Public Priorities for Ontario’s Health System - This document outlines a series of recommendations to reform the province's health care system that was developed by a randomly-selected citizens' panel of twenty-eight Ontarians who agreed to spend three weekends together learning about the province's health care system from a range of experts before reaching consensus on a set of recommendations to ensure that high-quality and publicly funded care is available to future generations.
On Not Letting a Crisis Go to Waste – This paper, by Tim Brodhead explores the implications of the current economic crisis on Canada’s community sector and outlines some ideas for what innovation in the community sector could look like. Access the paper here.
Online Capacity Building for Canadian Non-Profits - Training in Tough Times, a recent report by CharityVillage, outlines reasons and strategies for addressing professional development in the context of shrinking budgets and funding cuts. Access the report here.
Strengthening Organizational Capacity - This report from CharityVillage explores the concept of social finance, or finance with a social or environmental mission, and how it may be an excellent opportunity for nonprofits to identify new ways of accessing capital. To download the full report, click here. [Source: CharityVillage]
Grassroots Governance - This guide to governance from CGA Ontario provides a great starting point for volunteers and board members who want information on good governance for their grassroots organization. Download a copy of the guide here. [Source: CharityVillage]
Building Leaderful Organizations - Leadership development and succession planning are hot topics in the nonprofit sector these days as organizations are challenged to attract and retain young executives. This publication, part of the Casey Foundation’s series on executive transitions, presents emergency succession planning tools, guidance for executive directors on how and when to depart an organization, and suggestions for board members on how to be proactive in assuring that an organization is sustainable over time. Learn more here. [Source: Annie E. Casey Foundation]
More Bang for the Buck - Scores of pundits have written books, research reports, and articles about how business leaders extracted greater productivity from their companies. Yet few have paid attention to this topic in the nonprofit sector. Recognizing that increasing productivity could be a powerful way for nonprofit organizations to multiply the impact of their work, the authors explore how three nonprofits succeeded in reducing costs without sacrificing the quality of their services. Download the article here. [Source: Stanford Social Innovation Review]
Ready to Lead: Next Generation Leaders Speak Out - A skilled, committed and diverse pool of next generation leaders would like to be non-profit executive directors in the future, according to a new U.S. survey. However, the survey also finds that there are significant barriers: work-life balance, insufficient life-long earning potential, lack of mentorship and overwhelming fundraising responsibilities, which may prevent many younger non-profit staff from becoming executives. Learn more here. [Source: Meyer Foundation]
Make Goals Not Resolutions - In this article from Fast Company, authors Chip and Dan Heath explore how organizations can make sure they set goals they accomplish rather than announce resolutions that don't stick. Read the article here. [Source: FastCompany.com]
Ontario's Nonprofit Community Services Sector - The community nonprofit sector in Ontario works hard every day to assist people and communities in need. But a decade of underfunding and under-resourcing has left this sector in peril. Heads Up Ontario! Current Conditions and Promising Reforms to Strengthen Ontario's Nonprofit Community Services Sector focuses on the "perfect storm" of trends that have created these conditions, and what we can do to improve them. Download the executive summary here. [Source: Social Innovators Update]
NPO Leaders Surpass Corporate Counterparts - The Nonprofit Quarterly has released the initial findings of a research study that reveals that nonprofit leaders may be more effective than for-profit leaders. More than 2,500 management leaders in the nonprofit and for-profit sectors were studied through direct reports and feedback surveys submitted by peers. The study shows that nonprofit leaders significantly outscore their for-profit counterparts across the board in leadership practices. For more information and results from the study, click here. [Source: Charity Village]
Leadership Deficit in Voluntary & Nonprofit Sector - This paper examines the dimensions of the leadership deficit as it relates to employees in senior positions within organizations. Basing their discussion on American and emerging Canadian studies, the authors remind us that we need to be concerned about the leadership deficit and leadership turnover within the voluntary and nonprofit sector. The authors not only give us a context for leadership development, but they also provide a range of ideas and approaches on how to both encourage and support existing leadership while dually accelerating the development of a new generation of leaders. Download the article here. [Source: The Philanthropist]
Creating High-Impact Nonprofits - Conventional wisdom says that scaling social innovation starts with strengthening internal management capabilities. This study of 12 high-impact nonprofits, however, shows that real social change happens when organizations go outside their own walls and find creative ways to enlist the help of others. Read the article here. [Source: Stanford Social Innovation Review]
Labour inputs to non-profit organizations - More than 160,000 non-profit and voluntary institutions provide employment for about two million Canadians. These organizations constitute one of the faster growing sectors of the Canadian economy, accounting for 7% of gross domestic product in 2003. They come in a variety of forms and deliver goods and services in many areas. However, their use of labour in most cases differs radically from that of profit-oriented businesses. This Statistics Canada study describes and quantifies the multiple labour inputs used by non-profits. Learn more here. [Source: Perspectives on Labour and Income]
Social Innovation in Canada - This report from Canadian Policy Research Networks calls for a new framework for support to the non-profit sector. Social Innovation in Canada, by Mark Goldenberg, a former federal assistant deputy minister who worked on social and labour market policy, examines the role of the non-profit sector in social innovation and what needs to be done to make the most of it. Download the report here. [Source: CPRN]
Tough Questions about Civil Society - Michael Gilbert, of Nonprofit Online News, recently published the results and lessons of the 2007 LifeWork Survey. Entitled "Making the Most of Our Time: How People In Civil Society Face the Tough Questions of Meaningful Work," you can view the results of the survey here. [Source: Charity Village]
How Nonprofits Get Really Big - Since 1970, more than 200,000 nonprofits have opened in the U.S., but only 144 of them have reached $50 million in annual revenue. Most of the members of this elite group got big by raising the majority of their money from a single type of funder and creating professional organizations tailored to the needs of their primary funding sources. Download the article here. [Source: Stanford Social Innovation Review]
Pan-Canadian Funding Practice in Communities - This new report by Katherine Scott examines the Government of Canada's current funding practices for the voluntary sector. The report has been submitted to the Independent Blue Ribbon Panel, which is advising the federal Treasury Board on guidelines for grants and contributions. Read the full report here and the executive summary here. [Source: CCSD]
Cornerstones of Community - The National Survey of Nonprofit and Voluntary Organizations (NSNVO) was a four-year research project conducted by Imagine Canada that built a better understanding of the charitable and nonprofit sector in Canada and its needs for capacity building. Imagine has released a series of regional reports that provide fascinating details on the sector across the country. Learn more here. [Source: PFC e-newsletter]
Communicating Opportunity - One of the keys to successful communication, whether it is with the media, policymakers, advocates or the general public, is to have a clear and consistent message that taps into the target audience’s core values. The Opportunity Agenda recently released American Opportunity: A Communications Toolkit, which outlines how to create a messaging strategy by using opportunity as a messaging frame. The toolkit provides basic theories of messaging, and outlines examples of successful campaigns while providing a frame work for creating media opportunities, op-eds, and press releases. Learn more here. [Source: Alliance Online News]
Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector in Ontario - This publication kicks off a series of regional reports on the vital 'third pillar' of Canadian society. Written by Katherine Scott of the Canadian Council on Social Development, research is based on the National Survey of Nonprofit and Voluntary Organizations. Read the full report here. [Source: CCSD Newsflash]
The Leadership Deficit - One of the biggest challenges facing nonprofits today is their dearth of strong leaders - a problem that's only going to get worse as the sector expands and baby boomer executives retire. To meet the growing demand for talent, Thomas J. Tierney offers creative ways of finding and recruiting new leaders from a wide range of groups, including businesses, the military and the growing pool of retirees. Read more here or download the full Stanford Social Innovation Review article here. [Source: SSIR Update]
Daring to Lead 2006 - This paper by the Meyer Foundation and CompassPoint Nonprofit Services, explores leading causes of executive burnout, and identifies the skills that community-based leaders most want and need to build. Learn more here. [Source: Irvine Quarterly]
Capaciteria - Capaciteria is a free, comprehensive searchable database directory of administrative resources that helps nonprofits leverage their own capacity using the trusted source networks of information they rely upon. It assists nonprofits in understanding the various categories of administrative capacity they need to manage their nonprofits and provides them links to resources in those categories, vetted by their peer NGOs. Visit the website here.
Nonprofit leadership deficit imminent - An extensive study of the leadership requirements of US-based nonprofits found that, over the next decade, organizations will need to attract and develop approximately 640,000 new senior managers, and by 2016, they will need almost 80,000 new senior managers per year. The study asserts that all participants in the nonprofit sector need to recognize the enormity of the problem and make it a top priority. Learn more or download the full report here. [Source: Charity Village]
Canadian government supports charity bank - The Canadian government has decided to support the establishment of Vartana Bank - a bank of, by and for Canada's voluntary sector. Vartana is now engaged in a due diligence phase, doing an initial analysis of the possibilities that the proposed government support allows. Once this phase is complete (likely in late March 2006), the board will make a decision as to the appropriate path forward, and then enter into an intensive business-planning phase to complete submissions to both the banking and charity regulators. Vartana will be a bank that is not only a charity, but also owned by and dedicated to serving others engaged in charitable activities. For more information about Vartana, visit the website here. [Source: Charity Village]
The Spiral of Sustainable Excellence - Paul Light presents a new take on nonprofit lifecycles based on his research of high-performing organizations. Read the article here.
[Source: NPQ e-Newsletter]
Truth or Consequences - Organizational untruths are pervasive and corrosive, explains Erline Belton. Truth telling is an essential practice that helps people thrive in their organizations while leading to increased individual and collective energy. Read the article here. [Source: NPQ e-newsletter]
Replacing Furniture When Neighborhood is Missing? - Inclusion and rigor around community needs can help nonprofits achieve more than the sum of their parts. Gus Newport, former director of the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative, shares his thoughts on governance and engagement. Read the article here. [Source: NPQ e-newsletter]
Leader Shortage - Nearly three-fourths of all nonprofit executives will reach retirement age over the next 20 years, and charities will have difficulty replacing them, according to a new survey from the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Download the paper here. [Source: FNC Now]
Voluntary/Non-profit Sector HR Council launched - Human Resources and Skills Development Canada recently announced funding to create the HR Council for the Voluntary/Non-profit Sector. The council is a new, independent, nonprofit organization that will bring employers and employees together to provide leadership, build knowledge, and develop strategies on issues related to paid employment. The creation of the HR council follows a Feasibility Study (Oct 2003 - April 2005) that confirmed widespread interest in collaborative action to address issues related to the sector's paid labour force. For more information about the new council, click here.
Increased awareness for Canada's nonprofit sector - Ken Dryden, Minister of Social Development, announced a new national project to help Canadians understand the role of the nonprofit and voluntary sector in Canadian society. The government will provide almost $1.4 million for the Community Awareness Project, and "community conversations" will be held across Canada in the fall to help develop a nationwide awareness and communications campaign. For more information, click here. [Source: Charity Village]
Capacity challenges for nonprofits in rural Ontario - Imagine Canada, in partnership with the Foundation for Rural Living, announced the release of phase two of the Rural Charitable Sector Research Initiative. The project, entitled The Capacity Challenges of Nonprofit & Voluntary Organizations in Rural Ontario, includes the results of interviews with leaders of rural nonprofit organizations, as well as leaders of organizations in urban centres that serve or work with rural nonprofits. Download the report here. [Source: Charity Village]
Nonprofits employ e-learning - A survey of nonprofit organizations and associations shows that more than 54% of respondents either use e-learning or plan to in the next 12 months, and another 36% are interested in e-learning but are not using it right now. Those nonprofits that have implemented e-learning are using it for multiple purposes and audiences. Internally, 67% use e-learning for staff training, and 34% use it for volunteer training. As well, 52% of organizations use e-learning for public workshops, and 24% use it for advocacy and issue education for donors or the general public. Access the report here. [Source: Charity Village]
Canada's nonprofit sector 2nd largest in world - Groundbreaking research released last week by Imagine Canada (formerly the Canadian Centre for Philanthropy), finds that Canada's nonprofit sector workforce is second only to the Netherlands in terms of size and economic impact. According to Canadian Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector in Comparative Perspective, the sector employs more than two million full-time equivalent (FTE) workers. When the value of volunteer effort is included, the sector contributes 8.5% to Canada’s GDP, or about $75 billion. Find out more highlights from the report here. Download a copy of the report in PDF format here. [Source: Charity Village]
Public Institution or Public Nuisance? - This editorial from Making Waves argues that Human Resources & Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) has gone off the deep end. Since the so-called "Billion Dollar Boondoggle" back in 2000-01, the Ministry has introduced policies and procedures that are supposed to make it more publicly accountable. In fact, they make it a pest, rather than a partner, to the community sector contractors who carry out so much of HRSDC's mandate. It's tragic, for the nonprofits doing the work and for many HRSDC staff who are obliged to enforce the new rules. Read this article online by clicking here. [Source CEDWorks]
Exploring the Puzzle of Board Design - Many boards are just a set of accumulated practices that don't necessarily follow a governance design. This article is an exciting approach to what the primary Design principles in nonprofit governance are, and how they should be considered in the development of boards. Get more information here. [Source: NPQ e-Newsletter]
Human resources priorities in voluntary sector - The Voluntary Sector HR Council Feasibility Study recently released the results of an online survey about human resources priorities in the sector. Conducted in August and September of last year, the purpose of the survey was to determine the needs and concerns of voluntary organizations with respect to paid workers, and to explore how a Human Resources Council might address them. Survey respondents said their greatest priority is attracting and keeping the right people, with 81% rating this issue as 'very important'. In terms of training and skills development, communications and leadership were considered to be the most important skill areas. To download the full report here. [Source: Charity Village]
Strengthening the Capacity Of Executive Directors - The National Learning Initiative recently released its report, Strengthening the Capacity Of Executive Directors. This research answers a number of questions on how to improve the job quality and job satisfaction of Ed’s, but it also raises other questions on how the relationship between the board and EDs can be strengthened for the long-term sustainability of the organization. Read this report here. [Source: VS FORUM]
New framework of support for charitable sector - Two new reports published by Canadian Policy Research Networks (CPRN) examine social innovation and how organizations, government, and individuals can work together to increase innovation and capacity in Canada's nonprofit sector. The first report, entitled Social Innovation in Canada, calls for a new framework of support for the charitable sector. Its author, Mark Goldenberg, a former federal assistant deputy minister, argues that innovation in the sector is "threatened by a funding approach that is project-based, ignores infrastructure, overhead and administrative costs, provides no support to capacity building and imposes unrealistic burdens in terms of paperwork." The second report, The Future of Social Innovation in Canada, includes responses and feedback from Goldenberg's paper, as well as results from a roundtable on the issues that Goldenberg raised in his paper. [Source: Charity Village]
The not-for-profit principle - What makes social entrepreneurs different from, say, Richard Branson or Anita Roddick? Some demographic differences have been noted in the 2003 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor report, which found that women and people from ethnic minorities are more likely to become social rather than commerical entrepreneurs. Social entrepreneurs also tend to be well-educated and financially well-off. However, when it comes to the practical aspects, there aren't so many differences. Learn more here. [Source: CharityNews-USA]
Nonprofit Employment Rate Beats Private Sector - A new report, Employment in the Nonprofit Sector, from Independent Sector reveals that nonprofit employment grew at an annual rate of 2.5 percent between 1997 and 2001, significantly higher than the 1.8 percent and 1.6 percent growth rates for business and government, respectively, over the same period. Download the complete report here. [Source: HandsNet Webclipper]
Support nonprofit 'infrastructure' organizations - In recent years, foundation support has declined for the “infrastructure” organizations that support other nonprofits and seek to improve their effectiveness. According to Cynthia Gibson of the Carnegie Corporation of New York and Ruth McCambridge of the Nonprofit Quarterly, this lack of funding of the sector’s “backbone” threatens the stability of the nonprofit sector. Access the editorial "Why every foundation should fund infrastructure" here. [Source: Philanthropy Information Retrieval Project]
Leadership in Canada's voluntary sector - A recently released study by the Coalition of National Voluntary Organizations and the Association of Canadian Community Colleges looks at the skills and knowledge needed to improve the quality of leaders and managers in the voluntary sector. What Do Voluntary Sector Leaders Do? highlights four core competencies that leaders in the voluntary sector use: vision and alliances; strategies and resource management; building relationships across organizations and sectors; and dealing with complex social, political, organizational, and institutional changes quickly. Download the report here. [Source: Charity Village]
NGOs most influential sector of 21st century - According to a new report, the international NGO sector is poised to become "amongst the most influential institutions of the 21st century." The key conclusion of The 21st Century NGO: In the Market for Change, by SustainAbility and the United Nations, is that international NGOs have a huge opportunity to greatly increase their impact by focusing their efforts on reforming market systems rather than simply confronting them. The study explores the relationships between NGOs and businesses, as well as the operation of NGOs as businesses. As the authors state, "it is clear that NGOs are no longer mere gad-flies on the face of market and political systems. Increasingly they are a key part of those systems themselves." Download a full copy of the report here. [Source: Charity Village]
Society’s Third Pillar Cracking Under Strain - The Canadian Council on Social Development (CCSD) today released a major new study providing an in-depth examination of how the voluntary and nonprofit sector in Canada is coping after a decade of cost-cutting and restructuring by governments. The study reveals the enormous financial strain facing nonprofit and voluntary groups across Canada because of the short-term, project-based funding now favoured by governments and many other funders. In Funding Matters: The Impact of Canada's New Funding Regime on Nonprofit and Voluntary Organizations, Katherine Scott, the study's author, details the day-to-day struggle for survival of many organizations forced to deal with the harsh realities of Canada’s new funding regime. To read the full report visit the CCSD's website here. [Source: CCSD Newsflash]
Nonprofits Are A Global Force - This report, Global Civil Society: An Overview, provides a broad overview of the civil society sector in 35 countries and includes just-released data on developing countries in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. Read the report here. [Source: ePhilanthropy eZine]
E-learning in the nonprofit sector - According to author Jacques LeCavalier, e-learning activity in the nonprofit sector is increasing, and there is potential for even more growth. With this in mind, he has published the second edition of Making E-Learning Work in the Nonprofit Sector, an introductory yet probing look at e-learning in the sector. It covers the basics of e-learning, including definitions, examples, and a summary of key areas of interest, such as e-learning strategy, learning management systems, and requests for proposal (RFP). To download an executive summary of the report, click here. [Source: Charity Village]
Human resources in the nonprofit sector - A new series of publications from the Canadian Policy Research Networks (CPRN) is hoping to shed some light on the size, make-up and workplace realities of Canada's nonprofit sector. The first paper in the series, Mapping the Non-Profit Sector, by Kathryn McMullen and Grant Schellenberg, examines Statistics Canada data to help lay the groundwork and define the boundaries of the sector. The report concludes that as the Baby Boom generation retires, the nonprofit sector will find itself competing for skilled workers with both the government and for-profit sectors. For more information, visit the website here. [Source: Charity Village]
CPRN study examines change in nonprofit sector - Coping with Change: Human Resource Management in Canada's Non-profit Sector, by Kathryn McMullen and Richard Brisbois, examines the impact of changes in the external environment on both organization and human resources policies of nonprofits. "The nonprofit sector is a critical part of the delivery system Canadians rely on for their quality of life," says Ron Saunders, director of the CPRN Work Network. "That's why the sector's ability to adapt and survive is of vital public interest." The study finds that many nonprofit organizations have a comparative advantage over other sectors in areas such as individual control over work, shared decision-making, and mutual respect and trust in the employment relationship. For more information, visit the website here. [Source: Charity Village]
When Good Works Make Good Sense - Seedco, a national nonprofit community development intermediary, has released a report that highlights four successful nonprofit business models. Read the full report here. [Source: CharityNews - USA]
Partners in Public Service: Models for Collaboration - According to a report published by the US-based Benton Foundation, "authentic alliances between local media and community organizations represent the yet-to-be realized future of effective community-centred, community-driven programming." Partners in Public Service: Models for Collaboration contains stories of eight collaborations between public television stations and community organizations, including museums, libraries, and historical societies. Aside from these profiles, the report also provides useful information on the elements of a successful partnership, and resources to assist organizations in developing their own relationships with the media. To view the full report in PDF format, click here. [Source: Charity Village USA]
University Comparative Nonprofit Sector Project - From the website: "The Johns Hopkins Comparative Nonprofit Sector Project is a systematic effort to analyze the scope, structure, financing, and role of the private nonprofit sector in a cross-section of countries around the world in order to improve our knowledge and enrich our theoretical understanding of this sector, and to provide a sounder basis for both public and private action towards it." Learn more here. [Source: OHPE Bulletin 340.2]
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