At Foraker, we believe that the nonprofit sector is essential to our democracy. More than just a system of government, the idea of democracy is the notion of free-flowing ideas that often confound us, make us think, and yes, often disagree. Democracy requires attention and conscious conversations. It is, after all, only held together by people with ideas and the rules, ethics, and values that we write and live around it. At times, disagreement is how we know our freedoms are at play. Not conflict for conflict’s sake, but the notion that this ever-evolving system needs respect, connection, and healthy debate. This is the thread that holds us together even as some want to frame it as the thing that pulls us apart. The nonprofit sector is one of those… Read more »

This month we released our Salary and Benefits Report & Dashboard. While we have been producing these reports for nonprofit decision-making since 2003, this year our report is bigger and better than ever thanks to a partnership with the state nonprofit associations in Montana, Idaho, Washington, and Oregon. Certainly, this type of data has been useful in the past but right now the nonprofit workforce is at the nexus of events that likely will result in a lasting shift for current and future employees. We have reported over the years on the challenges nonprofit employees and employers face, which sadly have not changed much because few organizations ever feel like they are fully staffed or financially flexible enough to deploy the team they have in all the ways they think… Read more »

A complicated truth is that the same turnover, personal time assessment, and value propositions impacting our nonprofit workforce are also deeply impacting our nonprofit boards. The conversations about how to reignite and reengage our most essential volunteers are ever-present. While not surprising, the escalation of these discussions since the pandemic is, just as in the workforce, a reality we must accept. You are not alone in thinking about what is happening in your boardroom as the challenges are not restricted to one type of organization, geography, budget size, or mission topic. Layering on the shifts in philanthropy and general volunteerism levels in this country and our state is an opportunity to pause and consider what to do next. Importantly, starting by understanding that at the heart of both philanthropy and… Read more »

Some days more than others, we need to remind ourselves that nonprofits are a hallmark of a healthy democracy and a thriving economy. Today is one of those days. In other countries nonprofits are referred to as non-governmental organizations to indicate their separate relationship from the government, since it is the IRS that deems the reality of our existence in this country, we are framed from a tax perspective. In either case, our role is essential in the depth and breadth of our services that the government either will not or cannot provide and inherently will fail in a market-driven economy. The rationale for our existence in a thriving economy is also long – just look around at how each of your communities operates. Ask yourself, who is doing the… Read more »

The classic vicious cycle in nonprofit operations is the need to raise more money to hire more people but needing people to raise more money.  It is an easy scarcity trap to fall into regardless of your organizational size, topic, or geography.  Scarcity thinking dominates nonprofit and fundraising culture. It drives us to believe there is not enough time, money, energy, or people, leading us to the inevitable conclusion that we are competing with one another. Countless nonprofit boards and staff believe this false narrative and because it is so pervasive it is easy to find evidence to be right.  And yet, we must resist the scarcity trap if we are going to be truly successful. The alternative is an abundance mindset, one that asks you to think about what… Read more »

Springtime in Alaska is the time that tests our convictions the most – the time when you can still ski, snowshoe, and snowmachine, and there are more moments to walk or ride on pavement, gravel, and hard ground – a time of hope and a bit of pleading for slightly more sunshine and slightly less gray as the daylight invites us to do more and hibernate less. This is truly the time of year that reminds me that I get to hold a lot of emotions, energy, and ideas all at once. It is also the time of year that my mindset matters. Our work in the nonprofit sector also looks and feels like the weather – the highs and lows are palpable and most days ridiculous to juggle. The… Read more »

When does the fun part start? More than any other question I received over a few days with a recent cohort of executive directors, this was the question that grabbed everyone’s attention. Everyone wanted to know. Everyone needed to know. I could see it in all the faces on my screen – I could feel it in the urgency of their voices. I knew that question all too well as I have asked it so many times in my career. And because I had found my answers enough times, I was in a position at that moment (and all the other times I have heard this question) to hold some space for the answers to unfold. I say unfold because it is a journey for each person to find both… Read more »

Last month we rolled out our public policy priorities for 2024. This month I want to share more about this work and call your attention to some specific actions we need from each of you. Back in 2009, Foraker formally became the state nonprofit association and part of a group of 42 peer organizations across the country. This action not only validated our role in the convening and research but it also got us thinking differently about our role in public policy. Our signature effort to that point had been publishing nonprofit economic reports, and writing the original legislation and hiring the lobbyist to create what is now Pick.Click.Give. We didn’t engage much in public policy until I became CEO in 2015. Since then, we have taken part in extraordinary… Read more »

Are you ready? This year promises to be one in which your full participation will be in high demand. Not only is it a national and local election year that by all current indications will do more to divide us than unite us, but we are also bringing with us the persisting challenges of 2023 as we continue to reckon with workforce challenges, declining funding, and significant leadership transitions in our board and staff spaces. I wrote last month about our superpower as a sector to hold on to our belief that everything will turn out for the best, and I am digging deep into that place as I prepare with you for 2024. We are ready for you with tools and resources to keep you focused, motivated, and connected…. Read more »

This holiday season, Diwali, Hanukkah, Solstice, Christmas, and Kwanzaa all celebrate by embracing the light. The light that shines through these darker days brings with it joy, delight, connection, and reflection. I like to think it also promises us more light ahead – not just in sunlight but in all the other ways we may need it, too. In this particular season, I find myself wondering where we are right now in the grand scheme of history. There are no good words for it. It feels less clear to call it pandemic time and equally unclear to not think of it in those terms. We might feel more collective comfort if we could name it, but that label eludes us. Instead of a name, I am left to look and… Read more »