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Standards for Excellence Institute® Newsletter Table of Contents
Feature: Meeting Minutes For many nonprofits, it is difficult to find that rare person who delights in writing board minutes and has an aptitude for the task! Hopefully, you have a person with that special talent who creates perfect minutes for your every board meeting.
Of course, board minutes serve as the business records of the organization and should be kept for all meetings of the board. In addition, minutes should be kept for committee meetings when the committee makes decisions on behalf of the board. In many states, it is legally required for nonprofits to keep minutes in a written form, or any other form, which can be converted in a reasonable time into a written form for visual inspection. It is worth noting, however, that generally, board meeting minutes are not subject to public inspection in the same way that nonprofits are required to provide copies of their 990 or application or tax exempt status to anyone who requests them.
Board minutes keep all members informed of actions taken and those that need to be taken in the future. They should state who is in attendance, who presided at the meeting, when the meeting started and ended, and what actions (motions) were taken. The minutes may, but need not include materials that would explain (briefly) the "why" of a decision. They should NOT include a recitation of all discussion that took place or any of the personalities involved. Minutes are official once they have been approved by the Board (or committee) at the next meeting. For more information on how your nonprofit should address meeting minutes, obtain a copy of the Standards for Excellence® educational resource packet entitled, Conduct of the Board. This packet also includes a list of Guidelines for Writing Board Minutes and a sample set of board minutes. This educational resource packet is available online on the Member's Only section of the Standards for Excellence Institute® website, and available by calling 877-778-0780 ext 13.
Standards for Excellence® educational resource packets are a free member benefit for all Standards for Excellence Institute members.
10. Good things come in small packages! The Standards for Excellence: An Ethics and Accountability Code for the Nonprofit Sector® provides a comprehensive overview of issues facing nonprofits – from mission and program evaluation to openness and fundraising, its compact (and some say cute!) design and packaging is accessible and easy to digest. 9. It's important to prevent conflicts of interest! The Standards for Excellence® code stresses the importance of avoiding actual, potential and perceived conflicts of interest by approving and implementing conflict of interest policies and statements for board members, staff, and volunteers with significant decision making authority. 8. The board may need a little push to evaluate its chief executive! It has often been said that the Standards for Excellence® code provides just enough ammunition to encourage boards to finally get around to evaluating the organization's hard working executive director. 7. The board may need an even bigger push to evaluate itself! The Standards for Excellence® code encourages each board of directors to do a self-evaluation on a periodic basis. 6. The board asks the question, "Do we really need to put together an annual report this year?" The Standards for Excellence® code brings home the point that every nonprofit should publish an annual report (hard copy and/or available online) that includes key elements such as: mission, narrative report on program activities, list of board members, list of key staff, and a summary of its audited financial information (statement of activities and statement of financial position). 5. The board needs to re-assert its role as the policy-making body for the organization. The Standards for Excellence® code encourages nonprofit boards to formally and specifically approve organization policies on conflicts of interest, personnel, volunteers, financial (purchasing, internal controls, unrestricted net assets or reserves, and investments), confidential means to report financial impropriety, document retention, grievances, gift acceptance, fundraising, and advocacy. 4. Because the board should never forget the number, four. The Standards for Excellence® code reinforces the notion that your board should hold at least quarterly board meetings and should review internal financial statements on a quarterly basis.
2. Boards might need a bit of encouragement to Plan! Plan! Plan! The Standards for Excellence® code can help your board to jumpstart its commitment, leadership, and responsibility for ongoing planning for the organization. 1. Everyone needs a little refresher! The Standards for Excellence® code serves as a good refresher for "seasoned" board members on the practices and principles of well-managed, responsibly-governed nonprofits. It should always be a key element in the orientation for new board members. So what are you waiting for? Order Copies of the Standards for Excellence® code Today!
Questions? Contact Kate Hull at 877-778-0780 ext 13 or khull@standardsforexcellenceinstitute.org Spotlight on Licensed Consultant Naomi Takeuchi of 1000 Cranes Business Consulting Naomi Takeuchi of 1000 Cranes Business Consulting is one of the first individuals around the country to earn the Standards for Excellence® Institute Licensed Consultant designation, having completed the requirements for Licensed Consultants in 2006. Naomi first learned about the Standards for Excellence® program through her affiliation with the Alliance for Nonprofit Management, a professional association of individuals and organizations devoted to improving the management and governance capacity of nonprofits. She applied to participate in the selective Standards for Excellence® Licensed Consultant training program, was accepted, and enrolled in the first multi-day Licensed Consultant training program in May 2006. She finds that the high standards employed as part of the selection process are important to the overall program.
Naomi often works as a training professional, in programs such as the Duke Certificate Program in Nonprofit Management and the Tidewater Community College Academy for Nonprofit Excellence Program in Norfolk, Virginia. She has been able to incorporate her work with the Standards for Excellence® into her work at Tidewater and finds that when she shares examples of Standards materials with her students, they are always excited to receive "examples of how a policy can be constructed and put to use in their own organization." Naomi finds that she often utilizes Standards for Excellence Educational Resource Packets on Solicitation and Acceptance of Gifts, Personnel Policies, and Conflicts of Interest.
In her extensive consulting engagements, Naomi finds that the Standards for Excellence: An Ethics and Accountability Code for the Nonprofit Sector serve as a useful tool to help educate and inform her clients about tough issues. She uses the Standards for Excellence® Code to help encourage change in areas related to boards of directors' term limits, leadership succession, and conflicts of interest and also points to the fact that the Standards for Excellence serve as "an industry standard."
She often mentions that she is a Standards for Excellence® Licensed Consultant in her proposals with new and existing clients and finds that this designation provides added credibility to her personal qualifications and to her consulting practice. Naomi Takeuchi is the President of 1000 Cranes Business Consulting, www.1000cranes.com and can be reached at naomi@1000cranes.com.
The Standards for Excellence® Licensed Consultant program is an exclusive, professional development initiative that gives independent consultants the knowledge, skills, and tools necessary to work with nonprofit organizations across the country interested in learning about, conducting self assessments, implementing change, and becoming accredited in the Standards for Excellence® Program. Our 2008 class is an incredible group of individuals, a group that collectively boasts over 130 years of experience. Individuals participated in the course last month included: To meet our newest group of ambassadors for the Standards for Excellence® program, please click here>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- New Awards Available to High Performing Front Line Nonprofit Workers • Youth Development • After School / Out-of-School Youth Services • Adult Men's Services • Adult Women's Services • Family Services
More details about the Superstar Foundation can be found at www.superstarfoundation.org -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Standards for Excellence® Certification Online Webinars -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Welcome Newest Members of the Standards for Excellence Institute® Texas Pregnancy Care Network, Austin, TX John Brothers, Bloomfield, NJ For a full listing of members of the Standards for Excellence Institute®, click here.
Membership is open to operating nonprofits, grantmakers, associate members, and students. Joining is easy. You can join online or via mail. For information on how to join the Standards for Excellence Institute®, click here. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- On the Road with Standards for Excellence® 7/9/08-7/11/08, Detroit, MI - Standards for Excellence Institute® Program Director Amy Coates Madsen represented the Standards for Excellence Institute® at the Alliance for Nonprofit Management conference in Detroit, Michigan. 6/26-7/2/08, Anaheim, CA - American Library Association Annual Conference - Chapter Leader Orientation. Margaret Carty, executive director of the Maryland Library Association, presented on the value ensuring the association's continued compliance with regulations and laws and good management practices to executive directors, board presidents and president elects of library associations across the country. If you would like more information on how you can engage the Standards for Excellence Institute® to facilitate Standards for Excellence® educational programming in your area, contact Justin Pollock at jpollock@standardsforexcellenceinstitute.org or 301-565-0505 ext. 30. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Will 2009 Be the Year that Your Organization Earns the Seal of Excellence®? The Standards for Excellence: An Ethic and Accountability Code for the Nonprofit Sector© continues to be a tool of choice for many nonprofits when strengthening the quality and integrity of management in their organizations. Join nearly 200 other organizations that currently hold the Seal of Excellence and demonstrate that your organization is responsibly governed and well-managed. Is your organization ready for the next step?
Mark your calendars for these application deadlines:
October 31, 2008 February 13, 2009 April 10, 2009 June 26, 2009 October 30, 2009 Learn more about the certification process here>>
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