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In this first newsletter of 2005, I want to
focus on human resource issues facing nonprofit boards and managers. But the
current tragedy in southern Asia led me to write a short editorial about how
organizations can deal with the expectation of donors that their donations
will be used for immediate relief efforts.
So, with that exception, the items in this
newsletter will be of interest to anyone who has to hire, manage, evaluate,
or discipline employees.
Nathan Garber, Nathan Garber & Associates
training & consulting in
governance and planning for nonprofit organizations
For information about how we can help your
organization, visit our website
http://garberconsulting.com or call 619-439-3008.
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Nonprofit News
from Nathan
January 2, 2005
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CONTENTS
Developing An Effective Hiring Style
New and Newly Discovered Resources on the Web
Some Websites On Human Resources
Latest News for Charities from Canada Revenue Agency
Featured Website
TransitionGuides
Featured Article
What Should Charities Tell Donors About How their Donations Will be Used?
About Nathan Garber & Associates
To
Cancel this Newsletter
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Wednesday, January 26, 2005, 9:00 - 12:00
at Loblaws Wonderland Market Community Meeting Room,
2nd floor, 3040 Wonderland Rd. South at Southdale.
(wheelchair accessible).
REGISTER ONLINE at
http://garberconsulting.com/register.htm
Registration fee: $20 (pay at the door)
Effective hiring is a most important responsibility for managers and
supervisors as well as for board members who hire the executive director.
Successful hiring brings many benefits to the organization and allows it to
work towards meeting appropriate objectives. Unsuccessful hiring produces
stress in the organization, poor productivity and quality of work, higher
turnover leading to lack of continuity of service, higher costs with no
associated increase in value, and a poorer organizational reputation.
The
workshop provides information on effective hiring and an opportunity for
some hands-on practice in analyzing jobs, developing selection criteria,
developing advertising or postings for jobs, screening responses,
interviewing and selecting candidates and checking references.
We
are fortunate to have as presenter, Sandra Safran, M.B.A., President of
Sandra Safran HR Services. Sandra is an excellent trainer. Her workshops
apply her many years of experience in HR consulting and management for
businesses and nonprofit organizations.
This
workshop is presented as part of the Leadership Development Program of the
United Way of London & Middlesex
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I am currently planning schedule and speakers
for executive director breakfasts in 2005. If you have any suggestions for
topics, please let me know. Send me an e-mail or call me at (519) 439-3008
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Well,
actually, these aren’t new but I have found them all to be useful for
various purposes related to hiring, benefits, evaluation, discipline, and
termination. Canadian sites are listed first.
Canadian
Websites
Canadian
Association is an excellent, free e-newsletter published by consultant Wayne
Amundson. There are often articles on HR issues.
http://www.axi.ca/tca/
Canadian
FundRaiser eNews is another free e-newsletter with regular articles on
volunteer management, and working in the nonprofit sector.
http://www.canadianfundraiser.com/
Ontario
Ministry of Labour has links to labour laws, employment standards fact
sheets, and other useful information.
http://www.gov.on.ca/LAB/main.htm
The
Departments of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada and Social
Development Canada publishes a range of informative online publications. You
can search these by topic
http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/en/gateways/nav/left_nav/publications.shtml
Employee or
Self-employed? This pamphlet explains how to determine if you are in an
employer-employee relationship or a business relationship.
http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/E/pub/tg/rc4110/README.html
The job
listings on the CharityVillage website often include good job descriptions
you can use as models for developing your own.
http://www.charityvillage.com/applicant/jobs.asp
Ontario Human
Rights Commission has downloadable pamphlets on racial and sexual harassment
and sexual orientation.
http://www.ohrc.on.ca/english/index.shtml
American
Websites
The Office of
Women's Business Ownership, Small Business Administration, USA has an
excellent online library of manuals and FAQ’s (Frequently Asked Questions).
http://www.onlinewbc.gov/Docs/manage/index.html
Personnel
Policy Manuals. Another of Carter McNamara’s excellent collection of links
and resources.
http://www.mapnp.org/library/policies/handbook/handbook.htm
Workforce
Management publishes an e-newsletter and web magazine. New content every
week.
http://www.workforce.com/
The
“About.com” sites have very good content and provides “printer-friendly”
options but you must endure pop-up ads.
http://humanresources.about.com/
The Woods Hole
Oceanographic Institution has its complete Personnel Manual and many other
documents online. The full site is worth exploring.
http://www.whoi.edu/HumanResources/ppp/table.htm
Auxillium West
develops HR systems. Their informative website includes anon-line reference
guide to a broad range of Human Resources topics written by HR professionals
in the high technology sector.
http://www.auxillium.com/contents.shtml
TransitionGuides (see this month’s featured website)
http://www.transitionguides.com/
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Nothing new to report. I’ll keep you informed of any new proposals, guides,
and public consultations.
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http://www.transitionguides.com/
TransitionGuides
aims to help nonprofit organization manage leadership transitions and
related organizational development.
Recognizing
that few nonprofits are prepared to replace their executive director and
that more than one in ten executive director jobs turns over each year, a
collaborative association of consultants, management support organizations
and others s have created this informative and helpful site.
The site
includes links to both free resources and publications for sale. Their
e-newsletter is free and well-written.
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By Nathan Garber
The
terrible tragedy of the recent tsunami is on everyone’s mind right now and
has rekindled discussions about how much of the donor’s dollar actually
benefits the victims of a disaster. I’m not talking about the issue of
administration vs. program expenses, but rather whether an organization has
the right to redirect a donation given in response to a specific crisis.
The issue was
first raised in 2001 when it was learned that the American Red Cross had
designated some of the donations given in response to the September 11 for
use in future relief efforts. The controversy led to the resignation of the
organization’s president and badly damaged the reputation of the American
Red Cross.
Although, to
some extent, the issue affects all charities, it is felt most profoundly by
international relief and development organizations who are constantly
struggling to raise funds for ongoing or less publicized projects. In the
past week, many organizations have received sudden and extraordinary
increases in revenue which donors expect to be used for aid to victims of
the tsunami. Some of the organizations sufficient personnel,
infrastructure, access to transportation and suppliers to put the funds to
use right away. For others, however, it is not a simple matter of
translating dollars into immediate aid. Their staff and resources may
already be committed to other projects; or their mission may be focused on
long-term development rather than immediate crisis response. In such cases,
the organizations may not be able to meet the expectations of donors that
their donations be put to immediate use in the affected region.
This is the
situation faced by Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders.
Although recognizing and responding to the urgent need of tsunami victims,
they do not wish to imply that the needs of the Darfur refugees and their
other projects are less important. Neither do they wish to mislead potential
donors. So, in what seems to me to be an unprecedented and generous
response, they have posted a message on their websites announcing that they
have met their fundraising targets for their currently foreseen emergency
response in South Asia.
[see their
websites
https://securemsf.ca/forms/donateNow/main.aspx?lng=en (Canada) and
http://www.doctorswithoutborders-usa.org/donate/ (USA)].
The message is accompanied by a
request for donations to the fund that enables them to continue their work
in Darfur and other regions.
In my view,
this is a responsible and ethical response, enabling donors to base their
decisions on informed choice. At the same time, it helps to educate the
public that there are equally needy people beyond those whose tragedy is
the subject of today’s media reports. MSF/DWB is to be commended for this
approach. It should be emulated by other charities who raise money for
victims of emergencies, whether international or local.
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Strong organizations don’t come about by accident. They need effective
boards of directors and carefully planned strategies. Since 1986, Nathan
Garber & Associates has been helping nonprofit organizations build a
stronger board of directors and create powerful strategic plans. Our
governance, planning, and facilitation services can help you:
·
improve relations between board
and staff
·
raise more money
·
improve meeting attendance and
participation
·
prepare for executive
succession
·
recruit better board members
·
plan for a changing environment
·
increase the board’s value to
the organization
For
more information about how we can help you build a stronger organization,
visit our website at
http://GarberConsulting.com . For a free consultation, contact Nathan
at (519)439-3008
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Nonprofit News from Nathan is an irregular e-newsletter that I prepare when
I have both time and some genuinely interesting information. Lately, it
seems to becoming a monthly. It is absolutely free. I send it only to people
who I believe will find it useful. If you want me to stop sending you
e-mail, or if you feel like dropping me a line for some other purpose, send
e-mail to
Nathan@GarberConsulting.com
You
are welcome to forward this newsletter to others.
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© Nathan Garber, 2005
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