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We are pleased to bring you this article from Susan Detwiler, Standards for Excellence Licensed Consultant. 

Whether or not your board acts like a team may actually depend on whether you’ve told them they are.

There’s great research  out now that proves that teams are more productive when they’re told they’re working together.  In the research, small groups of people met, were then separated and each individual was given tasks to complete. Individuals in one group (the “Together” group) were told they were working together, though they remained physically separated. Individuals who met in the other group were given the same tasks, but were not told they were working together. In each case, the participant was given a hint or clue to help them perform the tasks. Those in the “Together” group were told it came from another member of the group. Those in the other group were told it came from staff.

The individuals from the “Together” group not only did better than the individuals in the other group, but they stayed at the tasks 48% longer, solved more of the tasks, and found the tasks more interesting. In other words, just being told that they were working “together” created an environment in which they were more motivated and more engaged in the task at hand.

In the words of Heidi Grant Halvorson

“The word “together” is a powerful social cue to the brain.  In and of itself, it seems to serve as a kind of relatedness reward, signaling that you belong, that you are connected, and that there are people you can trust working with you toward the same goal.”

As other research has shown, human beings are just naturally social. We have been bred over millennia to be attuned to others. Even when we believe ourselves to be introverts, we want to know that there are others out there to whom we can relate in our own way.

That’s why, when we bring new members onto a board of directors, it is understandable that there is an initial feeling of uncertainty. The other members have a shared history. There are references to previous decisions and previous board members. Shortening the time it takes to overcome these feelings of alienation increases the likelihood that board service will be a positive experience.Introducing new board members by emphasizing that they will be working together with the rest of the team can accelerate building new relationships.

This also holds true for existing board members. Each board discussion and each board decision should explicitly be made “together.” References to working together for the sake of the institution or the mission reinforces the importance of each individual role in building success.

The post was originally published by the Detwiler Group.  Susan Detwiler is a Standards for Excellence® Licensed Consultant who specializes in strategic planning, governance, board excellence and facilitation. Located in the MidAtlantic, she works with agencies across the United States. Have some thoughts to share on this subject?  Get in touch with her at sdetwiler@detwiler.com.

The Standards for Excellence Institute is pleased to announce that its Director, Amy Coates Madsen, has been appointed to the Internal Revenue Service’s Advisory Committee on Tax Exempt and Government Entities (ACT).

Amy officially joined the ACT Panel on June 11, 2014. She was one of two appointees to the exempt organizations sub-committee. The ACT includes external stakeholders and representatives who deal with employee retirement plans; tax-exempt organizations; tax-exempt bonds; federal, state, local and Indian tribal governments. ACT members are appointed by the Secretary of the Treasury and generally serve two-year terms. They advise the IRS on operational policy and procedural improvements.

“I am honored to be selected to be a part of the ACT and am excited for the opportunity to provide input to the IRS, particularly sharing the perspective of small and medium sized organizations,” says Ms. Coates Madsen.

The ACT was established under the Federal Advisory Committee Act to provide an organized public forum for discussion of relevant issues affecting the tax exempt and government entities communities.

Greg Cantori, CEO of the Standards for Excellence Institute comments “Ms. Coates Madsen’s expertise in nonprofit governance and best-practices is immense. Her appointment will no doubt provide a wealth of knowledge to this important panel of experts in the area of tax-exempt organizations.”

Read the full Press Release.

We are pleased to bring you this Sealholder Profile, written by Standards for Excellence intern Tammy McCubbin. Tammy is presently working towards a Master of Science degree in Human Services Administration from University of Baltimore, Coppin State University.

The Maryland-DC Campus Compact (MDCCC) is a membership association of public, private, 2-year and 4-year colleges and universities. Initiated in 2008, MDCCC mobilizes the collective commitment and capacity of higher education to actively advance communities through civic and community engagement.  MDCCC provides leadership to colleges and universities in Maryland and Washington DC by advocating and encouraging institutional participation in co-curricular and academic-based public service and civic engagement programs. Maryland-DC Campus Compact became fully accredited by the Standards for Excellence Institute in July 2014.

MDCCC works to mobilize public service and civic engagement programs such as AmeriCorps Vista. AmeriCorps VISTA helps individuals and communities implement grassroots solutions designed to alleviate poverty. Initiated in 1997, Campus Compact VISTA programs join the mission of Campus Compact and AmeriCorps VISTA through projects that build campus-community partnerships to fight poverty.

Executive Director, Madeline Yates, noted about their accomplishment “frankly, our organization had a very positive experience with the Standards for Excellence process. It helped us clarify and strengthen our organizational policies and procedures, and essentially made us more effective in achieving our mission.  We received excellent technical assistance from Melissa Sines at Maryland Nonprofits’ Standards for Excellence Institute.”

Madeline Yates recalls that she first learned about Standards of Excellence “through the Weinberg Fellows program which offers high quality professional development for executive directors in our state. At Maryland Nonprofits’ annual conference I then re-connected with a fellow Weinberg colleague who had gone through the process herself and indicated that it really strengthened her knowledge of how to be an effective [executive director] and enhance her organization.”

For more information about the Maryland-DC Campus Compact, please visit their website at www.mdccc.org. The Maryland DC Campus Compact is located at 401 Rosemont Avenue in Frederick, MD.

Nonprofit Business Advisor, one of the leading industry newsletters that provides practical guidance on current issues and best practices for operations, fundraising, and compliance, featured the Standards for Excellence Institute and the enhanced Code of Ethics in its August Newsletter. Read the full piece here.

The Standards for Excellence Institute would like to congratulate several organizations who recently earned or renewed their accreditation under the Standards for Excellence: An Ethics and Accountability Code for the Nonprofit Sector:

• Chrysalis House, Baltimore, MD
• Maryland-DC Campus Compact, Frederick, MD
• i2E, Oklahoma City, OK
• US Lacrosse, Baltimore, MD

We would also like to congratulate the following organizations who have earned their recognition under the Standards for Excellence Institute’s Standards Basics program:

• The Partnership for Nonprofit Excellence, Richmond, VA

The Standards for Excellence Institute is very pleased to announce that organizations who have completed the rigorous accreditation and recognition programs will be identified for their achievement on GuideStar^©, www.guidestar.org.

Beginning August 2014, GuideStar USA, the leading source of nonprofit information, will highlight Standards for Excellence accredited and recognized nonprofits by displaying a trademarked logo that refers to their level of accomplishment. The logos will appear in the External Perspectives section of each nonprofit’s report on GuideStar.

“We are thrilled to partner with the Standards for Excellence Institute on this new initiative,” said Erinn Andrews, GuideStar’s senior director of nonprofit strategy. “The Seals of Excellence will help donors easily identify exceptional nonprofits that have been accredited and are worthy of further consideration. We believe that by integrating information from external groups like the Standards for Excellence Institute, the 7 million annual visitors to GuideStar’s website will have a more complete picture of the nonprofit’s qualifications.”

Greg Cantori, President and CEO of the Standards for Excellence Institute, says “Individuals and donors throughout the country are looking for opportunities to support charities that they can trust. GuideStar’s choice to highlight organizations that meet the highest standards in efficiency, transparency and governance with the Standards for Excellence Institute will make it easier than ever for you to make informed decisions with your generous contributions.” 

GuideStar, www.guidestar.org, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that connects people and organizations with information on the programs, finances, and impact of more than 1.8 million IRS-recognized nonprofits. GuideStar, a CFC Charitable Organization #75786, serves a wide audience inside and outside the nonprofit sector, including individual donors, nonprofit leaders, grantmakers, government officials, academic researchers, and the media.

Read the official Press Release.

We’re pleased to bring you this guest blog post from Maribel Torres-Pinero, CPA, CEO & Director of Client Accounting Services at Lumix CPAs and Advisors.  Maribel is a Standards for Excellence Peer Reviewer.  

It is an honor being asked to be treasurer of the Board of a not-for-profit organization.  What seems like a time-consuming task is truly an opportunity to make a fiscal difference for the organization you are invested in.  As a CPA with an understanding of nonprofit experience, I have been lucky enough to serve on several Boards.

I served as a member of the Board for a particular nonprofit for about a year, allowing me to study the dynamics at the Board level and identify areas where, as a treasurer, I could make a difference.  When the new slate of officers was elected, I immediately discussed my ideas with the president. These are a few of the changes we immediately implemented:

• Align Board meeting dates with logical financial reporting dates. This Board meets 4 times a year, including an all-day retreat.  The financials were presented as of the day or week before the meeting.  In addition, some Board meeting dates were a burden for the accounting staff who spent the first 10 days of the month preparing reimbursement requests for their government grants.  Consequently, I requested that the Board meetings be held no earlier than the 20^th of the month following the end of each fiscal quarter.   This way the Board could examine reports closed at the end of each quarter and provided time for the staff to perform all necessary closing procedures.

• Present a full set of financial statements. This includes a Statement of Financial Position (equal to Balance Sheet), Statement of Activities (Profit and Loss), Statement of Cash Flows and Budget to Actual comparison for the quarter-to-date.  Each of these statements presents a different and yet essential view of the organization’s financial health.  The Board should have the opportunity to review all statements and ask question at each quarterly meeting

• Document Board’s actions and activities on financial discussions. Minutes of Board meetings should obviously include actions taken by the Board.  They should also list the financial reports presented (by name), their dates and significant issues discussed in each.  This demonstrates the organization’s transparency with its financial matters and the Board’s involvement and understanding of the relevant financial issues.

• Create meaningful dashboards. It is no secret that Board members have differing degrees of financial literacy.  The financial statements listed above can be very confusing for many Board members.  Dashboards present the same information contained in the financial statements in a way that is easily understood and highlights the key points, whether positive or negative.  Three reminders when preparing dashboards: they must represent the exact data taken from the financial statements; they do not replace a full set of financial statements; and no more than two should be presented at each meeting.

These are a few ideas to get started with as you embark on your journey of helping the Board carry out their fiscal fiduciary duty.  There are many more changes a treasurer can implement, and I plan to continue writing about them in future blogs.  What changes have you successfully implemented as a board treasurer?

Standards for Excellence Institute Accreditation Manager, Melissa Sines, has been selected to present at this year’s BoardSource Leadership Forum.

BoardSource’s website states that “Speakers at the BoardSource Leadership Forum have always been among the most influential and knowledgeable in the nonprofit sector. They are inspiring leaders who are catalyzing change; researchers and consultants who are on the front-line of understanding effective governance and its influence on mission impact; and board chairs, board members, and chief executives who have led their organization to extraordinary heights.”

Ms. Sines will be leading a session called Standards for Excellence: Focus on Leadership. Participants in this session will have a chance to assess their leadership capacity using concrete benchmarks and measurements outlined in the Standards for Excellence: An Ethics and Accountability Code for the Nonprofit Sector that have been proven to help organizations grow and be more successful in meeting their missions.

Melissa Sines joined the Standards for Excellence Institute in March 2011. As Accreditation Manager, she works directly with organizations applying to earn accreditation and recognition, helping them reach the highest standards of ethics and accountability in nonprofit governance, management, and operations. She has held positions at Jankowski Associates/GrantsDirect.com, DeLeon & Stang, CPAs and Advisors, and as an associate governance consultant at Quantum Governance, L3C, an independent nonprofit consulting firm in the DC area. Melissa received a M.P.A. degree from the University of Baltimore and a B.A. degree from Hood College.

The 2014 BoardSource Leadership Forum will be held on October 9 and 10 in Washington DC.

Maryland’s The Daily Record has announced its 2014 Maryland’s Most Admired CEOs, a group of 30 top leaders in for-profit businesses and nonprofit organizations statewide.

William McLennan, Executive Director of Paul’s Place, and Stephen H. Morgan, Executive Director of The Arc Baltimore, are among the honorees. Paul’s Place earned their Standards for Excellence accreditation in 2004, and The Arc Baltimore earned their accreditation in 2005 through a partnership with The Arc of the United States.

The Daily Record launched its Most Admired CEOs program in 2012 in order to seek out and recognize remarkable business and nonprofit leaders in Maryland. Nominations for the award were solicited from the public, and winners were chosen by a panel of eight past Most Admired CEOs honorees and a representative of The Daily Record. Nominees were judged on their professional experience, community involvement and commitment to inspiring change.

“I am truly humbled and honored. Paul’s Place is a team effort, and I work with an amazing staff, board and group of volunteers.” says Mr. McLennan.

Mr. Morgan stated that he “appreciates the recognition. I feel honored to share this with my colleagues, both internally and externally, who have contributed to our successes.”

Paul’s Place’s mission is to be a catalyst and leader for change, improving the quality of life in the Washington Village/Pigtown neighborhood and the surrounding Southwest Baltimore communities. Paul’s Place provides programs, services, and support that strengthen individuals and families, fostering hope, personal dignity and growth.

The Arc Baltimore’s mission it to provide advocacy and high quality, life-changing supports to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families.

The Standards for Excellence Institute would like to congratulate Mr. McLennan and Mr. Morgan on their recognition and for the great work they do.

We are pleased to bring you this Sealholder Profile, written by Standards for Excellence intern Tammy McCubbin. Tammy is presently working towards a Master of Science degree in Human Services Administration from University of Baltimore, Coppin State University.

Class Acts Arts is a nonprofit arts-outreach organization that brings interactive performances, workshops and residencies to local communities. Their programs represent a broad range of artistic disciplines and cultural traditions. Class Acts Arts works with youth, children, and families throughout the Maryland, District of Columbia, and Northern Virginia regions, with goals to strengthen education, stimulate creative self-expression, and inspire a fresh view of the world.

The organization brings a scope of activities into the community to inspire a global world view. Class Acts Arts enhances art education in schools and communities with interactive programs that meet curriculum standards through the arts, and provide unique opportunities for cross-cultural learning. Class Acts Art also works with underserved populations through such programs as Project Youth ArtReach, which promotes positive youth development by providing juvenile offenders in detention, corrections, and probation settings with arts programs taught by master artists.

Executive Director, James E. Modrick, noted about their accomplishment “Receiving the Standards for Excellence is a very proud moment for the Class Acts Arts Board of Directors. Even with an executive transition in the midst of the application process, the Standards kept our focus on the governance and fiscal oversight of the organization. We continue to see improvement in our operations and the board as a result of this process.”

For more information about the Class Acts Arts, please visit their website at www.classactsarts.org. Class Acts Arts is located at 700 Roeder Road in Silver Spring, MD.