Starting a nonprofit

You're Invited -- "Being the Difference" Book Release Party

Darius Graham — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 14:52:46 GMT

You're invited to the
book release party and reception for

"Being the Difference: True Stories of Ordinary People Doing Extraordinary Things to Change the World"
by Darius Graham

When: Sunday, July 13th 5:00-7:00pm
Where: Utopia Bar & Grill, 1418 U Street NW (www.utopiaindc.com)

About the book:
"Being the Difference: True Stories of Ordinary People Doing Extraordinary Things to Change the World", a new book by Darius Graham, reveals the stories of more than a dozen individuals that have gone beyond making a difference and, instead, have become the difference. Some of them overcame significant hardships and now help others facing similar challenges, while others in the book got so frustrated with a problem in their community that they just had to do something about it. Through each profile, the book conveys the message that anyone can make a difference by using his or her own experiences and passion to help others, which is the author's definition of being the difference. Engaging and uplifting, Being the Difference enables readers to see that no matter where they are in life or how little they have, there is always something that can be done to make the world a better place.

About the author:
Darius Graham holds a degree in political science from Florida A&M University and is currently a law student at the University of California, Berkeley, where he is editor-in-chief of the Berkeley Journal of African-American Law & Policy. In 2006, USA Today named him to the All-USA College Academic First Team. He is also the founder of Books All Around, Inc., a non-profit organization that promotes youth literacy.

More info on the book:
http://www.amazon.com/Being-Difference-Stories-Ordinary-Extraordinary/dp/1419673408/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1200462889&sr=8-1

Seth Godin Offering Free Seminar To Nonprofit Leaders

Roger Carr — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 15:12:44 GMT

Seth Godin is a top marketer, speaker and best-selling author who continually supports the nonprofit community.

One of his next contributions is a free seminar for a few people (no more than 20) involved with nonprofit organizations. It will be held on December 10th in an intimate setting at Seth's office in New York. I am confident each lucky attendee will walk away with many "outside the box" ideas he or she will be able to implement immediately for greater impact on the world.

Go to http://www.squidoo.com/Sethnonprofit to learn more about this event and how to apply. If you lead a nonprofit organization, this is an opportunity you should take seriously.

Nonprofit leaders group on Razoo

Deanna Ford — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 22:29:31 GMT

If you're the Founder or Executive Director of a nonprofit, come join the Nonprofit leaders group that I just created on Razoo:

http://beta.razoo.com/groups/nonprofit_leaders

A place to get connected and share insights for starting/directing a nonprofit!

Do Your Volunteers Know You Appreciate Them?

Roger Carr — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 14:41:47 GMT

An online conversation started with Seth Godin promoting the idea of a Customer of the Month program for businesses. Searchgive continued the conversation by suggesting a Donor of the Month program might be worth trying for nonprofits. A similar concept could be established for volunteers. The purpose of recognizing a volunteer each month is to express your appreciation.

Doing everything you can to retain good and experienced volunteers is important. Letting them know you value and appreciate them is an important part of meeting this need.

One of the nonprofit organizations I volunteer with has done a great job of letting me know I am appreciated. I have received three thank you notes in the last several weeks. One from the staff person responsible for my area, one from the President of the organization, and one from a child who suffers from the disease I am working hard to fight (this note meant the most to me). They also contact me in other ways on a regular basis and give me opportunities to get involved in many new ways.

Consider announcing your first Volunteer of the Month this week. Determine what motivates each of your volunteers and show every one how much you appreciate their efforts.

Book review and then someâ€¦

Emma Vick — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 16:16:16 GMT

Iâ€™m certainly not a salesperson for Bill Clinton but I just finished his new Book â€œGivingâ€ and not only does he highlight both the Kiva micro lending program extensively but he also talks about omidyar network in a way that makes even me miss it (I was never a member, Iâ€™ve just found out about it from the great people reconnected on Razoo). Itâ€™s very intelligently written (as expected) and drops some names but I think it has encompasses also of what Razoo wants to be. Clintonâ€™s main point is that a singular person matters and can with some perseverance make an impact. He has many inspiring stories about corporate people who leave their jobs to do better work in the Non-profit sector, but he also talks about six year olds who already have that drive to help people and the ability to see a problem and maybe see the solution, as well as very old people who entrust all of there lifesavings to a better cause. Anyway, Iâ€™m not saying by the book, Iâ€™m just saying when you go over to someone house and they have it, ask to borrow it.

Free Custom Websites Donated To Nonprofit Organizations

Roger Carr — Mon, 03 Sep 2007 05:13:12 GMT

Does your charity, church or nonprofit organization need a website or major website makeover? HotPress Web, a web marketing company in Denver Colorado, donates a custom website every three months. The next winner will be announced on

September 31, 2007.

The donated website is feature rich and has a value of $5,000. The Cunningham Foundation was selected for the last website. Check out http://www.cunninghamfoundation.org to get an idea of what HotPress Web is giving away.

I asked Steve Thiel, managing partner of HotPress Web, why they are doing this.

We believe philanthropy is an important part of a successful business

model. Investing in people and infrastructure not only helps to improve

quality of life, but to also create new resources and opportunities for

economic growth. Giving is a virtuous cycle.

I couldn't agree more. I love to hear about companies that incorporate philanthropy into their business activities.

When I asked about how the "lucky" organization was selected, more of HotPress Web's desire to help others make a difference came out.

The process for selecting an applicant will be fairly subjective. We

want to get involved with more than the organization's website - we

want to work with people who are passionate and really making a

difference in society.

Go to http://www.hotpressweb.com/free-website to learn more about this offer and to apply for your chance to receive a free charitable website.

"How to" on incorporating and establishing a nonprofit

Deanna Ford — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 16:01:52 GMT

Want to learn what it takes to incorporate and legal establish a nonprofit organization in the U.S.? Check it out at on the Razoo blog at:

http://blog.razoo.com/articles/2007/07/25/establishing-a-nonprofit-the-not-so-glamorous-details

One organization's story..

Deanna Ford — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 16:01:00 GMT

Interested in the story of how Nica HOPE got started??? Read the latest blog post on the Nica HOPE group: http://beta.razoo.com/nica_hope!

Starting an NGO in Nicaragua: An uphill battle

Deanna Ford — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 21:02:27 GMT

As I'm sitting here, drinking my freshly ground and freshly brewed Nica coffee with cacao - trying to get some work done amidst the biting mosquitos and growing heat - I'm thankful that the electricity is still running to keep the internet going - and to sustain that relief offered by the fan at my side. I'm hoping for at least a couple more hours today of electricity and water today. Yesterday we lost both from around 1pm to 8pm. Not the most helpful for a productive work day, as I'm trying to get all the paperwork together for the establishment of our new nonprofit: Nica HOPE.

In a country where you can't count on electricity or water or schedules or phones or anything getting done easily and efficiently, you have to accept the circumstances as they come and make the best of them.

Even so, I've gotten a lot done these two weeks that I've been here in Nicaragua. Exciting meetings with current and potential partners, seeing their programs at work - changing and impacting the lives of so many around us. And seeing the ways that we could increase their impact through our work at Nica HOPE - and change even more lives or increase the opportunities available to those already in their programs. So much good work to be done down here - and not enough of us - of me, either - to do it all. I wish we had the capacity to do it all and meet all these opportunities to make positive change down here.

But we have to stay focused on what we are capable of doing: on what we are passionate about - and where we can contribute real value - on what our resources will allow. (Check out "Good to Great for the Social Sectors" by Jim Collins - a great little read.) And for us - that is setting up effective vocational training programs that will offer the opportunities to individuals in Nicaragua the ability to improve their own lives through self-motivated effort.

We believe that with this vision and through this work we can help change the future of Nicaragua. And through all the challenges and constraints and frustrations of working in a country that lacks so much of the basic infrastructure and systems to facilitate our work - we will have to keep that focus and determination to make sustained and positive change in this country. It may be an uphill battle - but we are here and committed to the work before us.

And me, I'm learning every day what that means and what it requires... the sacrifices - the strength of character and faith and determination - the humility - and the commitment it entails. Growing and learning through so much of it. Hoping to come out on the other side stronger, wiser and with a greater ability to give and serve in the ways that can really make a difference in this world.

Deanna Ford
Nica HOPE, Director and co-founder
www.nicahope.org

Virtual Organization Management

Jonathan Cilley — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 03:06:36 GMT

Those of us in the non-profit sector know what it a challenge it is to manage volunteers that do not always have the same commitment level as we do. But what happens when the organization is no longer based in one location or any location for that matter? Virtual teams are becoming a reality in many organizations now and being an IT director of a completely virtual organization has been quite an educational experience for me.

1 . Command and Control
First and foremost when an organization is virtual, it is important that the various individuals involved can function independently of each other at any given time. Without a set place that staff can be in contact with organizational leadership at any time there must be a very clear set of directives to keep people on task. Without defined short-term and long-term goals in between conference calls and meetings it becomes increasingly easy to have people lose interest and focus on the mission. This can then lead to loss of staff members and volunteers if management is not careful and cognizant of their staff's state of mind.

2. Decentralized Leadership
The directors of a virtual organization need to be able to make decisions, maintain contacts, and work towards an organizations financial goal without constant direct interaction with executive directors. Since in a virtual organization the high level staff do not always have access to each other they must have a clear understanding of their responsibilities and what they need to get done with the help of their staff and volunteers. Some of this can be accomplished by having a clear set of high-level goals for the organization at all times while also maintaining open communication channels via E-mail and intranets to all top level staff within an organization. The other key to this structure is having high quality people at the top of the organization since a weak link at the top of a virtual organization multiplies the ineffectiveness of the individual more so than a more traditional organization.

3. Infrastructure
A high quality infrastructure is very important to any organization, but IT becomes extremely important when all communication is via the internet. One of the best things an organization can have when it exists virtually is an intranet solution that allows people to communicate anywhere and at anytime. While this is not instantaneous communication, it does mean that everything that is going on in the organization is visible to all others. These types of tools allow everyone to stay in sync and keep up to date with what others are doing. Web conferencing software is another must have. We use GoToMeeting for our conference calls and it allows every to share documents and talk about them in real time. This is as close as we ever get to seeing each other and this provides a vital link between the board of directors and top staff.

I hope this to be the first of my posts about managing and working in a virtual organization. Next time I will go into more detail about IT in a virtual organization and how to make it work smoothly without being at the users PC.