Blueprint Fundraising

Weathering the Storm: the state of nonprofits in BC

The Vancouver Foundation has just released Weathering the Storm, a look at the state of nonprofit organizations in British Columbia today.

So many organizations are feeling the strain of funding cuts and decreased giving — this report confirms just how hard the sector is being hit. It is very worthwhile reading, especially to understand the context for fundraising and organizational management these days. Even if the economy is improving, 2010 is not going to be an easy year. More layoffs, budget cuts, closures and mergers are on the horizon. Click here to download the full PDF report.

From the press release…

Key findings of the survey were:

• Almost every charity was impacted in some way by the economic downturn in 2009. However, certain organizations – smaller charities, arts and culture and environmental groups – were the most negatively impacted by drops in their revenue base.
• Overall, more than half of all charities (53 per cent) experienced a drop in revenue in their 2009 fiscal year, with the average decline being 19 per cent.
• For certain charities, the bigger challenge this year was the increased demand on their services. Social service and health care organizations were both significantly affected by a jump in demand for services.
• Many charities dealt with this year’s budget challenges by looking for new sources of revenue (62 per cent) or undertaking more fundraising (58 per cent). This means that more organizations are searching for what is, essentially, a shrinking pool of funds.
• One-quarter (25 per cent) of charities surveyed had to layoff staff in order to cope. Of those who did reduce their roster of employees, the average reduction amounted to a 21 per cent cut to their total workforce.
• Looking forward, charities are not overly optimistic about 2010. Most anticipate they will continue to experience a drop in key revenue areas, while some also predict a marked increase in demand for their services.
• Half of all charities feel they are either “not prepared” or only “somewhat prepared” for the challenges of 2010. Several charities reported they had already cut to the bone, and there was no more left to cut: any further erosion of their revenue would likely lead to closure next year.

“We chose the name of this report very deliberately,” said Faye Wightman, CEO of Vancouver Foundation. “The experience that charities, including ourselves, have been through this past year is equivalent to a hurricane plowing through the community. Now the storm may be passing but it has left a lot of devastation in its wake. There is much repair and rebuilding that needs to be done. And some structures are now so fragile they could collapse at the first gust of wind. We expect 2010 will be harder than this current year for many charities.”

National Philanthropy Day

Canadian Heritage has officially named November 15th, 2009, National Philanthropy Day in Canada. There are celebratory events planned all over the country (and beyond). Read all about them.

If you are in the Metro Vancouver area, a Philanthropy Day lunch will take place on November 10th at the Westin Bayshore. Tickets and details can be found here. It’s a great event for saying thank you to your donors and volunteers.

I’ve always liked the slogan: “Change the world with a giving heart.”

Time to speak out about BC’s cuts

If you work in the nonprofit world in BC (and if you are a person who cares about culture, the environment, seniors, homelessness, libraries, people with disabilities or just about anything else that matters in our community), you are probably worried about the massive cuts being made to gaming grants and other provincial programs.

I urge you to speak out and express your concerns to the government, through letters to politicians or through the provincial budget consultations on now. The deadline for public input on the budget is October 23, 2009. You can answer their survey, make an online submission or sign up to take part in a public hearing. All the details can be found on the government’s budget consultation page.

If you want to express support for arts and culture, here is a sample letter you could send. Here’s some news about the impact of cuts on the environment. And here’s the latest on cuts to domestic violence prevention programs. And here is an op-ed on how gaming was intended to support community organizations, but that promise is being broken.

Free webinar from AFP

The Association of Fundraising Professionals is offering a free 90-minute webinar presentation on “Understanding CRA Fundraising Policy & How it Impacts Your Fundraising” on Wednesday, September 23, 2009, at 1 p.m. Eastern time. This is a chance to hear some expert opinion on the recently released “Revised Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) Guidance on Fundraising.”

Click here to find out more and to register.

The speakers, Ken Mayhew, a member of the AFP Canadian Government Relations Committee and chief development officer of the MS Society of Canada, and Terrance S. Carter B.A., LL.B., trade-mark agent, managing partner of Carters Professional Corporation and a member of AFP, will present material that will give participants a better understanding of the CRA guidance on fundraising process, purpose and application. There will be a Q and A session at the end.

Change of address

I’m sad to report that WorkSpace, the shared office where I’ve been based for the last couple of years, is closing. So Blueprint has a new mailing address — please update your records:

54 – 1101 Nicola Street
Vancouver, BC V6G 2E3
Canada

Phone and fax remain the same.

Thanks for the coffee and conversation, Dane!

Workshop early bird deadline August 15

I’m offering several workshops in Vancouver this fall: Making the Ask and Fundraising Basics. I wanted to let you know that the early bird deadline for Making the Ask is coming up this Friday, August 15th.

This workshop will help you understand and get comfortable with the asking process – from preparation to a face-to-face solicitation. Choose from September 30 from 1-4 pm or October 8 from 9 to noon. The early bird fee is $175 and you can register online or call me at 604-682-6582 for more information.

Website changes… bye bye birdy!

If you are reading this through an RSS feed, you may not have noticed but there have been some changes to this ‘lil website. I would love your feedback!

The Fundit in its old stand-alone blog form has been retired and I’m now going to share thoughts, news and ideas through the News part of the site.

Thanks very much to Christine Rondeau of Bluelime Media for smoothly upgrading us to the latest version of WordPress and for the many many tweaks and improvements along the way.

Charity wristbands are back

You thought they were gone… but they live on in a new form. Now you can add a Lance Armstrong Live Strong charity wristband to your Twitter avatar! Cool.

New fundraising policy from the Canada Revenue Agency

Canada Revenue Agency has finally released a policy on Fundraising by Registered Charities. The document outlines policies and practices that the CRA uses when it reviews annual information returns filed by registered charities and explains the CRA’s views on issues relevant to fundraising expenditures.

Some of the highlights:

Ratio of fundraising costs to fundraising revenue

• Under 35% – Unlikely to generate questions or concerns.
• 35% and above – The CRA will examine the average ratio over recent years to determine if there is a trend of high fundraising costs. The higher the ratio, the more likely it is that there will be concerns and a need for a more detailed assessment of expenditures.
• Above 70% – This level will raise concerns with the CRA. The charity must be able to provide an explanation and rationale for this level of expenditure to show that it is in compliance; otherwise, it will not be acceptable.

Best practices

1. Prudent planning processes.
2. Appropriate procurement processes.
3. Good staffing processes.
4. Ongoing management and supervision of fundraising practice.
5. Adequate evaluation processes.
6. Use made of volunteer time and volunteered services or resources.
7. Disclosure of fundraising costs, revenues, and practice (including cause-related or social marketing arrangements).

Areas of concern that could lead to further review

1. Sole-source fundraising contracts without proof of fair market value.
2. Non-arm’s length fundraising contracts without proof of fair market value.
3. Fundraising initiatives or arrangements that are not well-documented.
4. Fundraising merchandise purchases that are not at arm’s length, not at fair market value, or not purchased to increase fundraising revenue.
5. Activities where most of the gross revenues go to contracted non-charitable parties.
6. Commission-based fundraiser remuneration or payment of fundraisers based on amount or number of donations.
7. Total resources devoted to fundraising exceeding total resources devoted to program activities.
8. Misrepresentations in fundraising solicitations or in disclosures about fundraising or financial performance.

If you work in fundraising, this is a must-read! The whole policy is here.

Attention Little Give applicants

The Little Give recently had technical troubles with their server and sadly, some applications have been sucked into the vacuum of cyberspace. They are advising everyone to re-submit their applications by email or by calling Kera McArthur at 604-623-3007. They have also extended the application deadline to June 5th. You have until Friday to apply to this cool program!