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Volume
6, Issue 1 - January 2004 |
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"I
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Toni Paglia,
Director of Development, The ARC
Syracuse, New York |
|
Value-Laden Organizations:
How Your Nonprofit Mission is Personal |
How important is the mission of your
nonprofit to your organization’s progress
toward success and maturity?
According to Vikki Kestell, Organizational Development and Technology
Consultant and Ph.D. student at the University of New Mexico, the connection
between your mission and the personal values of your volunteers, donors and
staff is critical.
Nonprofits as Value-Laden
Organizations
Nonprofits are what I term “value-laden” organizations. They exist to
promote goals or objectives that have their foundations in very explicit
values or ideologies—hopefully well articulated in the organization’s
mission statement.
People
won’t generally become donors, volunteers, employees, or board members for
an organization whose mission runs contrary to their own values. They choose
to volunteer time, donate money, and work for nonprofits when their own
values and those of the nonprofit are very similar or “congruent.” The
greater the match between an organization’s espoused values and the values
of its people, the greater the level of “mission congruency” within the
organization.
Whatever principles you espouse, they usually reflect your core
values—those values that make you uniquely “you.” In the same way, a
nonprofit’s mission is personal to the people invested in that organization.
All people need to know that what they sacrifice their time, energy, and
money to has real, personal significance. This is the seat of passion in the
nonprofit workplace.
Thus the connection between the mission of our organization and our
organization’s constituency is personal, and the importance of healthy
mission congruency cannot be understated.
The Bottom Line Is the Mission
We spend much time and effort in the nonprofit sector on fundraising
because money is a tool necessary to further our organization’s mission.
However, the bottom line of a nonprofit is not the bottom line. The
mission of the nonprofit is its “bottom line.” We might say that when we
miss our mission “mark,” we’re operating in the red even if the ink in the
ledger is black. When we focus on the tool of money to the detriment of the
mission, our organizations may experience mission “slip” or “shift.” Slip is
recognizable when our programs or activities no longer “map” directly to our
mission, values, and/or objectives. Shift is diagnosed when our programs or
activities are quite obviously other than what we espouse as our mission,
values, and/or objectives.
When mission slip or shift occurs, our people become confused or
disenchanted. What happens when our constituents’ mission expectations are
defeated? When our volunteers and donors decide that their values are no
longer reflected in our nonprofit, they leave and they leave in a very
unhappy state.
Have you seen this in your organization? If so, it’s probably happened
more than once. A cycle of turnovers is one symptom of mission incongruency
and makes progress toward organizational maturity and stability very
difficult to achieve.
To learn more, keep reading...
Back to Table of
Contents
How important is it that a nonprofit look for “a good fit” between its
mission and that of its employees and key people? Mission congruency makes for
long-term partnerships. Long-term relationships and partnering make for
organizational growth and stability.
I worked for a short time in a Native American nonprofit organization that
provided Native college scholarship aid. I’m Caucasian, or white. Actually, I’m
whiter than white—I know people who would call me “white bread,” but even I know
that I’m way beyond that: I’m “enriched, bleached white bread,” being one
of those blondes with even blonde eyebrows and lashes. I’m also a “typical”
middle-class, “lost-my-roots-somewhere in Europe” American. I saw the Native
organization as having real value and worked hard to make it successful but, as
I’m not Native American, the organization’s mission wasn’t truly personal to me.
I was competent in my job, but I couldn’t relate to Native family and cultural
norms, religious practices, languages, and music.
I didn’t stay long at my Native American position because I couldn’t escape
the fact that I could not find a personal connection to the
organization’s mission. I resigned when a position with a better “fit” came my
way. My move wasn’t a sign of bigotry or a lack of caring for young Native men
and women; it was honesty. “Mission fit” is critical to building a lasting
employee and/or volunteer base, and people with strong loyalties and personal
commitments are essential to achieving long-term objectives and enduring,
sustainable success. Not having that personal commitment, I couldn’t contribute
long-term to the organization.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) members have generally lost a loved one
to a drunk driver. Runners in the annual Breast Cancer marathon run for those
close to them fighting the good fight or who have valiantly lost their struggle.
Christian schoolteachers often work for less than their public school
counterparts because they espouse the life-changing principles of Christian
education. The National Council of La Raza (NCLR) is “the largest
constituency-based national Hispanic organization, serving all Hispanic
nationality groups in all regions of the country,” and the African American
Workers Union mission statement reads: “ . . . we are responsible for building
institutions which will do right by us” (emphases mine). All of these
organizations underscore the importance of personal commitment on the part of
members of a value-laden organization.
Assessing and Aligning
When mixed messages pass between leaders and followers, how does that affect
organizational morale, employee or volunteer retention, and long-term strategic
focus? We need to know our mission, speak our mission, align all of our
programs and activities to our mission, and attract people who love that mission
as much as we do.
Take your organization’s “mission congruency” temperature. Ask your members,
volunteers, donors, and employees (individually) to tell you what your
organization’s primary goals and objectives are. Are they able to accurately
articulate your organization’s mission? Ask them how their volunteerism or
membership directly contributes to the success of that mission. Are their tasks
actually actionable toward that mission’s success?
If you are surprised or dismayed by the answers you’re getting it may be time
to revisit your mission, articulate it at every level of your nonprofit, and
realign every program or activity toward that mission’s success. Remember:
your mission is your bottom line.
—
Organizational Development and Technology Consultant
Ph.D. student, University of New Mexico
Back to Table of
Contents
According to Vertis, a Baltimore-based marketing and advertising
firm, a survey of 2,000 adults this year showed that 66% said they planned to
make non-monetary donations in the next year. The survey also showed that 59% of
donors said they were most likely to donate money to an organization that had
sent them a direct mail appeal. 53% said they read fundraising and nonprofit
direct mail. When deciding which nonprofit or fundraising mail they opened,
respondents listed the following factors: personalized mail (62%), timing of the
mail (59%), a free gift (32%), a special offer (31%) and dated material (30%).
For the full report visit
www.vertisinc.com/about/news_events.asp.
If your organization accepts gifts of goods, don’t make the
mistake of assessing a value to the donated items! According to the IRS,
assessing the value of donated goods is the responsibility of the donor. So, as
a donor, there are a couple of great tools to help you assess the value of those
clothes you just stuffed into a donation box. “It’s Deductible”, by Income
Dynamics, list values for more than 800 items of clothing and guarantees the
values conform to the IRS requirements for donated items. See also “It’s
Deductible” software by Turbo Tax for an even more thorough listing of fair
market values for donated items.
Back to Table of
Contents
The IRS has published 2 new brochures to help nonprofits understand tax laws
conferring tax-exempt status. Visit the IRS web site at
www.irs.gov and download Publication 4220 and
4221 for more information.
If you are struggling with job descriptions for staff and volunteers and want
a template, try these sites, but remember to customize the templates for your
particular organization and its needs.
www.workforce.com/index.html
is not aimed at nonprofits but has useful related information. The Business
Owner’s Tool Kit also has valuable information for nonprofits at
www.toolkit.cch.com.
And here are some great resources on establishing internal financial controls
for your nonprofit:
www.delawarenonprofit.org/FinMgmntFaq1.html is written in plain English for
those who are NOT experts in finance. www.
www.ucsc.edu/finaff/cc/tips/sepduty.htm has a good section defining the
various roles that should be separated. Lastly,
www.washington.edu/research/gca/uwin/checks.html has controls that can be
put in place for even the smallest of nonprofit organizations.
Finally, some old favorites:
www.grantstation.com for a great e-newsletter.
www.charitychannel.com for more than
100 special interest internet forums at an amazingly reasonable cost ($24/year).
www.nonevents.com is my “other” web site
offering “virtual” events as a fundraising tool.
If you know some great Internet
sites, please send me an email so I can share them in the next newsletter!
Back to Table of
Contents
Now you can add two great books to your agency library.
The ABCs of Building Better Boards is just what you need to
improve your Board’s potential. It includes ideas for recruitment, retention and
recognition and has some great forms for you to copy and use.
The Association of Fundraising Professionals says of this book:
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responsible for board recruitment and development should read once and then
review annually...takes up where books full of theory fall short...give it a
chance and you will discover a gem to be treasured.”
Learn how to deal with unproductive Board members and how to better define the
roles of staff and Board. There is a chapter on financial and fiduciary facts,
one on simple parliamentary procedure and much much more.
Discover how Board Job Descriptions and annual Commitment Letters will
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Get good ideas for more efficient Board management and administration, including
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It’s only $24.95 plus shipping and handling. Take advantage of a volume
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their orientation.
Fast Fundraising Facts for Fame & Fortune
is full of ideas to improve your fundraising, including how to ask effectively,
special events essentials and new ideas for fundraising.
Help volunteers get over the fear of asking for money and in-kind resources for
your organization. Learn how marketing principles will make fundraising easier.
Learn about Jean’s Ten Rules for Fundraising Success
and apply them to your organization immediately. This book puts the FUN into
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using hard to follow formulas and theories.
At only $19.95 plus shipping and handling, it’s a Must Have for your nonprofit
resource library.
Email me at to
discuss volume discounts for staff or volunteers. Buy both books for $39.95 plus
shipping and save.
Order Now So You Don't Forget!
Go to the Order Form to order your copies of
The ABCs of Building Better Boards
and
Fast Fundraising Facts For Fame & Fortune ©
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HOW CAN I HELP YOU?
TAKE THIS QUICKIE QUIZ
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Please give me a call if you want to turn any NO into a YES. I can help
with:
- turning your Board into a dynamic group of volunteers,
- facilitating a strategic planning session,
- analyzing your current fundraising and suggesting some new ideas, and
- training volunteers and staff in becoming more effective fundraisers.
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Here is what people have said about my training and facilitation:
"Jean Block is a powerhouse in the
Non-Profit world. You don't move about these circles long before her name is
prominent in the conversation. Her commitment to training, fundraising,
motivating, and cultivation is unsurpassed. To say she is an influence is
to miss the point. She gives new meaning to the word enthusiasm! You don't
know Jean, you experience her! She is a force unlike any other I have every
met."
Randy Gleason
Randy
Gleason Consulting, Inc.
"I attended the Corporate
Sponsorship Workshop - WOW! You were amazing! What an OPPORTUNITY for me!
Your presentation style was EXCELLENT. By
far the best workshop I've been to in a long time (content and style
both!)."
Vicki
Kopplin
Epilepsy
Foundation of Minnesota
"I attended your workshop in St. Louis
and left there feeling so uplifted by your motivation. Your training - to
make us all savvy marketers - has paid off. Even in this economy, our
underwriting is up and our auction donations have blown away everyone in
town! We simply feel empowered to ask anyone and everyone AND to tell them
WHY we are their market. It's working!
Thank you!"
Kirsten Wagmeister
Junior League of Evansville
"Thank you for the awesome training
sessions...As someone (who) would normally walk over hot coals before asking
for $, I was amazed by your session. I actually feel fired up at
fundraising. I went right home and called two friends with ideas for their
non-profits. I hope to give a presentation to my Board encouraging them to
have you train us."
Heather Harden,
Finance Council Director
Junior League of
Champaign-Urbana
"I just have to tell you that you made
such an incredible impact when you spoke to our Board. I can't begin to tell
you how many times your words of wisdom have been brought up at our
Executive, Board and Committee meetings. In fact, just today, in two
different conversations I was having, your ideas were quoted by others.
Thank you for inspiring us to think in a new direction."
Kim Erdel
Junior League of
Springfield, Missouri
"Jean conducted an extremely well
organized and productive [Board] retreat, one that I can
say with confidence that our members count as the finest
ever conducted for us. Jean's follow-up report was
in-depth and meaty, and both Board and staff have
referred to it time and again. The knowledge of
boardsmanship the members took with them has made a
remarkable difference in their levels of commitment and
support."
Eileen Cook, Executive Director
Casa Esperanza
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Visit
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Consulting, Inc.
7915 Cliff Road NW
Albuquerque NM 87120
(505) 899-1520
Fax (505) 890-5285
Email:
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"I
love your newsletter! It's refreshing, fun
and filled with helpful hints"
Toni Paglia,
Director of Development, The ARC
Syracuse, New York |
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