His face was bright red. He looked down at me, practically spitting his anger. Next to him stood the organization’s development director, silent but glowering. My sin? I ran the box office of a large regional theater, and it was opening night. My (somewhat impossible) task was to both ensure every seat in the house […]
We have a sickness. It’s called free or cheap.
First, let me emphasize that I’ve spent far more years as a staffer than a consultant. So I’m not pointing fingers away from myself. But why is our immediate reaction to any problem asking if we can get it free or cheap? That way of thinking is hurting us. And it’s hurting all the people […]
If fundraising matters, you need to invest in it
Have you ever saved for something really important? A car, a house, an education? If you’re saving now, you’ve noticed how low interest rates are. It can be hard to see your savings grow so slowly. Your organization, if you have an endowment or reserve funds, saves too. Your finance director or board finance chair […]
How to challenge the White Walkers of nonprofit life
As I write this, Harvey is finally lumbering his way across the country. Behind the storm is an area of devastation from floods that’s hard to comprehend – at least not in the U.S. And right behind the concern is the usual conversation about what role charities play in disasters. Which organization is doing too […]
Experience or energy: what do you need in your staff?
It sure caught my eye A question that I hope was a mental exercise was posed recently on an online forum: Should staff and board be limited to 10-year terms? The question received a variety of responses – all of which, to me, highlighted an unfortunate divide. Younger people felt they had the fresh thinking […]