A Nonprofit Board’s Best Friend — A Robust Business Plan — Huffington Post Article
By Eugene Fram
The key to long-term success for a nonprofit board is to seriously evaluate business plans on a regular schedule, even if a status quo plan is desired.
http://huff.to/1kAh1gU
Nonprofit Boards 2014 – Two Recurring Concerns of Directors & Managers
Viewing responses to my blog-site over the past year has provided me with a window to topics that obviously interest nonprofit directors and managers. An unusually strong surge of viewing responses to the following two blog-posts convinced me that both issues were universal to the nonprofit governance environment. (more…)
An Action Agenda for Nonprofit Board Management Discussions
By: Eugene Fram
The PwC Network has published a list of director considerations related to improving director-management discussions. * Following is my interpretation of how some of the PwC suggestions shown in bold font, might apply to nonprofit directors and managements. (more…)
Civil and Honest Discourse Needed for Nonprofit Boards
Huffington Post Impact Section – Posted: 01/03/2014 9:31 pm http://huff.to/1lIWFNM
By:Eugene Fram
In recent years, I have noted some nonprofit board meeting environments have been developing into two distinctly different types: (1) a board consensus resulting from directors’ desires not to develop conflicts with peers, or (2) uncivil discourses based on political beliefs, especially when the CEO and board chair subscribe to different political parties. (more…)
Management Expectations of the Board – The Nonprofit Story – Part II Revised/Updated
I am indebted to Dr. Richard Leblanc of York University for the action headings used in this blog. The blog uses headings developed by Dr. Leblanc for his blog: “What a Board Expects from Management, and What Management Expects from a Board, January 27, 2013, York University Governance Gateway Blog. (rleblanc.aps01.yorku.ca) For reading simplicity, Dr. Leblanc’s specific quotations, which can apply to either FP or NFP boards, are noted in italics. (more…)
The question continues to be debated, and the need for comment and opinion seems insatiable.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eugene-fram/once-again-should-a-nonpr_b_4408917.html
2014 Thoughts for Nonprofit Board Members
By Eugene Fram
Nonprofit board members and managers should be interested in two sections of the 2014 predictions from the Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance, * which can be extended to nonprofit governance. <!–more–>
How A Nonprofit Board Director Can Initiate Positive Change
By: Eugene Fram
A nonprofit board member comes up with an idea that he thinks will do wonders for the organization. He is convinced that establishing a for-profit subsidiary will not only be compatible with the group’s mission but may even bring in new sources of revenue. It’s his ball–now what’s the best route to run with it? All too often in the nonprofit environment, initiating change can be as daunting as trying to get consensus in the US Congress! There are, however, certain interpersonal levers, which, if pushed, can accelerate the process–although one hopes that not all the levers will be needed in any specific situation. (more…)
Can the Deloitte® Governance Framework Be Applied to Nonprofits?
By Eugene Fram
I have been impressed with the Deloitte® Governance Framework (Copyright-Deloitte®), and following are my opinions on how nonprofits might benefit by understanding the model.
The lower four sectors of board governance chart are functions that can be delegated to management. The level of delegation should depend on the stage of the board’s development. However many boards unfortunately continue to micromanage the nonprofit, long after it has outgrown the start-up stage. (more…)
Following is a blog-post that I strongly suggest that you, your colleagues and friends associated with nonprofit or trustee organizations read carefully. As you read it, please keep the material below the link in mind.
http://www.mercadien.com/PDF/Volunteer_Chairman_Held_Liable_for_Nonprofits_unpaid_payroll_taxes.pdf
I think the situation presented above is more common than most directors/trustees think. As a layperson, I am surprised that the court did not spread the fine among all the directors.
The chairman was clearly trying to support a nonprofit in trouble. Perhaps he was so dedicated to the mission that he was trying to do everything possible to save it? Not Shown here is the fact that, “[T]he chairman is burdened with proving that they (the IRS) are not correct. … The law does not require the individual to have complete control over the finances, only what the court calls significant control.” (more…)
Nonprofit Management 