Issue 6
September 17, 2002

NEWSNOTES is a monthly email newsletter published by Nonprofit Enterprise at Work. It includes items of interest to the nonprofit community in Washtenaw County and the surrounding areas, as well as resources available at NEW. Feel free to share NEWSNOTES with friends and colleagues -- encourage them to sign up for their own subscription.

NEW would like to recognize the generous support of its partners:

Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation Ford Motor Company Fund
Pfizer Global Research and Development The Power Foundation
   

IN THIS ISSUE

LEAD STORY
FEATURED ITEMS
REGULAR FEATURES

LEAD STORY

Learning for Capacity Building


Organizations should view training as one dimension of an overall capacity-building plan1

In recent days, we commemorated the events of September 11, 2001. The people of many nonprofits helped in countless ways that day and in the year since. One billion dollars were raised, 55,000 volunteers were mobilized across the country. That day cast a bright light on the nonprofit sector, and on the issues of capacity and accountability in the sector. (See "In Disaster's Wake" in the Chronicle of Philanthropy.)

Recent events and the shifting economy may have challenged our fundraising efforts, but not changed our commitment to our core missions. These times have required us to reassure our donors, and given us the opportunity to remind the community at large of our value. And these events have caused us to redouble efforts to build and demonstrate our effectiveness in providing quality programs and services.

As we work to get our arms around all the knowledge, skills and technology we need in order to be well-managed agencies, we already have one capacity that will go a long way toward this goal - our capacity to learn. Most training is actually done informally in the workplace - coworker to coworker. And there are many formal training programs offered - both instructor led and technology-based. Sorting the options and getting value for learners and the organization can seem like a test all by itself. Here are some ideas for using learning strategically to build capacity as we work with a renewed passion for mission, post 9/11.

Free resources:

  • Reading: We teach our kids to use the library and schools encourage the habit of daily reading. So can we! Still the best and cheapest way to get a bead on the sector and your area of specialization. Check out these periodicals dealing with nonprofit issues. Email newsletters come directly to your inbox.
  • NEW's Nonprofit Reference Library: With over 800 volumes and 30 periodicals, and a helpful full-time librarian, this specialized library is a manager's best friend. Try FC Search, the subscription software tool that lets you do a subject matter search of over 67,000 potential funders.
  • Several of NEW's fall 2002 workshops are free.
  • Incent learning - start a book-a-month-club and reward staff who read, share and suggest applications for what they have learned. Best practice: Zingerman's, a local retailer, sets expectations for managers as part of their leadership role in the company. They are required to complete an average of two hours per week of formal training and one hour per month of teaching others. Formal training can include reading or self-study, attending a conference or class, or visiting related businesses/agencies.
  • Energize those staff meetings - you have to have them, so don't just do those round robin report-outs. Pick names from a hat, and have the winner read an article or find a best practice relevant to your organization, mission or the sector, then summarize for staff and volunteers. A free mini-training and you are on your way to becoming a learning organization. Executive directors can set the example by starting the cycle.
  • Board meetings are teachable moments - board members are busy, and so are you. You don't need additional meetings to teach and learn. If you provide written committee reports and confine agendas to policy decisions requiring a vote, you will have ten minutes under "new business" to present a trend or issue affecting your mission. This is a good way to involve staff with the board and help them get the "big picture" in preparation for strategic planning, or any time of the year.

Considerations when you buy training:

  • Does this training serve the individual, organization or both? Ideally, you want it to serve both, but don't underestimate the value of training an individual for a future post in the sector. When competitive compensation is hard to come by, professional development opportunities help employee retention by communicating the willingness of your agency to invest in staff.
  • Develop a simple method for teaching participants to train others. Distribute materials and do an in-service. Make "bringing it back" a condition of attendance. Process the information as a group so it's not "shelf" training.
  • Consider sending multiple people, especially a staff and board member together. According to Katie Burnham, "sending a team to training helps your organization in four ways: it ensures continuity, guarantees that ideas are carried out, creates synergy and builds networks."2
  • Organizational readiness is key. Think about how you have utilized past training and how future training will be used. The value for your training dollar lies in being ready to apply new knowledge. Making training a budgeted item, however small, signals an organizational priority for learning - to staff, volunteers and board. Looking at training across the organization and its people lets you be planful and strategic in using lean resources. A good formula to remember:

Motivated Individual + Prepared Organization + Effective Training = Improved Practice3

  • Don't skip professional conferences. If you can't afford the national conference, try the regional or local. They are energizing, and the sheer number of contacts guarantees a value even beyond what's happening in plenaries, workshops and seminar tracks.
  • Memberships in local chapters of professional associations are low cost/high yield propositions. The American Society of Training and Development and the Detroit or Capital Area (Lansing) chapters of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) are just a couple that offer educational programs. The Ann Arbor Area Chamber of Commerce Morning Edition and Networks programs are great ways to learn and connect with the business community at the same time. Rotate who attends and get a variety of staff perspectives.
  • Consider collaborating. When NEW wanted to train its volunteer faculty on facilitating adult learning, we joined with another agency that wanted to train their staff - they provided the facility (free based on their relationship with a local corporation) and supper, while NEW provided the trainer. We trained more people cost effectively and combined audiences - enhancing peer learning by ensuring a good-sized class.

Online resources:

  • BeeFreeway - The Business E-Education Freeway was created to meet the demand of Michigan small businesses for efficient, effective training. Bee Freeway offers 1300 self-paced training modules, from management techniques to office skills to advanced technical topics. Michigan employers with 25 or fewer full-time employees are eligible for the training, prepaid by the Michigan Department of Career Development.
  • Michigannonprofit.com lists training opportunities for nonprofits.
  • ed2go is a program of Washtenaw Community College. Offerings include the A to Z's of Grantwriting.
  • SmarterOrg.com provides learning technology, courses, and consultation services to help organizations implement training, advocacy, and public education programs. Register through NEW and save on Budgeting for Programs and Proposals. Click here for other SmarterOrg courses.

Technology training:

  • Michigan Comnet is a community of individuals and organizations concerned with increasing communication and information sharing within the nonprofit public service sector. Take a look at Comnet's training offerings
  • NPower Michigan's mission is helping nonprofits use technology to serve their communities better. Check out NPower's classes.

Management support organizations:

Colleges and universities:

Footnotes:

  • 1: Gooding, Cheryl, "Using Training Strategically to Build Organizational Capacity," Nonprofit World, Vol. 14, no. 4, July/August, 1996. (return to text)
  • 2: Muehrcke, Jill, "Nonprofit Education is Coming to Your Town," Nonprofit World, Vol. 15, no. 2, March/April, 1997. (return to text)
  • 3: Gooding, op. cit. (return to text)

FEATURED ITEMS

Leadership2Go, Executive Director Series

On Friday, September 13, Leadership2Go kicked off the 2002 - 2003 series with its first event - "Burning Out or Burning Bright: Avoiding Executive Burnout". Executive directors from Washtenaw County joined panelists Jim Balmer (Dawn Farm), Russ Collins (Michigan Theater) and Cathi Duchon (Ann Arbor YMCA) to address the challenges and rewards of nonprofit leadership. Participants enjoyed meeting one another and hearing each other's techniques for avoiding burnout. Look for the next session in early 2003, when NEW will continue the Leadership2Go: Inside Out series with "Happy Staff Who Stay."

Contact Liz Peintner (734-998-0160) for more information or to suggest future Leadership2Go topics.

Summit2 - Mission and Management: Hand in Hand

On August 27, 2002, Summit2 - Mission and Management: Hand in Hand was held at EMU's McKenny Union. Sponsored by the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation, Nonprofit Enterprise at Work, Eastern Michigan University, and Washtenaw United Way, the event provided an opportunity for local nonprofit representatives to re-examine the priorities set at last year's Washtenaw Nonprofit Community Summit on Capacity-Building and reassess remaining gaps in the management capacity of area service agencies. Many breakout groups concluded that high priorities for 2003 will be trained and diverse boards of directors, greater technology resources and better media relations. Full results of Summit2 will be posted on NEW's Web site soon.

Information for Arts Organizations

Minigrant Application Deadline October 1, 2002: The Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs (MCACA) offers minigrants of up to $4,000 to Michigan nonprofit organizations to conduct locally developed, high-quality arts and cultural projects that increase public access to arts and culture. NEW administers this program for Washtenaw, Livingston and Monroe counties. The upcoming application deadline of **October 1, 2002** is for projects whose START AND END DATES are between February 1, 2003 and September 30, 2003. Download the minigrant application and guidelines from the NEW Web site. For more information contact Daran Smith (734-998-0160). Applicants in counties other than Washtenaw, Livingston or Monroe may visit MCACA's website to locate the regranting agency in their region.

Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs Annual Meeting October 17, 2002: The Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs will hold its 2002 annual meeting Thursday October 17 in Detroit in conjunction with the 2002 Annual Meeting of the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA). The latter group will meet October 18 and 19 and is expected to draw over 400 state arts administrators from throughout the country.

The theme of both meetings is "Driving New Agendas." The MCACA meeting agenda includes sharing ideas and insights with arts and culture counterparts from Ontario, Canada, and updates on MCACA's Visioning and Assessment projects. For details and registration information for either conference, visit MCACA's Web site.

Artserve Michigan's 17th Annual Governors' Awards for Arts & Culture: Save the date of Tuesday, November 19, 2002. The gala will be held at Ford Community and Performing Arts Center, Dearborn.

2002 Michigan Nonprofit Compensation and Benefit Survey

Are your salaries competitive enough to attract and retain quality employees? Are you wasting resources by training employees that leave too quickly? The 2002 Michigan Nonprofit Compensation and Benefit Survey provides the information you need to stay competitive.

Data was collected from nonprofit organizations in 60 Michigan counties for this publication. Included is an analysis of over 15,000 full time positions, 8,000 part time positions and 1,400 contract employees. This 55 page spiral-bound book contains information about compensation for 41 nonprofit positions including executive director, administrative assistant, human resources director, program director, grant writer, and specialized positions like MSW counselor, caseworker, nurse and volunteer coordinator. Information about vacation time, holiday pay, sick leave, insurance and pension plans is also included. Data reflects the size of the organizational budget and contains averages for specific geographic areas of the state.

The Michigan Nonprofit Association is selling copies for $35. To buy a copy for the same price, with Washtenaw county data broken out in a separate file, contact Ann Gladwin (734-998-0160) at NEW in Ann Arbor.

Joint Purchasing Programs

Washtenaw County:
If you are a 501(c)(3) organization in Washtenaw County, you can save money on office supplies, computers, furniture, printing, telephones, and other services by joining the county's Joint Purchasing Program. Here's how:

  1. Contact Dana Cunningham at the purchasing department (734-222-6760). She will send you a letter of agreement. Simply have an authorized signer of the 501(c)(3) organization sign and return the letter.
  2. You will then receive invitations to the program's quarterly meetings and a handout of participating businesses.
  3. When placing an order or receiving a quote with a participating vendor, let them know that your organization participates in the joint purchasing program and ask for the Washtenaw County price. It is your decision to accept or reject that price. The purchasing department urges all shoppers to compare goods and prices to be certain you are receiving the item you want for the best price.

A sample of current vendors includes Staples, Office Depot, Micron, Ricoh, and Kinko's.

Ann Arbor Area Chamber of Commerce:
Nonprofit organizations are invited to join the Chamber. Besides the myriad benefits of membership, organizations can receive discounts on health insurance, business owner's policy insurance, cellular and telecom services, credit card/check processing, and office supplies. See details.

Michigan Nonprofit Association:
Membership in the Michigan Nonprofit Association is open to all nonprofit organizations. Check out the specifics of membership benefits, including access to health and dental insurance, director and officer liability insurance, discounts on supplies and services, and networking opportunities.


NEW Center Building

New Tenant: Riprap: The Academic Book Television Program has opened an office at the NEW Center. Riprap's mission is to help academic authors and publishers by providing wider access to scholarly research through broadcast media, especially television. Executive Director Jim Schaefer has conducted over 60 engaging interviews with an impressive list of authors of books on a wide range of scholarly topics. The programs have a potential target population of 3.3 million viewers, including 260,000 in Washtenaw County, on 34 cable systems throughout Michigan. Plans are to expand to an even larger audience. Spend a half-hour immersed in a thoughtful topic on Sunday at 10 am on WFUM-TV or on CTN (Channel 24 in Ann Arbor) on the second and third Tuesdays of the month at 9 pm, as well as second Saturdays at 2:30 pm.

Volunteers: Nonprofit Enterprise at Work and fellow tenants of the NEW Center would like to express their thanks and appreciation to several groups who volunteered on outdoor projects over the summer.

  • The Ann Arbor YMCA Youth Volunteer Corps is a community service-learning program for youth between the ages of 11 and 18 and is in its tenth year of programming. Groups of volunteers worked at NEW on 13 different occasions.
  • Concordia University sent a number of hardworking volunteers on their annual Community Service Day, September 3.
  • The Ann Arbor News and Comerica Bank sent a total of 16 volunteers on September 12 for the Washtenaw United Way Day of Caring.

Many thanks to all!

Technology

SBC Ameritech renews funding: SBC Ameritech has recently renewed funding for Nonprofit Enterprise at Work's Nonprofit WebConnect program. The goal of the Nonprofit WebConnect program is to help small- and medium-sized nonprofits leverage Internet resources. The program provides Web development services to nonprofits, training relating to use of Internet tools, an upcoming technology volunteer matching service, and other Internet-related services and initiatives. Some of the services are provided in collaboration with Michigan Comnet and the Huron Valley Community Network.

NPower Michigan Announces "Virus Vaccination Day": Virus Vaccination Day is a FREE one-day community service event presented by NPower Michigan that is devoted to helping Washtenaw County nonprofits protect themselves against computer viruses. NPower Michigan is currently recruiting interested agencies and volunteers to participate in this special event. The Virus Vaccination Day will occur on Friday, November 1 in the afternoon. For more information please contact Nicole Summitt (313-267-9550) from NPower Michigan.

REGULAR FEATURES

Nonprofit Bulletin Board

Visit NEW's Nonprofit Bulletin Board to post and view notices about free resources, fundraising opportunities, and other items relevant to the southeast Michigan nonprofit community.

Nonprofit Calendar of Events

Visit the Ring!Michigan Calendar to find and post upcoming nonprofit events. Just select a county below and GO!

County:
(Click the 'Back' button on your browser to return to NEWSNOTES)

 
 
Contact Us Past Issues NEW Home Page NEW Home Page