Why Evaluation Should Include a Look at Succession Plans; Plus More: Tuesday’s Roundup
By Maria Di Mento
Senior Editor
March 30, 2010 | Read Time: 2 minutes
- If charity-evaluation groups want to do exceptional assessments, they should delve into the top leadership at nonprofit groups, succession plans, and how they describe the organization’s future, writes Lucy Bernholz, an adviser to foundations, on her blog Philanthropy 2173.
- Beth Kanter, who writes a popular blog about social media, asks: “Should we just blow up nonprofit ‘vote for me’ social-good contests?” Ms. Kanter describes how she stumbled upon a charity that was encouraging people to use automated bots to help it win Pepsi’s Refresh Project contest, something she says was not in violation of the contest rules but raises questions about the usefulness of such competitions.
- Writing on the Huffington Post, Jane Wales, vice president of philanthropy and society at the Aspen Institute, describes how the recession and longer life expectancies are postponing the transition of leadership to younger generations at nonprofit groups and foundations. Her discussion was sparked by a report, Trading Power, produced by the Council on Foundations, Andrea and Charles Bronfman Philanthropies’ 21/64, Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy, and Resource Generation.
- Iona Joy, of New Philanthropy Capital, a British group that assesses nonprofit organizations, follows up a previous post about how to review a charity in two hours with a discussion of how she’d spend the second hour — on the phone with the chief executive.
- Never forget the power of constantly reminding nonprofit employees about the difference they’re making in the world,” says Jeff Brooks, creative director of TrueSense marketing, on his blog Future Fundraising Now. Mr. Brooks offers tips from the Inside Influence Report that shows how nonprofit groups can improve the effectiveness of their staff members.
- Katya Andresen, vice president of marketing for Network for Good, in Bethesda, Md., and the author of Katya’s Non-Profit Marketing Blog, offers tips on how to use social-media tools to reach new donors without having to spend a lot of time on the Web.
- Camfed, a group that fights poverty and AIDS in Africa, will be the focus of this week’s BBC World News series on social entrepreneurs, according to Alvin’s Guide to Good Business. Ann Cotton, a 2005 Skoll social entrepreneur and founder of Camfed, discusses how she uses a grassroots approach to educate women and girls in Africa.
