you have suggestions for future topics, please forward these to acmadsen@standardsforexcellence.org.Back in the mid-1990s, I had the privilege of working with the volunteer taskforce that ultimately developed and[…]

This is part of a special series, brought to you by the Standards for Excellence Institute, to provide nonprofit leaders with a brief nonprofit governance and management tip weekly over the course of 2020. We hope these short tips will be helpful to you and the nonprofits you serve. If you have suggestions for future topics, please forward these to acmadsen@standardsforexcellence.org.So many of us volunteer for nonprofits. My best volunteer experiences leave me with feelings of hope and[…]

This is part of a special series, brought to you by the Standards for Excellence Institute, to provide nonprofit leaders with a brief nonprofit governance and management tip weekly over the course of 2020. We hope these short tips will be helpful to you and the nonprofits you serve. If you have suggestions for future topics, please forward these to acmadsen@standardsforexcellence.org.Its that time of year again! For many nonprofit boards, this is the time of year when all active board members[…]

 This is part of a special series, brought to you by the Standards for Excellence Institute, to provide nonprofit leaders with a brief nonprofit governance and management tip weekly over the course of 2020. We hope these short tips will be helpful to you and the nonprofits you serve. If you have suggestions for future topics, please forward these to acmadsen@standardsforexcellence.org.It’s an election year and it’s important for nonprofits to understand what they can and can’t do when it comes[…]

Kelsie Overton formerly ran a program at the Alabama Association of Nonprofits that matched interns with nonprofit organizations seeking Accreditation with the Standards for Excellence. She is now a litigation associate practicing at Bradley.  She recently shared her experience with the Institute. When I was working at the Alabama Association of Nonprofits, our CEO, Shannon Ammons, noticed a barrier for many nonprofit organizations. Though they wanted to become accredited with the Standards for[…]

The Standards for Excellence Institute, an initiative designed to help nonprofit organizations operate more ethically and accountably, announces its 2019 Class of Licensed Consultants. Twenty-nine class members hailing from nine states recently completed the intensive, three-day training seminar and can assist nonprofits nationwide. They bring years of experience to the table and represent organizations from California to Maryland – and many in between.    Standards for Excellence Licensed[…]