Orion Grassroots Network

Resources Blog

What is Strategic Planning?

posted Jul 1, 2009

Attached is Jude Kaye's backgrounder on strategic planning to help you get started. Also listen in to our conversation with her during a conference call (November 27, 2007) on the topic, here. Jude is the co-author of the nationally acclaimed book, Strategic Planning for Nonprofit Organizations and a certified coach. Before starting her own company, Intention to Action, Jude was -- for 25 years -- the senior consultant with CompassPoint Nonprofit Services. For more information, contact her at judekaye (@) sbcglobal.net, or 415-505-4321.

What is Strategic Planning? file here: strategicplanningintroduction--Orion.doc

To twitter, or not?

posted Jun 24, 2009

Paraphrasing heavily from a useful article by Dorie Clark for MassNonprofit.org, nonprofits focused on advocacy can use Twitter to mobilize constituents and educate followers about their work, send them to their site, etc. And nonprofits are using it much more than business and academia. However, 60% of Twitter users give it up within a month—both nonprofits and people who might follow our nonprofits.

Before setting up an account of your own, consider:

1. Do supporters want to hear from you at least once a day? If your information isn’t time-sensitive or that interesting (“We hired a new bookkeeper!”), then save it for your website or an e-newsletter.

2. Do your supporters actually use Twitter? If your members are tech-savvy advocates, then keeping your street cred intact may necessitate using Twitter. But if they lack access to the Internet or “smart phones,” or many of your supporters aren’t comfortable online, you may be better off waiting to see if this is a fad or a long-term trend.

3. Who will tweet? Setting up your account and gaining followers is great, but only if you’ve designated someone to handle the updates. Make sure you identify a responsible staffer at the outset.

4. What will you say? Tweeting is a commitment. Just as any viable blog should be updated at least two to three times per week, your organization should plan to use Twitter daily. Do you have enough to say?

Full article here.

Bringing cultural diversity to your work

posted Jun 18, 2009

No matter your mission, your organization should reflect the face of society, and in the US where minorities are rapidly becoming the majority, those which lack cultural diversity will face a distinct disadvantage. To ensure that your work remains relevant to and supported by all members of the community you serve, check the resources at the the Center for Diversity and the Environment. They have lots of resources to help you think about this issue, can do an Equity Audit for you, and more. Also, you can read “Diversifying the American Environmental Movement” by the Center's director (and OGN Advisor), Marcelo Bonta, there. It's a chapter from the book Diversity and the Future of the US Environmental Movement. Another book of interest, if your organization is involved with birding or bird conservation, is Birding for Everyone, Encouraging People of Color to Become Birdwatchers by John Robinson. It explores the curious lack of a minority presence in the birding community and offers new solutions for changing the face of conservation through birding.

Listen to the Network's conference call with Marcelo Bonta on June 17, 2009, archived here under that date.

An efficiency audit for your organization

posted Jun 2, 2009

Halfway through the 2009 economic crisis, you probably realize that you're going to make it to 2010 thanks to the adjustments you've made to this year's budgets. But next year is going to be another story, one that will require new plans to keep your organization sustainable. In short, it’s time to give your organization an efficiency audit—an in-depth self-examination covering everything from labor costs to liquidity to back-end operations. Consider what Dick Rossman, president of RMR Consulting, suggests:

"What areas are reviewed during the audit process? Everything.

• Programs and their sustainability. Are they all within your mission, really?
• Work environment and infrastructure sustainability. Is your office space used in the most efficient ways
• Your financial opportunities. How can you reduce your labor costs while preserving openness and minimizing stress with your staff?
• Revenue opportunities. Is now the time to spend your reserves? Can donor or grant receivables that can be collected sooner?
• Collaborating and the ‘M’ word. Are there any efficiencies that can be achieved by sharing programs or staff with another organization?
• The role of the board and other volunteers. How could your board members be used most effectively at this time?
• Positioning for recovery. Can you think of this time as an opportunity to strengthen your organization, so you can be operating more efficiently and effectively when times improve?"

Full article here.

UPDATE: Dick will be doing a conference call on Efficiency Audits for the Network on July 8, 2009. Look here for audio filed under that date.

Is It Worth It? An ROI Calculator for Social Network Campaigns

posted May 27, 2009

Frogloop has an interesting and useful tool for helping you figure out if social networking campaigns to advance your mission pencil out, their ROI Calculator for Social Network Campaigns. Use it to calculate an estimate of cost and return on investment for the recruitment and fundraising efforts of your staff in social networking sites like Facebook. It works like an online mortgage calculator, where you enter estimates and assumptions and you get a result automatically.

How to start a land trust?

posted May 18, 2009

So there's a tract of land in your town that is for sale. You don't want it to be developed. What to do? Given the time and effort it takes to run a land trust and the long-term commitment needed to protect the conserved land in perpetuity, the best route is find an existing land trust, tell them about it, and offer to help them preserve it: many of the thousands of trusts are listed here. But if your local trust is too busy or there just isn't one nearby, the LTA has some pointers and a book that can help anyone get started, here.

Mountaintop removal activism resources

posted May 13, 2009

The Network's phone call today with mountaintop removal activists Maria Gunnoe and Judy Bonds referenced several actions to take to help bring this practice to an end. Websites that are particularly helpful and educational are:

ilovemountains.org - where you can learn where the coal which powers your home or office comes from, and whether it's from MTR, and ohvec.org - Ohio Valley Envi Coalition's web site shares suggested actions

Both Maria and Judy also suggested writing letters to President Obama and West Virginia's two Senators (Byrd and Rockefeller) and Rep Rahall, even if you live outside of WV, because they really need to hear that people in places where the MTR coal is used are against this practice.

On designing reports, newsletters, and websites

posted May 12, 2009

Most nonprofit staff aren’t trained in visual design and may not know what to look for when they’re judging a designer’s work. Design Eye-Q has a free, 60-minute webinar that takes the mystery out of good design. It will teach you the 10 things you need to ask when evaluating new web pages, e-newsletters, annual reports, direct mail, or any other professionally designed communications. You’ll learn about the different emotions that particular colors convey, what font to use and when, things to consider when you’re designing a logo, why eye patterns are important, and other valuable tips.

Americorps: is a volunteer in your organization’s future?

posted Apr 28, 2009

The federal government is ramping up the Americorps program, so for US-based Orion Grassroots Network members, it may be time to learn about how you can get a 'volunteer' to help you achieve your mission. Americorps volunteers are often called 'free staffers' but that's only partially right. Listen here to audio of the Network's conference call with Americorps experts Amy Potthast of Idealist.org, Jim Wells of Northwest Service Academy, and Chris Wolff of Island Institute. They describe the ins and outs of the program and answer callers questions.

The official site is here and will answer your preliminary questions, but also try this site too.

View all archived audio files of past Orion Grassroots Network conference calls here.

Tom’s top fundraising resources

posted Apr 1, 2009

OGN Advisor Tom Reed Petersen's recommendations:

From Mal Warwick Associates:

“Fundraising in Tough Times: A no-nonsense guide to surviving in a challenging economy”

From Institute for Conservation Leadership – (as a whole ICL is very good)

“Managing in Hard Times”

“Assessing your organization’s fundraising readiness”

From TREC (Training Resources for the Environmental Community)

“I don’t want to be blindsided” – a TREC publication, not on their website, but I have and can send to folks (.)

Grassroots Institute for Fundraising Training: 30% off their flagship publication:

Grassroots Fundraising Journal

Also, Tom's article in Grassroots Fundraising Journal is here: http://wildlandscpr.org/files/uploads/dowhatyouretold.pdf

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