Christian Leadership Alliance
If you could write the perfect fundraising job description for your board members, what would you include? Many board members are not aware of the full extent of their fundraising responsibilities. Approving the budget is not only a fiscal decision, it is also a fundraising decision! Ultimately, the board is accountable for achieving the funding … Continue reading The Fundraising Board Member
“What do you mean my rating was ‘Does not meet expectations’?” “What do you mean my rating was ‘Does not meet expectations’? I have been receiving excellent reviews for several years now.” It was clear the employee didn’t understand why I had given him the performance rating of which I had just informed him and … Continue reading Ensuring Employee Success
I’m sure you know people with the capacity to make a transformational gift. They’re current donors, community leaders, or major contributors to a similar ministry. But they aren’t making those gifts to your ministry. And you wonder why. People want to achieve their own vision. Long ago, I came to the realization that nobody wants … Continue reading The Million-Dollar Question
As a nonprofit, it is so important to be clear with your message. Your organization needs to talk to potential supporters, volunteers, program participants, staff members, board members, and more. Your messaging is competing with so many reputable and worthy alternatives simultaneously. If you confuse your audience, you will lose them. Think about it: a … Continue reading Communications Clarity
Our world is changing at an incredibly rapid pace: can your fundraising keep up? Changing economies, demographics, and interests all have significant influences on fundraising. So how do we innovate our practices to keep up with the pace of change while maintaining our biblically-centered convictions about generosity and fundraising? To future-proof your fundraising efforts, embrace … Continue reading Future-Proof Your Fundraising
Have you ever gotten lost even though you knew exactly where you were going? Many of us pride ourselves on thinking we can multitask, but for the most part, few of us can. There are some limited situations in which we can do so, but the real problem comes when you try to achieve two … Continue reading Organizational Roadmaps
In 2019, I was reading the ECFA’s Four Challenges for Governance Boards survey results authored by Warren Bird, Ph.D. With a tagline that stated, “Many Boards Unprepared for the Future,” I read the synopsis with interest. From a survey of 1,662 CEOs, board chairs, and board members of ECFA-accredited ministries, challenge number one was CEO … Continue reading Challenge Number One: Your CEO Succession
At Los Angeles Pacific University, we believe that diversity is an expression of God’s image, love, and boundless creativity. When we embarked on writing this column, we began to wonder, “how exactly are we leading a diverse and inclusive organization?” We offer a training program, Leading the Diverse and Inclusive Organization, specifically designed to teach … Continue reading Shifting the Paradigm
So where do visions come from for a business or ministry? Visions don’t come from committees, they come to individuals as part of their calling. Since God is our creator he loves to “recreate” through those whose hearts are seeking answers. Some come as dreams, or a profound thought and often as a solution to … Continue reading What Visionary Leaders See
Thriving — flourishing, prospering, and growing vigorously. That definition of thriving is exciting! Isn’t that what we all want to be doing? We all have a mission, a purpose created for us. “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Eph. … Continue reading Sparks of Purpose
