April 9, 1998 | Read Time: 6 minutes
Nonprofit Board Answer Book: Practical Guidelines for Board Members and Chief Executives
By Robert C. Andringa and Ted W. Engstrom
This book is designed to answer questions frequently asked by board members and chief executives of non-profit organizations who hope to improve their boards’ performances.
Mr. Andringa, president of the Coalition for Christian Colleges and Universities, in Washington, and Mr. Engstrom, the president emeritus of World Vision, in Monrovia, Cal., distill their experiences as board members into 37 short chapters, each one tackling a specific question.
For example, one chapter examines “What is the board’s role in fund raising?” Another asks, “What should we do with inactive board members?”, and a third, “How do we find a new chief executive?”
The book is divided into six topics: the functions of the board, its structure and operation, the relations between board members and staff members, the selection and development of board members, board meetings, and “other issues,” such as conflict-of-interest policies.
The authors conclude that if board members and chief executives are to succeed, they must not waste time arguing over which party has more power. “If you take anything from our experience,” they write, “take the principle that boards and chief executives have different, non-competing roles.”
Publisher: National Center for Nonprofit Boards, P.O. Box 92294, Washington 20077-7337; (202) 452-6262 or (800) 883-6262; fax (202) 452-6299; 208 pages; $22.50 for N.C.N.B. members; $29.95 for non-members; I.S.B.N. 0-925299-80-4.
Nonprofit Compensation and Benefits Practices
By Carol L. Barbeito and Jack P. Bowman
Discussion of determining appropriate pay and benefits for employees of non-profit organizations often ends in confusion and consternation, the authors write. They offer this book to help non-profit groups establish fair and competitive compensation, and provide data comparing what people earn at government and for-profit counterparts.
Ms. Barbeito and Mr. Bowman start with an analysis of overall employment trends and then narrow their focus to examine compensation practices, wages, and benefits in all three “sectors”: government, business, and non-profit organizations.
Despite some well-publicized accounts of high salaries at non-profit groups, the authors write, most employees are paid so little that it is difficult to retain talented workers.
Using the results of surveys conducted by the Denver-based Applied Research and Development Institute International, they compare salaries and benefits by geographic region, type of position, budget size, and gender. They also examine how benefits such as vacation and maternity leave stack up against those offered by employers in government and business.
Ms. Barbeito and Mr. Bowman then list what they consider to be essential components of innovative compensation practices, and provide four case studies of non-profit groups — none of which is named — that use them. One organization, for example, rewarded employees with $200 to $500 on the spot for a job well done.
The authors conclude with a statement that summarizes model hiring practices, and a checklist for establishing a comprehensive compensation policy. Appendixes include a summary of recent changes in the laws that govern retirement plans, and a glossary of terms.
Ms. Barbeito and Mr. Bowman are the Denver institute’s founding president and former general manager, respectively.
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons, 605 Third Avenue, New York 10158-0012; (800) 879-4539; fax (212) 850-6135; 206 pages; $55; I.S.B.N. 0-471-18089-0.
Strategic Fund Development: Building Profitable Relationships That Last
By Simonne P. Joyaux
The author of this book implores professional fund raisers to look beyond snaring short-term donations and to strengthening four relationships that she says will insure organizational health and wealth.
“The fund raiser in your organization must be the individual . . . most knowledgeable about the institution’s program and the community’s need,” contends Ms. Joyaux, a consultant based in Foster, R.I. The crux of her argument is that solicitors must look beyond immediate donor prospects and cultivate relationships with all people who are affected by the organization.
The book’s chapters detail what fund raisers can do to improve relations with their staff members, with the community at large, with the people served by the organization, and with volunteers.
Ms. Joyaux provides several tips for carrying out this four-pronged approach. She urges organizations to use participatory decision making, to craft a plan to meet long-term goals and to articulate the organization’s mission, to become more aware of their constituents’ desires, and to train volunteers to answer questions from prospective donors.
The book is part of Aspen Publishers’ “Fund Raising Series for the 21st Century,” edited by James P. Gelatt.
Publisher: Aspen Publishers, 7201 McKinney Circle, Frederick, Md. 21704; (800) 638-8437; World-Wide Web http://www.aspenpub.com; 213 pages; $59; I.S.B.N. 0-8342-0796-6.
OTHER PUBLICATIONS
Grantseeking: A Step-by-Step Approach and Major Donors: The Key to Successful Fundraising, by Robert M. Zimmerman, are two publications from the San Francisco consulting firm Zimmerman- Lehman that provide advice on how to sharpen certain basic fund-raising skills. Grantseeking covers how to conduct research on grant makers, including on-line research; how to draft a letter of intent and a grant proposal; and how to follow up on a request. Major Donors gives tips on finding the wealthy people most likely to donate to a particular organization and offers sample scripts to guide solicitors in “making the ask.” Publisher: Zimmerman-Lehman, 582 Market Street, Suite 1112, San Francisco 94104; (415) 986-8330 or (800) 886-8330; fax (415) 986-2048; e-mail zimleh@aol.com; Grantseeking, 50 pages; $24.95; Major Donors, 16 pages; $9.95.
Mapping Progress: Assessing Implementation of the Beijing Platform 1998 analyzes the progress made in the wake of the United Nations international conference on women that took place in Beijing in 1995. That gathering put forth a “Platform for Action” to spur governments and non-profit organizations to devote more attention and money to women’s programs. The assessment concludes that more than 70 per cent of the world’s 187 governments have adopted the platform to some degree and that 64 countries have enacted laws consistent with the recommendations of the platform. The book shows briefly how 90 countries have responded to the call in the areas of government, non-profit organizations, legislation, and budget allocation. Publisher: Women’s Environment and Development Organization, 355 Lexington Avenue, Third Floor, New York 10017; (212) 973-0325; fax (212) 973-0335; e-mail wedo@igc.apc.org; World-Wide Web http://www.wedo.org; 214 pages; $10.
The Public Interest in Conversions of Nonprofit Health Charities, by Judith E. Bell, Harry M. Snyder, and Christine C. Tien, explores the issues that surround the mushrooming number of conversions of non-profit health organizations into for-profit entities and the subsequent transfer in recent years of $8.5-billion in charitable assets to new foundations. This report analyzes the factors that presaged the conversions and explains the methods of conversions, the role of regulators and legislators, and the structure of new foundations created as the repositories for the assets of a formerly charitable organization. By federal law, a non-profit hospital that converts to for-profit status must transfer its assets to charitable purposes. Case studies of nine hospitals are included. The authors, staff members at Consumers Union, which commissioned the report with the Milbank Memorial Fund, in New York, urge greater public scrutiny of this complex issue. Publishers: Milbank Memorial Fund, 645 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor, New York 10022; (212) 355-8400; fax (212) 355-8599; or Consumers Union, West Coast Regional Office, 1535 Mission Street, San Francisco 94103; (415) 431-6747; fax (415) 431-0906; 52 pages; free; I.S.B.N. 1-887748-15-6.
