Advice, encouragement, insight and wisdom for 2024

GREAT BARRINGTON — The right resource can make all the difference in the world. So can the right strategy, best practice, or professional tip.

As we enter 2024, we asked some of our business and consultant friends for their words of wisdom regarding Berkshire nonprofits. Their reflections — some equally viable for the for-profit world — include advice, interesting exercises, and practical approaches for increasing organizational health. The chances are you’ll find at least one actionable item from the pearls listed below.

STRATEGY

“In this reflective season, write the toast you’ll give at a party 10 years from now sharing all your organization has accomplished. You’ll create a compelling destination to aim for and you can assess whether potential steps propel you towards (or away) from that destination.” — Sarah Glatt of Paper Crane Associates

“Focus on clarity in 2024. Clearly articulate your mission, goals, and impact. Engage and inspire supporters through clear, simple communication. Clarity breeds trust, fuels purpose, and promotes accountability. By prioritizing clarity, you’ll ensure that every action aligns with your vision and supports your mission.” —

Nicole Antil of Antil Creative.

“Many of the services nonprofits provide are free to participants. One of my favorite questions is ‘what would we do differently if we charged admission to our organization or charged for our services?’

It helps to open new questions about how we’ve always done things.” — Dave Manning of Grow Meaningful.

“Don’t let perfect be the enemy of the good is powerful advice. Nonprofits do important work — and there’s so much of it. It’s easy to not explore a new collaboration or start a social media channel for fear of mistakes. Move forward and adjust as you learn and grow.”— Dawn Stanyon of Dawn Loves Social.

BEST PRACTICES

“Use both data and real-life stories to help quantify the impact of your work and guide-decision making. Incorporate ongoing program evaluation and reflection into your practices even when it’s not required by funders.” — Mary Nash of Nash Insights

“Holding succinct and productive team meetings is an art and a skill. Identify your meeting leader(s) based on their ability to define the meeting goals and decision points and keep things moving briskly toward those goals. Humor is a helpful tool to gently shut down unproductive tangents.”

— Katy Sparks of Katy Sparks Culinary Consulting.

“When things are good, managing risk seems unnecessary. However, when there are mistakes, errors in financials and management or natural disasters your risk management policies can become a lifeline.” — Kim Baker of Toole Insurance.

“Nonprofits get deep discounts on credit card processing but not automatically. You can start 2024 by finding out if you have them, and, if not, how to get them.” — David Honneus, consultant.

“Make sure you have the right tools for success. A benefit program that is tailored to your sector can save you time, money, and help position you for growth. The Commonwealth offers a unique retirement plan built to help small nonprofits.” — Lisa Cardinal of the Massachusetts 401(k) CORE Plan.

“Fundraising is not a four-letter word! When done properly, fundraising aligns critical funding needs with donor values and priorities. It is a mutually beneficial relationship whereby donors positively impact something they are passionate about and your funding priorities provide the vehicle to do so.” — Kevin Fleming, Ph.D., of ProsperNPA.com.

“As you think about your 2024 fundraising approach, my advice is simple — tell people you need their support! Remember, everyone wants to make a difference. Your job is to show them how they can have a real impact in their community and beyond.” — Liz Albert of Strategic Fundraising.

“Donors are people first and foremost so stay true to who you are. If funding your nonprofit and the work it does makes them feel good about themselves they are likely to give as generously as they can for as long as they can.” — Roger Magnus of Roger Magnus Consulting.

“Focus on donor retention. As nonprofits begin to level set from the last five years paying special attention to keeping the donors you have should be priority number one. Increase your donor stewardship efforts, communicate your mission frequently and share outcomes of donor support.” — Michael Buckley of The Killoe Group.

“January is the start of the new budget season for many companies. Now is a good time to kick off a capital campaign or a yearly fundraiser. Departments have an unencumbered budget, which means they have money to donate.” — Katie Brelsford of KB Accounting.

“Learn how to research potential donors and then how to ask them for support. Get them interested and then engaged with your programs.” — Abbie von Schlegell, consultant.

The Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires is in the business of identifying people and businesses that can help nonprofits meet their challenges and goals. We find that our business partners are extraordinarily generous with their time and talent, writing articles, teaching classes, holding office hours and even providing a bit of pro bono consulting. Nonprofits are encouraged to email NPC for direct referrals.

Check out our online Nonprofit Resource Directory at npcberkshires.org/virtual-resource-directory/, or attend our annual Nonprofit Resource Fair where you can meet many of the individuals and businesses who contributed to this article.

Liana Toscanini is the executive director of the Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires in Great Barrington.