I thought I'd take a break from current events and touch base with the human side of nonprofit organizations: their people. What are nonprofit folks talking about amongst themselves? What are their concerns? What do they wish you knew?

I checked in with a few people who work at several very different nonprofits here in my hometown in Austin, Texas, and I also did a little "eavesdropping" online. Here's what they had to say about three topics that I've touched on here at JUST CAUSE: money, what nonprofits are, and technology.

Money, Money, Money

We think of businesses as motivated by money, monitoring profits and watching stock values. Nonprofits are also concerned about funds - not just their own, but those of the people they serve and even their donors.

Tara Kirkland is the Director of Consulting Services at Greenlights for Nonprofit Success here in Austin. Greenlights is a specialized type of nonprofit that provides training and technical assistance to other nonprofit organizations. She's in a position to see the challenges facing all types of nonprofits, from large well-funded organizations to small orgs, from arts groups to services for abused children, and everything in between.

I asked Tara what she wished the general public knew about nonprofits. I don't even think she had a chance to read my recent post about administrative expenses, but this was her response:

The critical difference your unrestricted donations (in other words, monies not donated to a particular program or service) can make to a nonprofit. Want us to make a deep impact in our communities over time? Invest in our staff, computers, and other "operational" necessities so that we can "do better at doing good!" ... you don't really want "lean and mean" nonprofits in the end, you want nonprofits with real capacity and sustainability long term!

Christine H. Mallette of the Illinois Valley Safe House Alliance in Oregon responded to a recent question about what would make it easier to work for nonprofit organizations with this observation:

It would be easier to work for nonprofits if we were fiscally sound and only needed to make decisions based on does it fit our mission. 

Tara and Christine both realize that what nonprofits can do for their communities is linked to what resources they can gather - and what restrictions are placed on those funds. Can the organization find sufficient resources to operate its programs while building a stronger, smarter organization? Are donors currently interested in the organization's core mission, or will the organization need to add on related programs in order to survive?

In my first post on JUST CAUSE, I mentioned the role that nonprofits play in the community during times of recession. The ASPCA is warning that the mortgage crisis is affecting pets as well as people, which means that animal shelters, many of whom are nonprofits, have to step in and help. In a post on their blog called Foreclosures Can Be Bad News For Pets, they give some examples:

In New Haven, CT, where foreclosures have gone up 80 percent in the past year, local animal shelters receive an average of a call per day from someone who wants to surrender a pet. In Michigan, the Anti-Cruelty Society shelter has seen a 30-percent intake increase over the same period.

Another financial crisis is worrying at least one person with connections to the nonprofit sector. The anonymous blogger at Don't Tell The Donor may or may not work at a nonprofit, but he or she is wondering about nonprofits encouraging people to use credit cards to make donations, in the face of mounting credit card debt:

Do we have any ethical concerns about donors putting a $100 donation that they can't afford on a credit card where it will eventually cost them $130 in interest? Do fundraisers benefit by getting donors to give more when they use a credit card than they would if they had to use cash?

Who They Are and What They Do

David J. Neff of the American Cancer Society wishes you knew that "non-profits are not all 3 person operations that don't know their heads from a hole in the ground."

The image of nonprofit employees as disorganized do-gooders can be extremely frustrating to the committed professionals who work in most nonprofits. The issue that David points to isn't a new one, and it isn't limited to our community here in Austin. In Public Expectations and Nonprofit Sector Realities: A Growing Divide with Disastrous Consequences, a paper by Emmett D. Carson published in the journal Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly in 2002, you can see the same concern:

Much of what is believed about the nonprofit sector and how it operates can be traced back to the early observations of Alexis de Tocqueville in his classic Democracy in America (1945/1994). [...] Over the years, the nonprofit sector has romanticized Tocqueville’s (1945/1994) observations to present a modern-day image of the nonprofit sector as being composed of relatively small, volunteer-driven organizations that largely rely on contributions of money, time, and goods from individual contributors. [...]

Nonprofit hospitals, United Ways, international relief agencies, universities, and foundations are among the many types of nonprofit organizations that require full-time employees with high levels of skill, talent, and professionalism that cannot be reasonably expected of a part-time volunteer or from a poorly paid workforce. [...] These staffing and funding realities mean that some of the largest and best known nonprofit organizations do not operate in ways that fit the romantic image of the nonprofit sector that is ingrained in the public’s consciousness.

The belief that all nonprofits are small and staffed by bumblers is also a problem when you're trying to attract new employees with the skills, talents, and commitment that can keep your organization running or take it to the next level.

Kara Johnson is the Executive Director of the Texas Early Childhood Education Coalition, a nonprofit organization that raises public awareness and advocates for high quality child care here in the Lone Star State. When I asked Kara what she wishes the public knew about nonprofits, she had this to say about the different kinds of nonprofit organizations:

I wish the general public knew about the wide range of non-profits making a difference in their local community everyday. The common perception is that the majority of non-profits provide a direct service such as financial assistance, food, housing, and so forth. However, there are a number of non-profits across the state and country that work everyday to pass good legislation on behalf of children and families. In our case, when we work with Texas legislators to pass good bills for kids, local Texas communities benefit through higher quality child care options; expansion of the pre-k program to both military families and children in the foster care system; as well as better training for child care providers teaching young children everyday.

Although our non-profit does not need support from the local community in terms of a donation of goods, we still need support. Therefore, when you sit down to consider how you will give back to the community this year; please consider donating your time through volunteer service or a financial contribution towards a non-profit working to advocate on behalf of an issue you feel passionate about.

Sometimes problems can be solved with individual assistance, but sometimes systems change is necessary to really make a difference. Nonprofits are active across a wide variety of causes, informing and educating policy makers so they can make good decisions.

Geeking Out

David J. Neff also wishes the geeks out there knew that nonprofits are often on the leading edge of technology, "doing cutting edge technical work from Ruby on Rails to Php 5 on the ZEND Framework." Just because your organization is a nonprofit concerned with health issues doesn't mean you're not also quite adept at other things.

Indeed, the capacity of a nonprofit organization to master at least basic technology can mean a lot in its relationships. Roger Carr is a writer and speaker on how people can make a difference in their communities. In his own life, he's a volunteer with The Arthritis Foundation and his church and he blogs at Everyday Giving. At a recent conference, he learned something new about the importance of an online presence for nonprofits:

Two-thirds of people donating to a new nonprofit will visit that nonprofit's website before making the donation. This includes donations being made by check.

Tracie Davis of Step By Step Fundraising has seen a number of weaknesses in nonprofit websites, including outdated pages and a lack of contact information.

But as David reminded us, there are tons of people in the nonprofit sector who are blazing trails for the rest of us, using not only websites but also social networking tools and their own hacking to make the world a better place. Online resources like NetSquared, TechSoup, Nonprofit Technology Network 501 Tech clubs (David created the Facebook group for our local club here in Austin), and many more offer nonprofits information about tools and the chance to share their IT expertise with their colleagues. Recent topics discussed on these and other sites include the status of the digital divide in America, what nonprofit executives need to know about technology, and a new database that evaluates computer hardware for its environmental impact.

That's a long way from "How do I turn this thing on?"

(In addition to the serious examples, can I just say that the LOLseals Photo Caption Contest from the Humane Society of the United States made my day? What a fun use of technology to raise awareness!)

What's Your Take?

A lot of us here at JUST CAUSE work for a nonprofit or volunteer for one. What's on your mind right now? Is your nonprofit worried about fundraising during the recession? Is it struggling to get the word out so that people understand its mission and accomplishments? Let others know in the comments - together, we can share ideas and resources!

[Image by Musical Linguist from Wikimedia Commons.]