Conference Session: Succession Planning

Speakers: Jason Swain, Jason Swain & Associates, LLC, and Diane Quincy

Jason Swain, of Jason Swain & Associates, LLC, brings over 13 years of professional experience in organization development, training, and executive and corporate coaching. He has brought his expertise to mid- to large-size, publicly held companies as well as nonprofit organizations.  Using validated, research-based processes and tools, Jason helps clients discover and use their signature strengths in service of something greater than themselves.

He will be joined by Diane Quincy, who has over thirty years of experience in human resources, organization and leadership development in the private sector. She has facilitated nonprofit board retreats and strategic planning, provided training and coaching for board and staff members, and has assisted with the director recruitment process. Diane has an MBA from Eastern Washington University and has taught leadership and team development at Gonzaga University as an adjunct faculty member.

By the end of this session, participants will:

• Understand the basic value systems and characteristics of the four generations in the workplace today;
• Be able to identify potential clash points between generations;
• Learn strategies for working more effectively across generations;
• Understand an important framework for engaging and developing current and future leaders of any generation; and
• Identify potential strategies for accelerating development of high potential individuals as part of a succession plan.

Join Jason and Diane at the 2nd annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Leadership Series held Thursday, February 16th, 2011, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.

Conference Session: Board Management and Development (for Executive Management)

Speaker: Don Chalmers, SparrowHawk Consulting Company, Inc.
www.sparrowhawkco.com

For the past 40 years Don has worked successfully with groups of people in a wide variety of settings; from small “encounter” groups to audiences in the hundreds.  He has served as the Executive Director of a number of nonprofit organizations including a higher education foundation and a health care system foundation and has been a member of several non-profit boards.  As a seasoned consultant, he’s collaboratively worked with scores of Executive Directors and their Pacific Northwest nonprofit boards to help their organizations grow, develop, and flourish.

By attending this session you will:

• Learn innovative, creative, and proven strategies to build a board of directors;
• Develop a clear understanding of a board’s roles and “job” within the organization;
• Review the skills and tools needed to perform those roles;
• Understand funder expectations of nonprofit boards; and 
• Learn how the board contributes to the sustainability of your organization.

Join Don at the 2nd annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Leadership Series held Thursday, February 16th, 2012, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.

Conference Session: Human Capital Management

UPDATED Speakers: Pam DeCounter, Red and Associates and Adam Borgman, YMCA/RSVP

Pam has 25+ years of experience in small business management and Organizational Development / Human Resources consulting. She has both managed and owned her own businesses, and served as an organizational development consultant for businesses and franchisees in the construction, manufacturing, banking, hospitality, professional services, non-profit, and healthcare industries.
Pam has served as an adjunct professor at Gonzaga University and her Masters Degree in Organizational Leadership. Adam has worked in volunteer management for the last seven years and currently, with RSVP of Spokane County, is responsible for volunteer program management which includes general recruitment, interviewing, orientation, and placement of senior volunteers to serve in community agencies.  

This session will cover areas that help us understand why human capital is a major success determining factor, yet not typically an organizational priority. We’ll discuss:

• Methods for attracting and retaining great talent (specifically performance mangement)
• How generational communication differences play a role
• Who’s responsible for effective human capital management
• Basics of volunteer management
• Recruitment messages, barriers to volunteering
• And much more…

Join Pam and Adam at the 2nd annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Leadership Series Thursday, February 16th, 2011, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.

Conference Session: Endowments and Planned Giving 101

Speaker: PJ Watters, Director of Gift Planning, Inland NW Community Foundation

PJ Watters assists donors and professional advisors to achieve donors’ philanthropic goals. She has a Master’s degree from Whitworth, 10+ years development officer experience, and 20+ years leadership experience in nonprofit organizations, including Group Health, Morning Star, Red Cross, Heart Association, and Chase Youth Commission.  PJ has completed courses at Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, including Principals and Techniques of Fundraising and Planned Giving.

At the end of the session participants will be able to understand and better articulate answers to the following:

• What is an endowment?
• How do you know when you are ready to establish a true endowment?
• What is your Board’s fiduciary responsibility?
• Who manages the investments and what is a good “asset allocation”?
• How do you determine your spending policy?
• What are the best ways to build your endowment?
• What is a community foundation and how can they support you in this effort?

Join PJ at the 2nd annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Leadership Series held Thursday, February 16th, 2012, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.

Conference Keynote: Deanna Davis

We are thrilled to announce the keynote speaker for the 2nd Annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference on February 16, 2012 at the Spokane Masonic Center. Deanna Davis, Ph.D., MPH, Managing Partner and Principal Consultant for Applied Insight, LLC, will deliver an engaging and insightful presentation over the lunch hour.

Combining her cutting-edge research with practical strategies, Deanna delivers presentations meant to inspire organizations to take action to achieve their goals – and she does it with flare! Known for her sense of humor and ability to tell a good story, Deanna has a way of engaging her audience while providing useful tools to achieve lasting change.

Deanna earned her Ph.D. in Leadership with a focus on Positive Psychology from Gonzaga University. She also has a master’s degree in Public Health and a bachelor’s degree in English. She has over 20 years experience leading more than 15 collaborative community initiatives, including the Inland Northwest Communities in Charge Initiative, Healthy Kids Now!, Second-Hand Smoke Community Awareness Project, and Disability Awareness, Surveillance and Health Promotion (DASH) Program.

With Applied Insight, LLC, Deanna (See attached) has acted as lead consultant on all community development, strategic planning, research, and training initiatives for several projects, has authored three books and is a professional speaker, executive and leadership coach, leadership trainer, and team building and facilitation expert.

Join Deanna for her informative presentation from 11:45 – 1pm in the Ballroom, 2nd Floor. Conference registration opens December 1 at www.ae-consulting.net/Conference.htm.

Washington Nonprofit Launch Party This Thursday, Oct. 6th!

Don't miss Washington Nonprofit's launch party this upcoming Thursday taking place consecutively in both Spokane (Spokane Masonic Center) and Olympia (The Heritage Room) from 5-7 pm.

The event will feature two speakers, Laura Papetti, Anchor & Director of Community Services for KREM TV in Spokane, and David L. Thompson, Vice President of Public Policy for the National Counsel of Nonprofits in Washington, D.C. A social hour will follow where the newly formed organization will introduce its goals to the local community.

Washington Nonprofits is a recently incorporated state association whose mission is building a strong, collaborative network of nonprofits serving Washington communities through advocacy, education and capacity building.

This event is free and anyone interested is encouraged to attend. Visit www.washingtonnonprofits.org to learn more and register for the event. Free parking is available to those who RSVP!

Save the date! The 2nd Annual Inland NW Nonprofit Conference is February 16, 2012!

It’s that time again. Plans for next year’s conference are underway. The 2012 conference will be a full day event with happy hour on location to follow. There will be up to 12 separate classes covering grants, marketing, financial, and other topical issues for nonprofit organization’s staff, management, or board.

It’ll be here before you know it, so save the date!

February 16th, 2012 (full day)

Spokane Masonic Center

Be sure to sign-up for AE’s blog to stay in the loop on registration dates, classes, and speakers as they become available.

Washington Nonprofits hosting launch party October 6th

Washington Nonprofits is a recently incorporated state association whose mission is building a strong, collaborative network of nonprofits serving Washington communities through advocacy, education and capacity building.

On October 6th, they’re hosting two launch parties – one in Spokane and one in Olympia – with free training, local speakers, and a social hour to introduce their goals to the local community.

Spokane’s launch party will be hosted at the Spokane Masonic Center, Thursday, October 6th from 3:00-7:00 pm.

A free training, “Advocacy: A critical part of achieving your mission” will be delivered by nonprofit sector veteran Melora Hiller who has 25 years of experience in the sector, an MPA from Seattle University, and whose work focuses on organizational development, capacity building, and program planning.

Following the training, the event will feature a happy hour from 5:00-7:00 pm which will include short presentations from both the Olympia and Spokane events (simultaneously webcasted). A briefing by Washington Nonprofits’ Executive Director, Alison McCaffree, will precede adjournment.

Nonprofit leaders from across Washington have long acknowledged the need for a statewide nonprofit association that could provide a voice for the more than 50,000 nonprofits in Washington. Our state association will provide Washington’s nonprofit sector with better representation in state and federal policy decisions, improved access to programs and funds, and access to services and programs to build their capacity.

The entire event is free and anyone interested is encouraged to attend. Visit www.washingtonnonprofits.org to learn more and register for this event.

Kids in Need Teachers Grant

The Kids in Need Foundation’s annual teachers grant is now available through September 30, 2011. The grant provides K-12 educators with funding to support creative classroom projects. Awards range from $100 to $500 each and typically 200-300 grants are awarded each year. All certified teachers working in public, private, charter, or parochial schools are eligible.

There are three sponsorship applications to choose from, which can be found here. All teachers that apply will receive a package of poster making and bulletin board supplies (worth $25).

What The Foundation is Looking For

• Innovativeness and merit (40% of evaluation)
• Clarity of objectives (20% of evaluation)
• Replication feasibility (20% of evaluation)
• Suitability of evaluation methods (10% of evaluation)
• Cost effectiveness (10% of evaluation)

A Hypothetical Project

Let’s say a teacher wants to integrate as part of their classroom curriculum NW Public Television’s Dr. Universe, a public television and online series, currently in production, that provides scientific education to youth. That teacher could apply for this grant requesting funding to purchase DVDs for their classroom to support an established learning outcome. Because the DVDs can be used in future classrooms, the project’s replication is feasible, which is a quality sought after by the Foundation.

To see what projects have been funded in the past, visit The Guide to Award Winning Projects. However, remember that they are looking for new and different ideas.

Important Things to Remember

• The grant funds projects, not programs. Projects are usually not more than a few weeks long at most.

• The grant awards are based on innovativeness and educational value, not need.

• Only one application per project is allowed; however, you may submit applications for as many different projects as you want.

• Take your time and read the guidelines. The Managing Director, Peggy Hawk, has encouraged applicants to contact her if they’d like her to review their project.

Nonprofit Community Offline Event: From Start-up to Sustainable, June 28th, 5 p.m.

Please join us for the inaugural LaunchPad Nonprofit Community offline event on Tuesday, June 28, 2011, at 5 p.m. in the LaunchPad Training and Coworking Center at 120 N. Stevens in downtown Spokane.

Leaders from local nonprofits will share stories around the topic “From Start-up to Sustainable.” Together, we will explore successes and lessons learned as nonprofit leaders built their programs and organizations. Fundraising, volunteerism, program development, donor relations, marketing, and community engagement are just a few of the topics that panelists will discuss. Participants will also have a chance to ask questions or share their own stories. The event will begin with the panel discussion and will end with an opportunity for attendees to share their opinions on how to make the LaunchPad Nonprofit Community’s online and offline content dynamic and resourceful!

Light refreshments will be provided. Cost: Free to members, $10 for non-members.

We look forward to meeting you in person at this inaugural offline event!

Amusing Quotes on Nonprofit Governance

This subject matter isn’t our forte nor are we qualified to provide legal advice, but we found the following quotes taken from the Nonprofit Law Blog’s “Quotes from Glee and Nonprofit Governance” highly informative and most importantly, quite entertaining (laughs are necessary to get through Mondays).

"When my mom applied to college, she put being popular as her main extracurricular activity." - Quinn. Too often, nonprofits recruit board members because of their social status or popularity. They justify this because of the funds and connections they may bring with them. We criticize colleges for accepting students for the same reasons. Shouldn’t nonprofits also recruit and elect board members for their abilities and desire to govern the organization?

“It takes years to build a good reputation, and only seconds to destroy it.” - Will. Doesn’t this apply almost everywhere? There are so many ways to ruin an organization’s reputation. Some bad fact patterns: board members using organizational resources to benefit themselves, unprofessional conduct of staff and other representatives, negligent management of organizational resources, and failure to control the organization’s communications (including through social media vehicles). Make sure the board is attentive to the need to protect the organization’s reputation. Use Will’s statement as a talking point at one board meeting.

“You're lashing out at me is fantastically compelling and inappropriate.” - Kurt. A good lashing out can make for great television. But it generally would not be appropriate at a board meeting, where divergent ideas and perspectives should be encouraged, but only if they are delivered respectfully and within an agreed upon framework. Chairs of the board or board committees should be instructed on how to effectively preside at meetings consistent with the organization’s values.

“People just don't like me.” - Rachel. “You might wanna work on that.” - Finn. If your organization goes through a multi-year decline in donations, donors, and volunteers, you might wanna work on that … at the board level.

“I have no idea what's going on in this script, and it's not in a cool Inception kind of way." - Finn. It’s important that instructions given by the board to the executive and staff through policies and directives are clear. Be careful of informal directions given by individual board members who have no inherent authority to act and conflicting directions. Make sure your policies are regularly updated and staff trained on understanding them. For example, it may be critical to educate and receive feedback from your development staff about the organization’s gift acceptance policy.

“Status is like currency. When your bank account is full, you can get away with doing just about anything. But right now, we're, like, toxic assets.” - Quinn. When your organization is riding on a wave of strong support, financial health, and programmatic achievements, it may seem like you can do just about anything – expand, pay more, leverage your status in collaborations. But waves eventually break and your organization’s status will also go through valleys as well as peaks. Make sure your plans account for these fluctuations.

“At what age are you allowed to look back on your life with nothing but regret?” - Emma. At certain times, your organization may need to cut a program, reduce the scope of its services or the number of people it serves, lay off staff, or even dissolve. Yet, there may not be a need to look back with regret. Sometimes, admitting failure is a sign of strength – that the organization was able to take a chance on something new that turned out not to work but would stand as a learning tool for others, or that the organization recognized its mission could be advanced more effectively and/or efficiently by another organization or another way.

On a side note, this legal blog is actually based in California and often covers California issues only. Does anyone know of any great nonprofit legal blogs that are Washington focused?

AE offers Constant Contact services!

AE is now a Constant Contact partner! Constant Contact is a service offering email marketing, event marketing, and online surveying. We like it because as a partner of Constant Contact, we now can provide these services to our clients! Here’s the scoop:

Email marketing is a quick and efficient way to communicate to your audience by email. With email newsletters, there’s no more stamp licking and you save on the print and postage costs of regular snail mail. You can send E-newsletters more frequently than newsletters without making such a large dent in your wallet.

E-newsletters have the potential to reach a larger audience because they can be forwarded with the click of a button. In contrast, the only audience a paper newsletter is going to catch is someone snooping through the recipient’s mail.

AE starts by choosing a template for your email newsletter. Constant Contact offers a variety of templates to choose from and for those who dare, Constant Contact allows for HTML editing. Luckily, AE knows how to tread the murky waters of HTML coding, so we can custom fit your E-newsletter to match your brand. AE can also assist in researching and writing content for your newsletter.

We then import your email contacts into the Constant Contact database, which can be saved for future use. These contacts can be grouped based on demographics or interests so specialized E-newsletters can be sent out targeting a particular audience. Need more contacts? AE can add a “join mailing list” button to your website or social media page.

In one click, we can send your E-newsletter to your chosen email contacts. We can also schedule the delivery of your email newsletter to target recipients during times when they are most likely to check their email.

Constant Contact provides tracking and reporting so you can see who read, clicked, and forwarded your E-newsletter as well as who shared it via social media. You can see which links had the most click-throughs giving you an idea of what types of content your contacts are interested in. You can also learn who unsubscribed to your email list and why. Constant Contact’s tracking and reporting features help you measure the success of your email marketing campaign and improve future E-newsletters. See an example email report here.

Another useful tool is event marketing. Constant Contact is a great way to spread the word about your organization’s upcoming events. For example, AE used this service to market our annual Nonprofit Conference this last February. We were able to solicit potential attendees, update existing ones, and offer a way for our attendees to register early just by sending out simple E-newsletters. This was especially handy when we needed to send out last minute reminders the night before, which would have been impossible by regular mail.

Constant Contact also provides an online surveying feature, which allows you to distribute an online survey by linking from your blog, website, Facebook page, or email newsletter. Online surveys have a better response rate compared to direct mailings and responses are received sooner. Also, there is no need to spend all that time compiling survey responses because Constant Contact does that for you, providing detailed reports of your survey data.

To learn more about AE’s services through Constant Contact, please contact us.

2011 North Idaho Nonprofit Forum

This forum, presented by the Idaho Nonprofit Center, will feature local and regional grantmakers for round table discussions. These funders will represent private foundations and corporations.

There will be three 20-minute opportunities to hear funders discuss giving priorities, deadlines, application processes, contact information, and all the basic facts relevant to their grant programs!

The forum will offer:

• Unique access to prominent funders;
• Unique Thought-provoking panel and breakout sessions;
• Roundtables with regional and local grantmakers; and
• Networking with your peers.

When: Wednesday, May 4, 2011, 8 am - 4 pm

Where: Coeur d’Alene Inn at 506 W. Appleway Ave., Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814

Cost: $89/Person; $59/Member or

Early Bird Special: $75/Person; $49/Member (Deadline April 20)

Registration: Idaho Nonprofit Center website

Check out what funders are attending so far by visiting the Idaho Nonprofit Center website.

Free Charity and Nonprofit Education Symposium on May 4th in Spokane

The first regional full-day Charity and Nonprofit Educational Symposium, presented by the Office of the Secretary of State, Corporations and Charities Division, is open to anyone involved in the administration of charities and nonprofits. This is an opportunity for those who work in nonprofits to learn more about what they must do to be in compliance with state and federal law.

The presenters will be Washington Secretary of State, Washington Department of Revenue, Washington Liquor Control Board, Washington State Gambling Commission, Internal Revenue Service, and WAACO (Washington Attorneys Assisting Community Organizations).

The agenda is as follows:

• Registration requirements of Washington state
• IRS requirements for charities and nonprofits
• Washington state tax requirements
• Bingo, raffles and adult beverages – How to do it all legally
• Maintaining nonprofit status & legal obligations of boards

Lunch will be provided free of charge. Registration is limited, so sign up today!

When: May 4, 2011, 8:30 am – 4 pm

Where: Spokane Falls Community College

Cost: Free!

Registration: http://www.sos.wa.gov/charities/

Contact: Teresa Glidden, (360) 725-0373

Tenacity. Don’t pursue grant funding without it!

According to Webster, tenacity is defined as “holding firmly; strongly cohesive or adhesive; persistent or stubborn.” Each of these phrases can be applied to the strategies and tactics of obtaining grant funding.

There’s temptation to expect immediate results from seeking funding support for the organization you’re in support of or working for. The need you serve to your constituent base always seems unfulfilled when funds were needed yesterday, which is why when you ask for a year-end donation you expect it relatively soon after the email or mail campaign or when you request sponsorship support for your upcoming event it should at the very latest come to you post-event. But when it comes to grants, dig your heels in and approach it like a marathon, training and all.

I was just informed that a recent grant proposal for one of our long-time clients was declined for the request of $75,000, but was instead allocated a $25,000 contribution. This same funder gave us $80,000 three years ago, declined us the next year, and then gave us $25,000 this year. Fickle? Yes. Frustrating? Sure. Worth the effort? Of course.

This long-haul funder relationship and funding pursuit has ultimately provided our organization the much needed support of $105,000 over three years, or $35,000 a year. How this breaks down:

• Over 1000% return on investment of time and resources from the organization;
• Approximately 455 constituents served; and
• Imperative operational support, particularly post-recession.

The value is apparent. However, let’s take it one more step: Had we not continued our relationship and tenacious pursuit of this funder’s support, we could have missed an opportunity to receive support that was much needed in our current economic state and whose fallout effects were largely unpredictable. Remain tenacious in pursuit of grant funding. Otherwise, stick to the short sprints, but be weary of burnout for you and your organization.

Special Thanks!

Thank you to all the attendees, speakers, sponsors, exhibitors, and staff at our inaugural Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference. We’re in the throes of analyzing the feedback in preparation for future educational events. Stay tuned!

Many folks have asked if they can contact their speaker. If your speaker opened up that opportunity during your session, then please feel free to connect with them. If they didn’t provide their contact information that day, you can find their name and company on our blog and Google for specific contact information.

Throughout your sessions, you may have realized that your needs as an organization call for to change. Should you want to discuss consulting services or recommendations on services that would help facilitate your needs, please don’t hesitate to contact us. All initial consultations are free. And if we cannot help you, we’ll do our best to point you in the right direction.

If you have any additional comments, concerns, or suggestions, please go to our website’s Contact Us page and email us.

Conference Day Info

We're finally here! Today's our conference. Over 100 people will be coming through the doors today!

We cannot take walk-ups, sorry.

All participants who have signed-up should have received an email via Constant Contact from AE that contains the location (Spokane Masonic Center), directions, and parking pass. We will not have parking passes available. Please print one before you arrive.

Check-in is in the Ballroom on the 2nd floor.

All classes are on the 4th floor. Please arrive at least 15 minutes prior to your first class.

Thank you.

Conference Speaker: Grants Panel, Open-forum Discussion

Panelists: Patty Gates, Executive Director, Community Building Foundation; Kristine Meyer, Executive Director, Avista Foundation; Sarah Smith, Strategic Grants Program Assistant, Empire Health Foundation; and Jennifer Pearson Stapleton, Spokane County Grants Administrator

Moderator: Sandy Gill, Northwest Nonprofit Resources

(www.nnr.org)

Each panelist will discuss the specific details of their grant making process from matching their funding interests to positioning your organization for funding to their expectations on administration and reporting. The open-forum will be moderated by Sandy Gill, who will facilitate the discussion with the audience and guide with relevant questions as needed.

Whether or not you are new to grant seeking, this panel discussion will provide immense insight into northwest funders explaining detailed information that will help streamline the funding process. Join this panel and come prepared with your questions about grant seeking.

Registration closes February 11th. The first annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Fund Development Series will be held Thursday, February 17th, 2011, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.

Conference Speaker: Building Sustainable Organizations

Janet Bourque, Principal, Bright Star Grant Consultants, and Nina Eckberg, Founder, Great Gardens in North Idaho

(www.brightstargrants.com)

Janet is an innovative and experienced consultant with expertise in program development and administration, course development, outcome based curriculum development, logic models, budget development, and evaluation. She is a respected leader and administrator with extensive knowledge and skills to support client missions and guiding principles. Janet’s experience includes positions as a Director of Federal, State and Special Projects, Branch Campus Director and Evening School Director for Lake Washington Technical College, and National Director of Education and Self Sufficiency for The Casey Family Foundation. She has led a wide range of workshops in national venues, served on the Department of Education grant review team, and advised U.S. Senate members regarding issues of workforce training.

Nina received her Bachelor of Science in Horticultural Science from Colorado State University and used her education as a landscaper in Colorado, Missouri, and Georgia, and then became a County Extension Agent for the University of Georgia, teaching Master Gardener classes and horticulture workshops to the public. She moved to Idaho in 2002 and worked for the Noxious Weed Department in Kootenai County, teaching residents the advantages of good land stewardship and invasive weed species control. Nina was awarded funding to projects through grant writing that resulted in educational outreach and weed control research. From there, Nina established Great Gardens.

The first half of the class will include PowerPoint's, small group discussion, and structured activities. During the second half, Nina will identify Great Gardens’ plan for sustainability, including the inspiration, initial planning, selection of board members, and articles of incorporation and she will show how building a sustainable organization is similar to building a sustainable garden.

Registration closes February 11th. The first annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Fund Development Series will be held Thursday, February 17th, 2011, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.

Conference Speaker: Program Evaluations

Karen L. Michaelson, Ph.D., Tincan, Executive Director

(tincan.org)

Karen is currently responsible for overall management of Tincan, including project design, funding requests, funder reports, budget development and management, supervision of personnel, and she acts as community liaison. All of Tincan’s programs require evaluation – sometimes external, sometimes more informal. Karen has used evaluation data to build Tincan into a $700,000 a year organization. She will cover the importance of evaluation, when and how to begin planning for evaluation, and how to design an evaluation that will give you replicable results. Karen will also cover embedded evaluations and choosing an evaluator.

Join Karen and learn details surrounding the importance of program evaluations and why they are a vital key to obtaining funding.

The first annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Fund Development Series will be held Thursday, February 17th, 2011, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.

Conference Speaker: Sponsorship & Corporate Relationships

Bill Kalivas, Co-Owner and Managing Partner, LaunchPad Inland Northwest, LLC

(launchpadinw.com)

Bill is the Co-Owner and Managing Partner of LaunchPad Inland NW, and was the Founder and CEO of a 501(c)6 nonprofit organization, Connect Northwest. Connect Northwest raised $150,000 in startup funding from Spokane County and several local businesses. Bill was responsible for building relationships with these partners and maintaining funding for four years. Currently, he operates a private company that teaches relationship building workshops.

Join him and learn the importance behind establishing credibility before making “the ask" and how to build relationships and create partnerships with your sponsors.

The first annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Fund Development Series will be held Thursday, February 17th, 2011, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.

Conference Speaker: Board Engagement

Tim Card, Partner and Coach, ForIMPACT

(www.forimpact.org)

Tim is the head of Performance Development Solutions (PDS) whose mission is to transform nonprofit organizations through ideas, funding solutions, training, and strategic coaching. PDS is a Regional Partner of The Suddes Group, headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, which has collectively raised over $2 billion through working with hundreds of organizations over the past 30 years. PDS incorporates the highly effective ForIMPACT approach into field consulting solutions, strategic coaching, and training initiatives. Tim has served on many different Boards of Directors and has over 15 years of Board experience.

Join Tim and find out what has made other boards tick! Review strategies to get your board engaged in your fundraising.

The first annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Fund Development Series will be held Thursday, February 17th, 2011, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.

Conference Speaker: Legal Issues

Steve Faust, Director, Gonzaga School of Law, University Legal Assistance, and Susan Amstadter, Practitioner in Residence at the ULA Clinic

(www.law.gonzaga.edu/academic-program/law_clinic/default.asp)

Steve is a Spokane attorney with twenty-five years experience in business law and litigation. He has broad expertise in corporate and business law. Steve currently maintains a solo law practice representing a broad range of clients including small businesses, nonprofits, technology-oriented firms, and start-ups. Steve is also the Director of the Business Law Clinic at the Gonzaga University School of Law. In that capacity, he supervises second and third year law students in providing a broad variety of transactional legal assistance to qualifying small businesses, technology start-ups, and nonprofit organizations.

Susan has been practicing law for over twenty-five years. She is currently a Practitioner in Residence in the Business Law Clinic at Gonzaga where she supervises law student interns, primarily focusing on nonprofit projects. Susan is also Co-Owner of Express Employment Professionals, a locally owned internationally franchised staffing firm, managing daily operations.

Join these speakers to better understand basic legal issues involved in operating a nonprofit organization such as governance, conflicts of interest, and compensation of executives.

The first annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Fund Development Series will be held Thursday, February 17th, 2011, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.

Conference Speaker: Grants Research

Mark Pond, Reference Librarian, Spokane Public Library

Mark Pond is the Reference Librarian for the Spokane Public Library. His work entails assisting nonprofits in devising funding search strategies, staying current on industry trends, and answering questions related to the grant research process. Mark has made ongoing presentations to a wide range of community and business groups to highlight the business and nonprofit related resources available at the public library. He is a Toastmaster’s alum and has his MLIS from the University of Washington.

Join him and learn about research resource tools, methods, and strategies to establish a funding strategy.

The first annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Fund Development Series will be held Thursday, February 17th, 2011, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.

Conference Speaker: Proposal Writing

Brian Holloway, Director of Development and Communications, Arc of Spokane

(www.arc-spokane.org)

Brian has held the role of Director of Development and Communications at Arc of Spokane for nearly four years where he oversees fundraising and public communications for the agency. He has an M.A. in English with a focus in Composition and Rhetoric, three years experience teaching writing at the college level, and three years experience as a successful grant writer. Brian will present on getting started in proposal writing, successful case studies in funded proposals, and a review of expectations on budgets and evaluations.

Join Brian and learn about the fundamentals of proposal writing when approaching foundation funding.

The first annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Fund Development Series will be held Thursday, February 17th, 2011, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.

Conference Speaker: Marketing on Any Budget

Sally Mildren, Director of Public Relations, Shriners Hospitals for Children – Spokane

(shrinershospitals.org)

Sally has worked as Director of Public Relations at Shriner’s Hospitals for over four years and is currently responsible for marketing, advertising, strategic planning, public relations, donor relations, physician relations and community relations. She has a Master of Arts in Communications and Leadership Studies from Gonzaga University and is Adjunct Faculty in Public Relations/Publicity for Whitworth University.

Sally’s presentation will focus on the importance of a strategic approach to marketing and budgeting including overviews on how to develop a strategic plan, maximize your resources, measure and evaluate effectiveness, establish creative partnerships, and discover opportunities to expand your budget. She will be using case studies from Shriner’s.

Join Sally to learn and discuss strategies and tools for getting your voice heard when operating on any budget.

The first annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Fund Development Series will be held Thursday, February 17th, 2011, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.

Conference Speaker: Online Marketing

Ed Reese, Sixth Man Marketing & Tine Reese, Freelance Graphic & Web Designer

(sixthmanmarketing.com)

Ed, Owner and Online Marketing Strategist of Sixth Man Marketing, provides search engine optimization (SEO), analytics, and conversion rate optimization services and strategy. He is a Spokane-based internet marketing consultant specializing in organic SEO, local search, and analytics. He has consulted for high-tech firms, universities, and national nonprofits. Learn more about Ed’s expertise through his site and blog at www.sixthmanmarketing.com.

Tine is an experienced and passionate graphic designer who understands the communication challenges faced by nonprofits, foundations, and small businesses. With a knack for simplifying complex ideas and conveying messages clearly and elegantly, she creates targeted communications that consider a client's organizational objectives and, most importantly, budget. Over the last 14 years Tine has worked at design studios in Washington, D.C. and San Francisco and co-founded a highly successful marketing communications firm whose clients include many of the most outstanding nonprofit organizations in California.

Join these speakers to review strategies and tools available for effective online marketing and understand what nonprofits need to communicate.

The first annual Inland Northwest Nonprofit Conference – Fund Development Series will be held Thursday, February 17th, 2011, at the Spokane Masonic Center. For more information visit the AE website.