We all have our moments of discouragement.  There are times when we are getting beaten up so badly that we would rather throw in the towel than continue to get pummeled.  This situation can occur in just about any area of our lives…personal and professional.  But what do you do when it happens in your nonprofit?  How do you know when to press on or when to give it up?

As it happens, I had this very conversation a few days ago with an acquaintance of mine who runs a small nonprofit ministry.  He and his wife started the organization about 15 years ago and what little momentum they had back in the early days has long fizzled out.  They find themselves practically alone in keeping it going.  Anymore, they are struggling to figure out why they even keep on trying.  Bill is very discouraged and, for the first time, is seriously thinking about hanging it up.  Maybe you are there, too.  How do you know what to do?  Predictably, the answer is not so simple.

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It seems that there has been some confusion regarding last week’s article on IRS Form 990, particularly Schedule O.  In this short article, I want to expand a bit on that discussion and clear up some misconceptions.

We had a caller last week take us to task for hyping Schedule O as some kind of monster.  His comments (paraphrased) were along the lines of,

“You guys have some nerve.  You are intentionally trying to create confusion to increase your business.  I looked at Schedule O and it’s no big deal.  It’s a blank form!”

Point taken..sort of.  Yes, it is true that Schedule O is a mostly blank form with a bunch on lines on it.  But no, we are not hyping anything at all.  First of all, that would be a disservice to our clients.  It would also be a very short-sighted business plan.  The truth is that, like everything related to 501(c)(3), things are more complex than they appear.

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I can already hear some of your sarcasm…

“Tell me something I don’t know!”

“You’re kidding!  The IRS?  Really?”

Point taken.  It seems like the IRS always wants to know a thing or two about you.  Whether it is your personal tax situation, your business or your nonprofit organization, the Internal Revenue Service seems to always be there.  We’ve spent a great deal of time educating you about the seriousness of the 2008 changes to IRS Form 990 and what they mean to your nonprofit.  Well, the screws are getting tighter with the recent release of additional changes for the 2009 return.  Specifically, it is the changes to the Schedule O that have the potential to shake things up pretty dramatically.

What is Schedule O? The name of the schedule, Supplemental Information to Form 990, sounds harmless enough.  It was introduced in 2008 as part of the overhaul to Form 990 that added Schedules C – R to what had previously been just Schedules A & B.  The purpose of the schedule is to provide the IRS with…wait for it…supplemental information about the activities of nonprofit organizations that is not captured elsewhere on the return.  What is new for the 2009 tax year is that Schedule O is required of all Form 990 filers.  This is where the game begins to change…

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The filing deadline for the 2009 Form 990 is May 17, 2010 for 501(c)(3) and other tax-exempt organizations running on a calendar year basis.  There is nothing particularly new about that.  What IS new is that this year’s filing obligation has the potential to cause an enormous amount of heartache to those nonprofits that are unaware of the requirements and fail to do what is necessary.  We touched on this briefly in our last article, but we want to expand on it a little bit.  We implore all of our clients and friends to read this article carefully and be informed.

ALL tax-exempt organizations must file Form 990. With the distinct exception of churches, all 501(c) nonprofits are required to file a version of Form 990.  We’ve been saying this over and over, but we still find that the message is not quite getting through.  To make it easy to understand, ALL means ALL.  No exceptions!

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As long-time readers of our articles know, most of our posts focus on tips and best practices for effective nonprofit management.  This post is going to be a little different.  There is so much going on right now that affects nonprofits, we thought it would be a good idea to provide you with a brief run-down of some things you need to know.  Some of it is related, some not.  Here we go…

1.  Many smaller nonprofits could lose their tax-exemption this year. How?  Tax filing year 2009 is the third year that the IRS has required the filing of Form 990-N for organizations averaging under $25,000 in annual revenue.  Prior to 2007, no filing was necessary.  IRS regulations state emphatically that any 501(c)(3) public charity that fails to file a required Form 990 for three consecutive years will automatically lose their tax-exempt status.  Unfortunately, many organizations are either still unaware or just whistling Dixie and not taking this seriously.  I expect panic to set in when letters of revocation start hitting mailboxes later this year. Read the rest of this entry »

Given the sheer number of clients we work with, we rarely highlight specific ones or their needs.  The devastation caused by the earthquake in Haiti is almost beyond imagination.  Below is a list of Foundation Group clients that work in Haiti and are responding to the disaster.  Please, take a moment and pray for the people of Haiti, then donate to a charity that is working to make a difference…

• Child Reach International (646-739-0944)
• The Kids Connection Haiti (http://www.friendsoftheorphans.org/haitiquake)
• Love One Another Embassy/Orphanage (615-453-5777)

Please help.  Thank you.

Founder’s syndrome.  It affects nonprofits and for-profits alike.  And it can be crippling to any organization.  Understanding what it is and how to avoid it is crucial to the future of your 501(c)(3).

Taken from that most-reputable of sources, Wikipedia, founder’s syndrome is defined as, “a pattern of negative or undesirable behavior on the part of the founder(s) of an organization”.  While that can be true, we find that most cases of founder’s syndrome within nonprofits simply involve a founder with too much influence.  In plain English, it means that the universe revolves around the founder…and not in a good way.  Here is an example of the way it usually works:

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It’s one of those administrative tasks that must be done every year:  mailing your donors a year-end statement of their contributions.  Even if you are receipting on a per gift basis, a year-end itemized report is a best practice that should be adopted.  If you are already doing that, good for you!  But let me ask you this…

Is your year-end donation letter making money for you?

Have you noticed that some nonprofits are still doing fairly well in this economy, even thriving, while others have suffered dramatically?  What do they know that you don’t?  While there are many contributing factors that underlie success in fundraising, I submit that the most important element is effective communication.  One of the best places to communicate is in your receipting to donors.

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For those who don’t know, Foundation Group has a free, weekly email newsletter that goes out to approximately 16,000 nonprofit subscribers.  This week we sent the Christmas story from the Gospel of Luke…yeah, the same Bible story Linus reads in A Charlie Brown Christmas.  Interesting isn’t it, that in the history of our newsletters, we have never received the overwhelming amount of positive feedback that we have the last couple of days. In this time of stress, cynicism and over-commercialization, the simple message of hope still resonates the most…

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One of the things that you learn quickly when starting and operating a 501(c)(3) organization is that you have to handle money wisely.  A nonprofit is no different than any other business in that you must make ends meet.  Otherwise, your charity will cease to exist.  The current economic difficulties make this task even more challenging as we all are stretching dollars until they are see-through.

But here’s a question you probably haven’t considered:  In all of your efforts to keep the lights on, could it be that you are misappropriating funds without knowing it?  Is it possible that you are even committing a crime?  If you do not understand what the IRS requires regarding designated funds, you might be.

I cannot begin to tell you how many times we see this situation messed up.  Most of the time, it is an innocent attempt by a board or executive director to just be good stewards of the money people have donated.

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Well, we are pretty much down to it.  There are only a few, short weeks left in 2009…and during much of that time, most of us will be preoccupied with all things Christmas.  But in all the hustle and bustle, there are a few things regarding your nonprofit that require your attention.

A few weeks ago, we talked about some key, end-of-year planning topics (read the post).  Extremely important, but somewhat conceptual.  The following is a checklist of year-end forget-me-nots that absolutely require your attention.  Ready?  Here we go:

Financial records. What is the current state of your financial recordkeeping?  Good, bad…or ugly?  Hopefully it’s more good than bad.  If it’s ugly…well, you’ve really got some work to do.  The fact is, you have a legal requirement to maintain proper financial records.  If your bookkeeping status lies anywhere south of good, get it fixed.  If necessary, hire someone who knows how to do this.  The truth is, the legalities are not even the most important reason to get this right.  You cannot effectively manage your organization without consistently good financial recordkeeping.

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Thanksgiving is a wonderful, home-grown holiday.  It is a time for family and friends, eating way too much and, most importantly, a time for reflection about all the things we have to be thankful for.  I heard someone mention this a few days ago, and it is very true:  Thanksgiving is about the only major holiday in America that is not, almost cannot be, commercialized…so much so that retailers just overlook it and start hawking Christmas stuff about 1 minute after Halloween ends!

Instead of just looking at what you are thankful for personally, how about reflecting upon a few things your nonprofit can be thankful for this year?  Here are three things if you cannot think of any:

A giving spirit. The citizens of this great land give more to need around the world than all other countries combined.  Sure, we are a blessed people…rich by the standards of most other countries.  But did you know that as a percentage of GDP, private philanthropy in the US is 1.7%…2 1/2 times the percentage of the next highest countries, Canada, Great Britain and Australia (average 0.7% each).  Other wealthy nations barely register on the radar by comparison.  Did you know that 3 out of 10 Americans gave to the tsunami relief efforts a few years back?  That ordinary citizens donated $1.4 billion to 9/11 charities in the days following the attacks on New York and Washington, DC?  That nearly four times that amount has been donated to Katrina relief efforts?  Even in these tough economic times, the number of people giving to charity has not decreased, only the amount they can afford to give.  That’s something to be thankful for.

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2009 is rapidly coming to a close.  And once again, we find ourselves amazed at how fast the year has gone by.  Funny how we have this conversation every year, but we act like it’s the first time it went by this fast.

Just as December 31 rolls around every year, so does the need to plan for your nonprofit’s year end.  With only a few weeks left in the year, don’t put off until later some of the most important things you need to be doing right now.  Let’s take a look at some key, year-end necessities.

Strategic planning. The economic uncertainty of the past year has forced many nonprofits to shift gears and even change course.  For some, it has caused an existential crisis!  What has the economic downturn meant to your organization?  The end of the year is a natural time to (re)evaluate what you are doing.  Focus on maximizing impact for a minimum of expense.  Easier said than done, no doubt.  But now more than ever, it is imperative to be intentional with everything you are doing.  “Winging it” is ineffective in the good times.  It could be fatal in the bad times.

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Boo!

Halloween is upon us…and there is no more appropriate topic that we could cover than how to effectively scare away donors.  In the, um, spirit of the season, let’s look at six ways to guarantee donors will want nothing to do with you!

Be undefinable. Keep ‘em guessing, we say.  Why box yourself into a specific purpose when you can be fluid and flexible…you know, all things to all people.  You need the freedom to pounce on whatever new cause-de-jour comes along.  Let those other nonprofits label themselves.  Not you, though…you be a chameleon.  Keep changing it up.

Be ineffective. Boy, this one gets them every time.  If you want to make a really bad impression, just refuse to accomplish anything measurable.  Rely on grand platitudes and empty rhetoric.  Plan constantly, but never, ever get anything done.  That’s waaaay too much work.  Hey, I know…just pretend you are a congressman!  Talk the talk, then talk some more!  With a little practice, you’ll be a pro at kicking the can down the street.

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The honeymoon is over.  It seems like yesterday that everyone was full of passion, vision and warm fuzzies.  You were going to save the world and nothing could stand in your way.  Now, passions have cooled, visions have diverged and the warm fuzzies have been replace with contempt and backbiting.  How did things go south so quickly?

Operating a business, especially a nonprofit, is a lot like a marriage…minus the romance.  What starts out with mutual respect and unity of purpose can descend into open hostility.  And, it can threaten your organization’s effectiveness…even its very existence.  Conflict management is an essential skill that every nonprofit leader must learn and utilize.  What follows are some key points to consider regarding effective conflict management:

Conflict is inevitable. Learn it, live it, love it.  The sooner you dispense of the notion that conflict can be avoided, the sooner you can manage the realities of it.  Conflict is inevitable because people are involved.  And where there are people, there will eventually be conflict.  Just like in marriage, you and the other leaders in your organization have different ideas, backgrounds and experiences.  These all color the way you approach life, including your approach to running your nonprofit.

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