Nonprofit AF

Stop saying that 80% of nonprofit funding comes from individual donors. It’s misleading.

Posted on September 26, 2021September 27, 2021 by Vu

[Image description: A grey striped cap, lying on red velvet, wearing a tiny red and golden crown, covered in Canadian dollar bills of different denominations. They are wearing a necklace with a gold dollar sign pendant. They are looking to the left, surrounded by an aural of feline regality. Image by Allange on Pixabay]

Hi everyone. Quick reminder: Please get flu shots for you and your family, if you are able to. Hospitals and healthcare workers are overwhelmed by COVID, so in addition to getting your COVID shots, get your flu shot. And then buy yourself a new house plant or some chocolate as a reward.

Every time I criticize foundations, someone steps in with “well, 80% of philanthropic dollars come from individual donors.” Usually it is a well-meaning statement, designed to give hope to those of us who are frustrated with foundations and their various archaic and ridiculous practices. And taken as a whole, it may be true. This report, for example, shows that in 2019, 69% of giving comes from individuals, 10% from bequests, 17% from foundations, and 5% from corporations.

If 17% of our revenues come from foundations and 5% from corporations, why should we spend so much time and energy bashing our heads against the walls, screaming in anguish at the foundations and corporations that require quarterly reports, make us use their own budget templates, or, worst of all, force us to remove Oxford Commas to stay within character limits? If they account for only a fraction of total philanthropic dollars, maybe we’re wasting time trying to get foundations and corporations to change and should focus more time rallying individual donors?

DAFs: What They Are, Which Misguided Orgs Oppose Mild Legislations on Them, and Why You Should Care

Posted on September 19, 2021September 20, 2021 by Vu

[Image description: An adorable black-footed ferret, standing upright in the snow, looking at the camera. They have a cream-colored coat, brown legs with black feet, small round ears, and dark, liquid eyes that steal your heart. No, this ferret has nothing to do with DAFs. Image by Rohan Chang on Unsplash.]

Hi everyone. Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs) is not the most riveting of topics, I will admit. Sometimes, when I have insomnia, I read about DAFs, and that usually does the trick, especially when combined with some melatonin. However, they are rapidly growing as a vehicle for charitable giving, have almost no regulations whatsoever, and are rife with inequity. So we all need to care about them.

It seems though that some colleagues are still confused by DAFs and what the problem is and so don’t want to tune in to this conversation. I’m going to explain it simply for those not familiar, so that you don’t fall asleep; apologies to colleagues who are more knowledgeable in this area than I am.

Imagine that you made millions of dollars selling naturally fermented pickle products. After buying yourself a yacht, you think “Huh, I should probably donate some money to charity. That will help people and also prevent me from paying so much in taxes, win-win.”

We need to rethink the concept of “mission creep”

Posted on August 22, 2021August 23, 2021 by Vu

[Image description: A blue-ringed octopus floating around. They are bright orange with bright blue rings all over. This octopus’s adorableness hides the fact that this species is among the most venomous and deadly of all creatures, containing venom a thousand times more powerful than cyanide, enough for each octopus to kill 26 people within minutes. Not sure how that is relevant to this blog post, but it’s still interesting. Image by pen_ash on Pixabay.]

Hi everyone. Quick reminder before we get started. This Wednesday, August 25^th, 11am PT, Community-Centric Fundraising is having a one-year celebration/reflection. I hope to see you there. Meanwhile, if you’ve benefited from the CCF movement or your org has made changes because of it, please share.

There are only a few things we all agree on in this work. One of those things is that mission creep is no good, very bad. Mission creep is like mixing trash and recycling together. It’s like not tipping a hairstylist or restaurant server. It’s like soaking a cast-iron pan in water overnight. It’s bad.

The term originated in 1993 and concerned the United Nations’s peacekeeping efforts during the Somali Civil War, and now it’s used a lot in our sector to talk about when organizations start doing things outside their stated mission, which causes organizations to waste resources on stuff they’re not good at, or that another org is already doing more effectively. When orgs don’t stick to their missions, it often leads to confused constituents, annoyed partner orgs, irritated funders, and a less effective field.

What is Retroactive Allyship Theater, and are you guilty of it?

Posted on June 14, 2021June 15, 2021 by Vu

[Image description: A brown and white puppy with a black nose and big, soulful eyes, laying down on what looks like a bed, with their head between their forepaws. Image by T.R. Photography on Unsplash.]

Hi everyone, this week a bunch of groups are having PEEP (Party to Enhance Equity in Philanthropy) gatherings. I’ll have an updated list at the end of the post, so check it out. Also, if you’re in King County, please take some time to fill out the Wages and Benefit Survey and the Employee Engagement Survey; they’ll take a little time to do, but we need good information to ensure people are paid and treated fairly.

My friend and colleague Allison Carney, who coined the immortal term “bizsplaining,” wrote this blog post about how introverts can speak out against racism. It’s made me think about how so many of our strategies for fighting injustice are geared towards extroverts, people who are naturally more comfortable speaking up. For those who are quieter and who need time to reflect, it can be more challenging to push back in the moment when we see or hear problematic things, or when someone needs support.

It’s time we pay interview-stage job applicants for their time

Posted on June 7, 2021June 7, 2021 by Vu

[Image description: Four string puppets standing in front of a yellow background flanked by blue curtains. Three appear to be wearing dresses, one with a shirt, pants and boots. All have beady, soul-less eyes, their arms outstretched as if they’re beckoning to be hugged. Image by epicioci on Pixabay]

Quick note before we start: Join me for “Friends with Money: A Fireside Chat for 501c3s & Philanthropists” on Wed, June 9th, 5pm to 6pm EDT. Free via Zoom. We’ll be discussing philanthropy, equity, power dynamics, etc. Also, several groups across the country are putting on a PEEP (Party to Enhance Equity in Philanthropy) event around the summer solstice. I’ll list the ones I have information about at the end of this post. If you’re planning something, please fill out this form, and I’ll mention it next week.

Over the past few years, I keep hearing horror stories from people applying for jobs. Someone had to go through eight rounds of interviews. A friend had a four-hour interview that included an essay followed by a one-hour PowerPoint presentation. A colleague had to come up with a marketing plan for an organization, didn’t get the job, but found that the org had used their ideas without asking for permission. Another person mentioned having a personality test and six interviews that culminated with them writing and performing a one-act puppet show to demonstrate their creativity.