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Are S.C. charities as strong as national ones?
By June Bradham
Nonprofit Development
Q. My business partner and I are considering increasing our corporate giving next year and would like to give more to South Carolina charities. Do you think they’re as solid as national ones?
A. Great to hear that you’re getting involved. As a native South Carolinian, I always love to hear about people supporting their local community. As for how we measure up, there is definitely good news for anyone interested in donating to South Carolina charities. Recently, our good friends at South Carolina Association of Nonprofit Organizations conducted two extensive surveys which shed some light on the state of nonprofits in South Carolina.
SCANPO’s Executive Director Mason Hardy shares that: “There are more than 11,000 nonprofits that employ more than 76,000 workers and contribute more than $8 billion to the state’s economy” in South Carolina.
That’s an amazing statistic in its own right, but even better is that SCANPO’s research revealed that, overall, S.C. residents have positive perceptions about nonprofits.
More than half of the residents polled in the SCANPO survey think charities are run well and succeed in helping people. Most feel nonprofits are more effective than they were five years ago.
SCANPO also asked leaders of nonprofits how they feel their organizations are doing.
Their answers should inspire potential donors like you: Nearly 100% say they have instituted policies to protect donors’ privacy and ensure that donors’ money goes where they intend. More than 90% have formal budgets and financial reporting, mission statements and boards that meet at least quarterly.
Nearly all charities agree, though, they have work to do, especially when it comes to implementing technology and clearly outlining certain internal policies, but as far as how donors can expect to be treated by S.C. charities, 2007 looks like a great year for giving.
Q. I work with a new nonprofit here in Charleston. One of our goals for 2007 is to focus on how we’re doing internally and in comparison to other groups like ours. How would you recommend getting started with this evaluation?
A. Taking a hard, honest look at your mission and your method is both a step in the right direction and an intensive, eye-opening experience.
Amazingly enough, only about one-third of S.C. charities say that their governing boards evaluate their performance annually.
It seems that you already know why you should self-evaluate but the how is sometimes tougher. One important thing to consider when giving your organization a regular checkup is to ask someone else to do it.
My company has found it’s often difficult for internal colleagues to be objective about what expenses are necessary, how much staff you really need, how organized you are and so on. Also, it’s a challenge to focus on “housekeeping” when your head is really on bringing in money.
Somehow, writing a truly compelling case sounds much less important than making your 15-20 calls per day so you may need someone else to remind you just how important it is.
Keep in mind, you’ll only succeed if you are 100% prepared. This means honest budget assessments, comparing the wants of the organization with the needs of your donors and communicating your mission early and often.
As is true in any industry, continuing education is paramount to staying ahead of the competition. And, even though the idea of competing with other charities may seem a bit unsavory, you need to make your organization stand out.
It’s no longer just about the cause; it’s also about training your staff to embrace your mission, being accountable for your actions and those of your colleagues and providing more to your donors than they expect.
Those are ambitious and worthwhile goals we can all embrace.
For a crash course in improving your nonprofit, I’d encourage you to visit www.scanpo.org. SCANPO recently released “Guiding Principles and Best Practices for South Carolina Nonprofits,” which illustrates methods for improving in areas such as information management, legal compliance and stewardship. Training sessions in each of the seven core principles have begun across the state.
Just as for-profit businesses would never let a year—or a quarter, for that matter—go by without some serious self-evaluation, nonprofits should exercise the same care and vigor in measuring their internal functions. Over the years, we’ve conducted some challenging assessments but ultimately, we found staff, volunteers and board members to be pleasantly surprised by how such a hard look motivated them, created a positive name for their organization in the community and really drove their success.
It’s a tough journey but one worth every step.
June Bradham is the president of Corporate DevelopMint, a full-service fundraising consulting firm with offices in Charleston, Greenville, Blowing Rock, N.C., and Memphis, Tenn. Send questions to cdm@corporatedevelopmint.com.
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