Despite what some may believe management of a not-for-profit company is not a walk in the park. There is financial management, staff responsibilities, ensuring your company files all the correct regulatory filings, donor management, and volunteer coordination. Often times not-for-profit management become such a daunting task that you tend to let things slip. Let’s explore some areas of management that often get lost in the day-to-day operations of a not-for-profit company.

(I) Financial Management

Yes, it is possible to lose focus on the organizations finances; with so much going on too little time is spent overlooking monthly, quarterly, and annual reports. Some smaller not-for-profits have only one or two people working in the finance and accounting departments. A lack of oversight and accountability can breed complacency in work ethic, and could lead to potential fraud situations. The can become especially true when financials are not reviewed and proper internal controls are not taken to prevent mismanagement of funds.

Too often there is a lie that gets told and worse, believed by those who hear it. This has to do with profit. EVERY company needs a profit to sustain operations. This includes charitable organizations. Do not believe the myth that a continued profit will lead to revocation of your 501(c)3 status. Your business practices and INTENTION is not to provide significant growth of wealth to a group of individuals or one person. Profit is needed for growth and development of a company. Most not-for-profits will have some sort of bylaw that states what annual profits are to be used for, where it is to be allocated. If this is not the case for your organization, consider amending the bylaws to include a clause stating the use of annual profits. Not showing a profit at all or in too few years sends many negative messages to potential and current donors.

(II) Staff Development

Your staff is the backbone of your organization, without them you’re left to volunteers who have no stake in the success of your company. How do you develop your staff on a shoestring budget? Your staffs development doesn’t have to cost you 5% of your operating budget every year, it can actually be free. Twice a year meet with all of your staff, but not for the purposes of discussing new and old business. Make your first meeting at the beginning of your fiscal year. In the meeting layout the strategic plan for the year, review the annual budget with them, and show them what portions they are responsible for and how they contribute to the success of the company. Be sure to review the last year, and how the company performed. Recite the company vision and mission statements, this may sound silly but you want everyone to remember why they are there. Most employees who work for a not-for-profit do so because they believe in what the company does. The pay and benefits usually are lacking compared to the corporate world, but it’s the feeling of belonging and giving back, making a difference that is what draws them in. Reviewing this with your staff will help you to gauge where they are at; it keeps morale high by reminding everyone why they’re there.

For training and development, some cities have non profit jobs councils. They provide free seminars and opportunities for development. Consider subscriptions to trade journals or newsletter for your employees as a way of educating them. Community colleges and some universities offer adult learning courses in different areas. For under $300 you can send an employee for training. It improves them, and helps you.

(III) Donor Development and Education

Yes, this really does get put off. Your donors are a necessity to the long and short term success of your organization. Every year you have to develop and educate multiple types of donors. You have monthly donors, annual donors, and one-time donors. You want to develop each area, and work on converting more one-time donors into monthly or annual donors. Within these donors you have to develop different sub-groups as well. You’ll have project and programs donors, but what remains difficult is developing operating donors. These are donors who give to keep the lights on, the phones running, and pay for support staff. Every year you want to set a conversion rate goal, and a new lead goal. Networking with different companies, agencies, and providing events and fundraisers can be means to develop one-time donors, but what about your monthly and annual donors? Educating them on the use of their funds, and how their contributions are making a difference is the key to keeping them around, and to encouraging them to give more.

What is your level of interaction with your donors? Do they get quarterly newsletters, annual letters personally signed by you? Any correspondence at all? What about an annual dinner? A lunch Q&A with the Executive Director and the Board could go a long way in establishing rapport and educating them on the stride the company is making.

(IV) Strategic Planning

This is not just for the Fortune 500 companies anymore; it’s for everyone including the NFP’s. The need to plan strategically is as necessary as collecting money from donors, they each have a purpose. Strategic planning is an exercise is vision, being able to look to the future. You need to plan where you want to be, what you want to be doing, and how you’re going to get there. This level of planning need to be spearheaded by the Executive Director, backed by the Board, and discussed amongst the senior staff. You must almost remember to remain true to the original purpose of your organization. Getting off purpose to pursue growth and revenue may lead to the loss of donors, staff, Board members, and in some cases NFP status.

Take the time to sit down and map out your goals, timeline, and benchmarks. Be sure to plan for the short-term, intermediate term, and have everything pointing to the long-term goals. If you have too many goals, you may fail to reach them all; this could lead to failure in long-term planning. Remember to plan using SMART goals. Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time Oriented. This is the best way to succeed to reaching your long-term goals and implementing a strategic plan.

(V) Board Development

Developing a strong Board is a vital part to success. They can be a great networking tool, and provide strong leadership for the growth of the company. At the same time, they can drain the life out of a company and fail to lead it in the right direction, potentially bringing about the termination of the vision. You want your Board to be a mix of skills, personalities, and experiences. Having specialist who can assist in different areas, as well as people who have experience in the field, and those who have connections can be the recipe for success. Picture your Board like a garden salad; you want a mixture of color, flavor, texture, and nutrients. Tossing the salad together will give you the most pleasurable experience ensuring that you get the most out of ever bite. You want you Board to operate the same way, mixing together different types and flavors, discarding those that work, experimenting with new additions to find the perfect mixture