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Before you convene…

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Whether we’re talking about our staff, our board members, our constituents, or the public at large, bringing people together can be a productive way to deal with the challenges we face. But convening people can also waste people’s time or, worse, backfire.

Fortunately, there are steps we can take to help ensure that when we convene, we succeed! The Rockefeller Foundation has a long history of convening groups to grapple with weighty problems. The Foundation follows four core principles:

  • Focus on a single purpose.
  • Design for the experience.
  • Be intentional about participants.
  • Make commitments explicit and deliver.

Learn about each of these as well as additional tactics to make your convening more effective in this article from the Stanford Social Innovation Review.

Retaining Staff

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Finding qualified new staff can be very difficult, so at Spokes June 2023 Symposium we focused on how to retain the staff you already have on board. It’s a national problem! Consider:

  • In 2022, a record 50.6 million U.S. workers quit their jobs, accounting for 70% of total separations. This is the highest level in the history of the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), which dates back to 2001.
  • While quits are down from the record highs of 2022, in January 2023 dipping below the four million mark for the first time since May 2021, they were back up to above four million this February.
  • This year, 56% of surveyed U.S. workers said they’re likely to seek a new job compared to 51% in 2022.

Here are some resources recommended by our panel of experts:

Executive Committee Membership

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Can someone be on the executive committee who is not a member of the board of directors?

It’s an interesting question. The short answer is, “Perhaps, but probably not.” As can so often be the case, it depends on the situation. Here are things to consider.

Look at your bylaws

A great place to start is to read your bylaws. What do they say about committees? Do they specify that there is an executive committee? Do they say who should be on it? Do they say what the executive committee is supposed to do?

For example, I recently was helping an organization whose bylaws said nothing about an executive committee, but they did include a provision that the board could establish committees by resolution, and that “all committees have the full authority of the board” (italics mine).

Board committees

The next thing to consider is the type of committee. There are two types—board committees and non-board committees. With a few exceptions, the board may delegate authority to board committees. According to California law, all members of board committees must be directors.

On the other hand, membership on non-board committees is not restricted to directors. These committees, also called advisory committees, can serve a variety of purposes. As that name implies, they can provide counsel to the board. The board might also assign various tasks and responsibilities to them. For instance, a non-board committee might develop fundraising plans or be responsible for volunteer training. Because non-board committees have no legal authority to act in place of the full board, anyone may be a member. Non-board committees are often used as a way to engage additional people in the work of the organization.

Returning to the example above, since the organization’s bylaws clearly state, “all committees have the full authority of the board,” any committee established in the organization would be a board committee. Only board committees can make decisions on behalf of the organization, and all members of board committees must be directors.

So, what’s the answer?

If the board has delegated authority to the executive committee, then all members of the executive committee must be directors. Certainly, others might be invited to attend executive committee meetings and/or provide input, but such people are not members of the committee and do not have a vote on motions or decisions. Theoretically, a non-director could be a member of the Executive Committee, but only if the Executive Committee was given no authority to act. In such circumstances, that executive committee would, in fact, be an advisory committee. And what would be the sense in that?

And don’t forget…

State law trumps your bylaws. If your bylaws include any language that suggests non-directors can be members of your board committees, it’s time to revise your bylaws.

References

Applied Wisdom

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Looking for ways to up your leadership game? On a special website, former Applied Materials CEO Jim Morgan shares leadership and management principles proven to be effective in nonprofit, philanthropic and business contexts. Jim is a well-known Silicon Valley high-tech executive and philanthropic leader.

Explore eight simple insights that have consistently delivered great results supporting the nonprofit sector in complex, real-world situations. On the site you can download Jim’s free booklet, watch videos, and sign up for a weekly reminder.

Visit Applied Wisdom for Nonprofits

Documentation for Your Donors

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It’s the new year and our donors will start to gather the necessary materials to prepare their income tax returns. It’s also a good time to be certain we have provided them with the appropriate documentation of their gifts. Here are two of the most important things to keep in mind.

Gifts of $250 or more

We need to provide donors with “contemporaneous written acknowledgement” of each gift of $250 or more, or separate gifts made on the same day that total $250 or more. Here, contemporaneous means that the donor has the documentation in hand by the time they file their annual return.

Your thank you letter to the donor can serve this purpose as long as it includes:

  • The date the gift was received (not pledged, but actually received)
  • Whether or not the donor received any goods or services in exchange for the donation and, if so, an estimate of their value.

For gifts you have already acknowledged with that information, you’ve met that requirement. But for those end-of-year, last minute gifts you receive, be sure to provide the necessary documentation promptly in January.

Quid pro quo contributions

When a donor does receive goods or services in exchange for a contribution to your organization, it is called a quid pro quo contribution. You must provide a written disclosure statement to donors if the contribution is greater than $75. Here’s an example. If for a donation of $100 the donor receives tickets to an event that would have cost $40, the deductible amount would be $60. However, because the total contribution exceeds $75, written disclosure is required. This can be done either when soliciting the gift or as part of your thank you once the gift is received. The written statement must:

  • Inform the donor that the amount of the contribution that is deductible for federal income tax purposes is limited to the excess of any money (and the value of any property other than money) contributed by the donor over the value of goods or services provided by the charity, and
  • Provide the donor with a good faith estimate of the value of the goods or services that the donor received.

For more specific information, visit the IRS at Substantiating Charitable Contributions.

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