by Tom Okarma | Sep 14, 2015 | Blog, Board Development
In 2013 alone there were more than 2.5 million nonprofit [501(c)(3)] started in the U.S. According to the SBA, nearly 50% of all businesses started — including nonprofit agencies — will fail within their first 5 years. It’s no secret nonprofit agencies work very hard...
by Tom Okarma | Sep 10, 2015 | Blog, Board Development
Effective fundraising and donor relationships are the lifeblood of a nonprofit. But many nonprofits tend to overlook one of the most critical — and yet often most effective — tools for improving fundraising — the board. It’s no secret that best practices of successful...
by Tom Okarma | Aug 19, 2015 | Blog, Featured, Leadership
Most of us (nonprofit leaders) have either taken courses or read a lot about the basic meat and potatoes leadership skills we need to effectively do our job. I’m talking about strategic planning and goal setting, budgeting, communication, the solicitation of major...
by Tom Okarma | Aug 18, 2014 | Blog, Board Development, Governance
Who owns your nonprofit? Do you really have as much operational latitude as you think you do? Have you or your board ever stopped to ask yourself these questions? In business, a board of directors is elected to represent the enterprise owner so shouldn’t the same...
by Tom Okarma | Jul 8, 2014 | Blog, Board Development, Governance, Leadership
Every so often, I hear about tough, demanding boards but nothing like a board I recently “met” through a friend who also serves as the CEO of a separate, very successful, well-mannered nonprofit agency. My friend told me about the rude, abrasive, unruly practices a...