Make Technology a Priority in Your Nonprofit

Nonprofits face increased pressure from both governments and their communities to do more with less, and to put their existing resources to their best possible use. Investing in technology and other tools is one way that your NFP can increase both its efficiency and effectiveness and allow you to generate a greater impact.

The following are three suggestions on how to use tech innovations to their best advantage for your nonprofit.

Create and Customise Your Apps

Apps can make it easier for your supporters to make donations to your nonprofit, especially if they are using a smartphone or other mobile platform. In addition to donations, your NFP can also customise your apps to make it easier for your supporters to connect and engage with you. For example, a customised app can help you send content directly to your supporters and allow them to consume it on the go, as well as comment on your posts and interact with other supporters. Creating an app that delivers customised messages and encourages greater interactions between members, volunteers and others interested in your work makes it easier to build a virtual community that is focused on advancing your mission.

Target Your Messages

To ensure that you are sending relevant content and communications to your supporters, you need an easy way to target your messages to the appropriate audience. Use tech like CRM software to help you track your NFP’s interactions with your supporters. This way you can discover more information about what particular areas of your operations interest them most, and then tailor the messages so that it’s more relevant to them.

Build an Impact Platform to Break Down Information Silos

One reason why it’s so difficult for nonprofits to illustrate their impact is that most of the information that they need to access is spread throughout various departments in their organisation. While you can certainly import information from one program to the next, it takes time.

When upgrading software, look for fully integrated solutions, such as Admin Bandit’s software suite,  that will give you information on your programs, fundraising, grants, donors and members. This way, you have a full view of your organisation without having to import data from various departments and programs. Software should also be easy to use and allow you to create a full range of meaningful, accurate reports, which improve your board’s ability to govern and oversee your operations while making it easier to illustrate the difference that your NFP is making in your community.

Don’t Forget to Keep Your Staff Current

Regardless of the number and types of technology that you deploy in your organisation, it’s important that your people know how to use it. Hold training sessions to show new members how to use your NFP’s software and platforms and offer periodic refresher courses to ensure that everyone is up to speed on how to put it to its best use!

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How To Host A Successful Board Meeting

Having a successful board meeting involves a bit more planning and effort than simply setting a date and time, crossing your fingers and hoping that everyone shows up.

The following are a few steps to take to ensure that your board’s next meeting is a successful one.

Use the Agenda to Determine Length and Location

While some planners begin their preparations by deciding on the venue, or actual duration of the meeting first, it might be a better idea to allow the agenda itself to be the starting point.

An agenda is simply a formal, written list of the activities that are planned to occur at your board’s meeting. Most agendas will start with a call to order, or roll call, and will end with the formal adjournment. In between this, the specific items of business that the board plans to discuss and act upon are listed.

Sometimes, if there are a large number of items to get through, some boards adopt a consent agenda, so that important items that have already been discussed can be approved with one vote.

The number of items on your board’s agenda, and the amount of time that each is expected to take, usually determines the actual length of your board’s meeting. Sometimes, the planned length of your session will also affect your board’s choice of location for the meeting. For example, if your board only meets a handful of times a year, it may be better for your meeting to be set to occur over a few days. It could even be held in conjunction with a hotel, so that board members can be certain of having a place to stay and rest. Choosing a location that is centrally located for most of your members is usually the best option when the meeting is scheduled to last several hours or more than one day.

Other boards may meet on a monthly basis, and discuss items frequently, so these meetings may only need to last an hour or so to cover all of the topics that need to be considered and acted upon. In these cases the meeting could reasonably be held on site at your nonprofit’s main offices. This is especially a good choice if your nonprofit has the resources to make teleconferencing available to board members that might live some distance away from the meeting’s location.

By allowing the length of the agenda to be a guiding factor when planning your board’s next meeting, you can choose a length and place for the meeting that will be more convenient for your board members. This increases the chances that more of your members will show up for the meeting and enjoy their service on the board.

Remember that Board Members are Only Human

When planning your board’s next meeting, it’s important to keep in mind that your NFP’s board members have needs. It’s also a good idea to offer and serve the appropriate meals when meetings are scheduled to occur over several hours or days. Even when it is expected to last just an hour or two, offering light refreshments is a good way to help members maintain their energy and attention levels during the meeting.

In addition to meals and snacks, it’s also important to schedule time for board members to meet and socialise before and during the meeting if it is expected to last for several hours or days. This way, your members get a chance to know one another as individuals, which reduces the chances of misunderstandings and other conflicts and increases their ability to cooperate and collaborate with one another.

Allow the NFP’s Chair to Set the Pace

Regardless of the number of items on your board’s agenda, or the length and location of the meeting, it’s important that your NFP’s chairperson is ready to set and control the pace of the meeting. This needs to happen so that board members don’t get bogged down in too many details. This will also ensure that the meeting doesn’t drag out too long, and the work that needs to be done is accomplished.

While you want your chair to encourage open discussion, your chair needs to be able to facilitate communication while also controlling its flow and length. If your chairperson is new to the role, it may be a good idea for your chair to attend training on how to conduct and preside over board meetings. This will help them understand actions that they can take to ensure that members stay on task and that the meeting flows smoothly.

Help Board Members to Prepare for the Meeting

One important way that you can ensure that progress is made during your board’s meetings is to make sure that all of your members are well-prepared. Make certain that you provide board members with the reports and other materials that they need well before the meeting is scheduled to take place, and encourage them to do their homework on the issues before the meeting occurs.

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Encouraging Community At A Large NFP

Having a sense of community in an NFP of any size is beneficial but even more in a large NFP to give a real sense of engagement and inclusion.

Build a sense of community in your not for profit

Building a sense of community allows everyone to feel like they are doing their part and helping to shape the overall project. By doing this, you will find your employees and volunteers will go over and above what is asked of them.

Together you can work hard during the challenges and celebrate the successes.

Let your volunteers and employees engage fully

A strong bond between members in the NFP will help develop a strong shared vision and bring your mission statement to life. If your volunteers or employees feel like they are segregated from other members due to their work situation or positioning, then their role will seem no more than just a ‘job’.

Allow your volunteer treasurer to have the opportunity with your marketing team and vice versa. Enable everyone to create a connection with others and engage on a positive and meaningful level.

Generate excitement around projects

A sense of community will allow a real buildup of excitement and motivation take place when you are due to launch a new project. This will give your project much momentum and give plenty of opportunities for participation.

Your supporters will act as champions to spread the word about your project and maintain momentum for the overall project.

Initiate events to build community

The sense of community does not always come naturally particularly if there is a real mix of backgrounds and individuals in the group. Initiate events to allow people to get to know each other and build on their commonality – the want or need to support the non-profit and raise money to make a difference in other people’s lives.

Ensure clear communication at all times

It is so much easier for everyone to work together once they have a clear view of the NFP’s vision and what they are working towards. If communication is lost and people are carrying out tasks with no set direction, then motivation can be hard to find.

Ensure that all the channels of communication are open both upward and downward and everyone is up to speed with their responsibilities. And this goes for listening as well. If people feel that they are being heard, they will be only too keen to provide feedback and offer support.

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Why Games Are Important In Team Building

While some organisations focus solely on their clients, others realise that their people are their most important asset. Team building exercises have long been recognised as a great way to help groups break down barriers between associates and foster greater levels of communication and trust while boosting morale.

When most of us think of ways to build teams, shared activities such as a retreat or cookout often come to mind. Events like these provide a relaxed and informal space for workers to get to know one another on a personal basis. Unfortunately, due to the time and expense involved, these types of events are often only held on an annual or semi-annual basis. If your organisation is suffering from a lack of morale and cohesion, you really can’t wait for the next group picnic to turn things around!

Why the best education is all fun and games

A great way to quickly get everyone on the same page in your organisation is to have a little fun and play some games. Before you dismiss this suggestion, think back to your early school days. When was learning and cooperation the easiest? Why, when you and your classmates were having fun while trying to achieve a shared goal, of course!

The benefits of team building games

Make time on a regular basis for some fun and games in your organisation. Choose games that require members to step out of their comfort zones and routines and ask questions as well as actively listen. Playing games not only shakes up the routine and breaks up the monotony in your organisation,  it will help your associates to develop their problem solving skills, and creativity, and help them to feel free to open up and discuss ideas.

As your associates have to rely on one another and work together to find a solution, they will build bonds that they will carry over into their regular work space, increasing cooperation, innovation, efficiency and productivity regardless of what specific work they happen to be doing at the moment.

Suggestions to get your game on

A recent article in the online journal, Call Centre Helper, offered some suggestions for fun and challenging games that many teams might enjoy trying to tackle. A simple online search for the term ‘team building games’ can also help you to find appropriate team building exercise for your associates.

In general, role playing games, or games where associates must cooperate and share information in order to solve the puzzle, generally work the best to help associates step into one another’s shoes and see different perspectives.

Don’t resolve yourself to traditional thinking when it comes to picking out a team building exercise for your group. Even something as simple as dividing your associates into groups that have a friendly competition to raise money for a favorite charity has the power to bring people together and focus on doing their best to achieve a common goal.

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Group Dynamics – High-Performing Teams

Have you been part of team and have felt it could be working a lot better?  Maybe one person always seems to dominate discussions or your views are not really being listened to or heard.  As a result, you not only start to feel frustrated but you may also lose interest and motivation in relation to the purpose of the team.

In addition, with many conversations now taking place via electronic devices such as email, Facebook, iChat or Google+, just to name a few, face-to-face interaction and spoken conversations are occurring less and less.  An interesting article that is worth reading that is titled “The 6 Group Dynamics of High-Performing Teams”  discusses how Pixar used some effective techniques to get the best out of their teams.

In summary, the main points from this article that were identified as characteristics of high-performance teams included:

• Everyone on the team both talks and listens.  No one dominates the conversation.
• The interactions are energetic with a lot of face-to-face communication.
• People connect with one another directly – not just with or through the team leader.
• Side conversations are carried on within the team.
• People from time to time go outside the group and bring relevant outside information back in.
• Individual contributions/talents are less important than successful communication patterns.

The other critical issue from this article was that the most valuable form of communication is face-to-face.  In addition, when applying and utilising these techniques not only should they occur within your own organisation but also with clients and vendors outside of your organisation as this can help to build trust and strengthen relationships.

Have a read of the article and whether you work for a large organisation or a small office with only a few employees, you should try to incorporate the techniques within your team.

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