Calling ALL grant professionals! Top Grant Conference Comes to Indianapolis

In further recognition of central Indiana as a hub of philanthropic study and practice, the 14th Annual Conference of the Grant Professional Association will be held on October 17-20, 2012 at the Hyatt Regency Indianapolis. Register now for a Double Discount - see more below.

SIX FEATURE BENEFITS

1) 70 Workshops like "Writing Your Goals and Objectives Right!" and "The Principles of Project Management for the Grant Professional" and more!

2) Keynote Speaker: Stacy Palmer - Editor of The Chronicle of Philanthropy

3) 8 Featured Speakers including Patrick Rooney, Executive Director of the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, Henry Berman, CEO of Association of Small Foundations and more!

4) 5 Meals and Welcome Reception

5) 4 Pre-Conference Workshops, featuring Bev Browning's "Grant Writing Consulting", Barbara Harrington's "New Rules For Engaging Corporate Sponsors -- How Grant Writers Can Become Indispensable" and Department of Education's "Keep Your Grant Funds from Wandering"

6) Plenty of Networking Opportunities

FOUR DAYS TO SAVE $$$! ADDITIONAL SAVINGS OF $50!
Register before 6/30/12 and save $76 with the Early-Bird Rate! Also, save an additional $50 off of your registration rate or GPA Membership when you enter the discount code "INDY-50" in the shopping cart!

FMI or to register.

ent:imler CPA’s 50 years w/nonprofits + Sikich CPA = Your Success

We are very excited to welcome another new sponsor to the Indianapolis Not-for-Profit News. In November 2011, Indianapolis-based accounting firm ent:imler CPA, PC made the exciting decision to merge with Sikich LLP, a leading regional accounting, advisory, technology and managed services firm. Although the CPA practice is now named Sikich, the dedicated Indianapolis team of professionals (all legacies from ent:imler CPA, PC) are committed to providing the same unparalleled service and rates that the Indiana not-for-profit organizations have experienced in the past. With the Sikich enhancement, there is a greater range of valuable resources for organizations.

Sikich’s Indianapolis team has worked with not-for-profit organizations for more than five decades. In that time, the team has become experts in the industry by getting involved in community activities and not-for-profit boards, as well as participating in specialized training programs focused on trends that affect tax-exempt organizations. In addition to the traditional audit, tax and accounting services, the recent merger allows the team to provide even more services to not-for-profit organizations, from human resource consulting and marketing, to technology services and products, and more. To discuss how Sikich can help you face your challenges and reach your goals, call the Indianapolis office at 317-842-4466 or visit http://www.sikich.com.

Nationwide Survey for Development Directors and Executive Directors/CEOs

Please participate in this important research! If you are a Development Director or an Executive Director, I hope that you will take this survey and distribute it to others you think would be interested. In coordination with AFP, CompassPoint and the Evelyn & Walter Haas Jr. Fund are conducting a national research project exploring the role of the Development Director/VP of Development in nonprofit organizations. The research findings will contribute to the advancement of the sector's thinking about what successful development leadership looks like and how executive directors and organizations can better identify and support the talent they need in this essential role. They are exploring what they see as a persistent disconnect between what fundraisers do and what executive directors and board members think they should be doing.

Not sure? Read more about the survey on the Chronicle of Philanthropy Blog.

If you are a Development Director or an Executive Director/CEO, please take the survey.

Thank you for your support and contribution to this important study. By serving as a partner in distributing this national survey, the researchers have agreed to provide us with a regional (Indiana/Ohio) data summary to share in addition to the national findings.

Searching for a Key Employee - The 7 No No's - by Hildy Gottlieb

The search for a key employee is the single most critical decision your organization can make. And if you are like most nonprofit organizations, your board and/or Executive Director will probably decide to take on this task themselves. Most people figure that because they've been in business (or been an executive in a nonprofit) that they know how to hire. But if you ask, they'll tell you war stories - bad hires, bad interviews, horrible candidates.

With the success of your organization hinging on this decision, there are steps you can take (and, more importantly, steps to avoid) to increase the chances of getting the very best candidate for the job.

1 - Don't start with the job description; start with your organization's long-term goals

2 - Don't look for qualifications; look for qualities

3 - Don't place a boring ad; advertise to sell

4 - Don't rank resumes; sort by Yes or No

5 - Don't go straight from Resume to Interview; get more information

6 - Don't interview if you don't know how; Get outside help and know what you're looking for

7 - Don't settle for references that can't verify facts; get the
information you need

>>Read the full article.

Appnuity - Technology Solutions for Nonprofits

I am excited to have Appnuity joining us as a sponsor in both Indianapolis and Cincinnati. David Eckel and his Appnuity team were partners with Charitable Advisors in beginning the Not-for-Profit News more than 10 years ago. Their business has thrived by working with both nonprofits and businesses. Here are a few words from David about their work:

“Appnuity has been providing expert and reliable technology services to the nonprofit and corporate sectors since 1999. As an Information Technology consulting and services company, we provide services from strategy to cloud hosting within our SAS-70 Type II data center (SSAE-16). We work closely with our clients to ensure their information technology environment meets all regulatory and compliance requirements, whether on-premise or utilizing our cloud-based technologies.

Our proprietary Consult, Implement and Operate (CIO) methodology, combined with our comprehensive services, enable clients to leverage one service provider across all technology requirements. Our consultants bring deep technology experience as we assess your business information technology needs in order to create technology strategies that deliver optimal returns. Some of our non-profit clients include: Central Indiana Community Foundation, Children’s Bureau, Inc., Day Nursery and Indiana Grantmakers Alliance. http://www.appnuity.net/non-profit-solution.html or give them a call at 317-566-0203 or toll-free at: 877-850-2777.

Best Practices for Volunteer Orientation

Do you think of your board members as volunteers? I came across the article below and was struck by the intentionality put into training and orientation for volunteers who are requested to perform basic functions or roles around a nonprofit. How much more might be appropriate for the volunteers we expect to help lead our organizations?

Best Practices for Volunteer Orientation - Shawn Kendrick, VolunteerHub.com

Back in 2007 we wrote a blog examining why volunteers stay with an organization -- and why they leave. We mentioned that lack of training and/or orientation is one of the reasons volunteers don't stick around. If "on the job" training is your organization's primary means of acclimating volunteers, it may be time to reconsider. Although it takes a little more effort, orientation is a volunteer management practice that sets the foundation for a successful relationship. To help get you started, we've pulled together some recommendations and best practices.

-Start with Some One-on-One Time
-Bring out the Paperwork
-Give a Sample of The Work You Do
-Pair Them Up with an Experienced Volunteer or Staff Member
-Give Feedback

In the end, you'll see that investing just a little more time upfront in the orientation process can pay big dividends later. You'll have better-trained volunteers who stay longer, which is well worth it.

Read the Entire Article.

Recruiting and Vetting Nonprofit Board Members

Intro - As we approach mid-year, many nonprofits are hustling to recruit that final candidate for the July 1 start of the fiscal year or beginning to look at the long list of experienced board members who will be stepping down in December 2012. We found this article that provides a pretty comprehensive look at finding the right board members.

A key ingredient to increasing a nonprofit organization's impact in the community it serves is having the right people on the team. Critical to this team are an organization's board members.

"Board composition is a key lever," said Jeri Eckhart-Queenan, a partner at the Bridgespan Group, a nonprofit advisor to nonprofits and philanthropy. "Having the right people with the right skills helps the organization achieve its strategic goals."

Therefore, the first question that nonprofits should consider as they start to formulate their board recruiting plans is: What are our key strategic priorities, and what new skills or expertise might we need on our board to help us achieve those priorities?

Read the full article here.


SALARY SURVEY REMINDER - We need 50 more responses to our Central Indiana Salary Survey. EDs, CEOs, HR Directors - contact
Survey@CharitableAdvisors.com for your organizations survey link.

Thank you,

Bryan Orander
President of Charitable Advisors and Publisher, Not-for-Profit News


www.CharitableAdvisors.com 
www.NotforProfitNews.com
317-752-7153