Conference Speaker: Planned Giving

Sharon Morgan, Associate Director, Gift Planning Office
WSU Foundation (foundation.wsu.edu)

Sharon is responsible for identification, cultivation, and solicitation of prospects for planned and complex major gifts. Sharon has closed outright gifts, traditional planned gifts, and bequest expectancies totaling over $25 million while working in the Gift Planning Office of the WSU Foundation since 1999. She also serves on the board of the YMCA at WSU, a small nonprofit organization, and chairs its Resource Development Committee. She has also assisted in setting up their bequest society (Lamplighters). Sharon holds a Juris Doctorate from Willamette University College of Law.

Join Sharon and get an overview of gift planning theory and practice, including some marketing and legal considerations.

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: Financial Management

Angela Richardson, CPA & Ralph Conner, CPA

LarsonAllen (www.larsonallen.com)

Angela has over a decade of experience in accounting and auditing, including both public and private sectors. Her experience includes substantial planning and supervising of audits of nonprofit and governmental entities in accordance with OMB Circular A-133. In addition, she provides professional consulting and training to various nonprofit organizations related to board governance as well as performs quality control reviews for other CPA Firms.

Ralph’s professional experience includes planning and supervising audits of nonprofit and governmental entities in accordance with Government Auditing Standards and OMB Circular A-133. Ralph devotes the majority of his time to dealing with issues that affect community health organizations, voluntary health and welfare organizations, social service agencies, and other nonprofit organizations. He has provided audit and consulting services to nonprofit organizations for over 20 years. His experience with nonprofit organizations includes strategic financial and business planning, organizational development and restructuring, consulting and reporting on internal accounting controls, and indirect cost allocation plans.

Join these speakers to learn about basic financial management of a nonprofit organization, including best accounting practices, challenges facing smaller nonprofits, trends within the industry, and basic benchmarking tools to help manage the organization.

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: Early Bird Special - Purchase Day Pass by 2011

Early Bird Discount: Take an additional 10% off of a Day Pass if purchased prior to 2011! Day passes include 4 classes of your choice, lunch, and access to all networking opportunities and vendors.

Day passes already include a 10% discount, but an additional 10% will be deducted if purchased before 2011.

Before 2011 Discount Price: $153



After 2010 Price: $170

Once the official registration system is available, you will be able to purchase classes, or additional day passes for other members within your organization (at 50% off) on AE Consulting’s website.

You will be contacted by email to confirm your class choices. All classes WILL be available for Early Bird purchasers.

*Offer EXPIRES December 31st, 2010

*Full refunds will be available within 30 days of being requested. If you need a refund, please contact us directly.

Recruiting Presenters for Nonprofit Conference

AE Consulting will be hosting the first annual Inland NW Nonprofit Conference – Fund Development Series, February 17th, 2011, at the Spokane Convention Center. We will be hosting a 1-day educational conference open to all area nonprofit organizations and covering topics such as grants, marketing, board development, legal, and much more.

Right now we’re in the throes of creating all our marketing materials to spread the word and recruit speakers! For details, please access the Speaker Outline by clicking the image on the top right of this post.

Please feel free to forward this information on to anyone you feel is a local expert in the subject area. If you are interested in presenting, please email info@ae-consulting.net with the class session in the Subject header, we'll reply with a brief application.

We should have the capabilities to begin registration for the conference by December via ae-consulting.net and updates via our blog at ae-consulting.blogspot.com.

Grant Makers, Grant Seekers & Some Tips on Clearing the Way

While reading Grassroots Grants, by Andy Robinson, although written over 10 years ago, it is apparent that there are core topics within the grants writing process that remain unchanged. Since the publishing of this book, the primary change has been the increased use and dependence on the internet. Otherwise, the challenges, processes, and passions within the work are the same.

Obstacle number 1: understanding what the grantor wants to fund.

Grant seekers face a huge challenge when interpreting what the grant makers want to fund. They first have to determine who would fund them, what they want to fund, and then, how to approach.

Luckily, the advent of websites allows an expedited route to getting information on funding priorities and guidelines; however, grant seekers are still butting up against the written word, which leaves much room for misinterpretation.

Here are some testimonies Robinson points out from his survey to grant makers on what they want from their grant seekers:

The Compton Foundation’s Edith Eddy says, “What really annoys me is people who send us volumes of materials when, as an environmental funder, we ourselves are doing everything we can to conserve paper. Keep it simple, keep it short.”

John Powers of the Educational Foundation of America states, “Every contact you have with a foundation is a window through which your work will be seen. It is important to be accurate, thorough, and prompt. Sloppiness in spelling, grammar, typos, style, and jargon will lead the reader (funder) to infer that the organization is sloppy and possibly ineffective in its work.”

Diane Ives of the Beldon Fund admits, “Quite frankly, the proposal is the least important part… It’s the whole relationship process, building a relationship with the foundation.”

What this clearly states is that there is no one size fits all solution when approaching grants makers. They’re all different. It is up to the seeker to keep in mind the following tips while charting their course:

1. Follow the guidelines and rules they have written on their websites.

2. Aim to establish a relationship with a grantor before writing a proposal – write, call, or email a LOI (Letter of Intent).

3. Avoid jargon and fancy language in your letter – a brief combination of detail including constituent testimonials, data, and anecdotal information is very useful.

4. Edit, proof, peer proof, and repeat.

5. Keep going! And track all your contacts.

Locating the right fit for grants takes time and perseverance, but finding that match can mean saving a program, helping that many more kids learn to fish, keeping one more stomach full. I feel it’s worth it. Any comments from grant seekers or makers are welcome:

Maximizing a Consultant Relationship from the Outset

Consultants are a dime a dozen. However, when you establish a functional relationship with a great consultant, you’ve struck gold! By definition a “consultant” is one who gives professional or technical advice, or, one who consults another. Sounds generic right? This works to your benefit. You can source a consultant, or a group of them, for any organizational need. There are multiple advantages when hiring a consultant. They can have flexible work schedules, broad networks, and integral knowledge of the local community. Consultants also pay their own business taxes and insurance fees and can offer an outside opinion without the bias or lack of experience that has been presenting an obstacle to your organization.

To maximize the time and money spent between your organization and the consultant, it’s important to consider a few key elements prior to signing any contracts. Here’s a brief snapshot of what I recommend taking into consideration on your side and from the consultant side as well as tips to getting started on the right foot:

When considering hiring a consultant, know the answers to the following questions:

· What specific area(s) of your organization have the greatest weaknesses? Strengths?
· What is your budget for hiring outside services?
· What outcomes are you expecting?
· Have you discussed this idea with your Board? (Suggested reading from The Nonprofit Consultant Blog, Continuous Improvement for Nonprofits)

Keep in mind the challenges from the consultant side:

· Not working in-house, or daily, with an organization can present drawbacks.
· Short-term projects have a higher risk of returning lower results (dependent upon project).

Tips to building a solid relationship from the beginning:

· Make sure you have a feasible communication system established. Are you a phone or email person? Should meetings be held weekly, monthly, or face-to-face?
· Outline a schedule for progress reports and establish openness around feedback, both negative and positive.
· Establish project milestones and timelines and put it all in writing.
· Should a project go well, consider keeping the consultant in the loop on your organization’s progress either via emails, lunch meetings, or even board meetings. This will keep them connected and will allow for less ramp up time down the road once a new project arises.

Consultants can seem expensive and sometimes they can be, which is why it is important to establish a solid plan of action and clear communication in order to allow the project an opportunity to succeed! Consultants are typically worth what you pay them, but there is responsibility on both sides. If done correctly, working with a consultant on certain projects can prove to add tremendous value. To ensure your dollars are well spent, take the above points into consideration and feel free to add to the discussion below.

More on "How to hire a freelance grant writer" here!

The Nonprofit Consultant Blog: Get Seen By Private Foundations

Free registration to increase your visibility toward private foundations who don't accept unsolicited proposals...free before Oct. 1...worth a quick gander and possible sign up before they start charging...

The Nonprofit Consultant Blog: Get Seen By Private Foundations: "If you've done any sort of prospecting for new foundation grants, either using one of the resources from the Foundation Center or any other ..."