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Stanley Cup Inspired: How Policies & Procedures Help Nonprofits Win the Game

Robert Frost famously quipped that writing poetry that doesn’t rhyme is like “playing tennis without a net.”

Right now, a different sport without a net is grabbing our attention. Currently, the NHL sports fans are tuned into the NHL All-Star Game where representatives from some of the best teams like the St. Louis Blues and Boston Bruins take to the ice. So, allow me to make a Frost-ian point about nonprofits in a hockey context.

For a nonprofit to operate without having proper policies and procedures in place, is like playing the NHL All-Star Game without a net – and without sticks, skates, helmets, or a puck. Without certain policies in place, a nonprofit simply cannot run properly. Without rules, there can be no expectations. Board members, officers, staff, donors, volunteers, and other stakeholders must work to ensure they’re not skating on thin ice. Give your stars the protection they need, and the tools they require, to be a winning team.

25 Days of Giving: Nonprofit Policies Your Organization Needs to Consider

Where to Start?

From working with a wide range of nonprofit clients, I’ve learned that many want proper policies and procedures, but they are simply stymied or confused on where to start. That’s where an attorney well-versed in nonprofit law can come in.

Many nonprofits have to fill out an annual form, IRS Form 990. Form 990 is unique in that it not only asks about financial information but also many of its questions directly ask about policies and procedures. There are at least 10 major polices asked about on Form 990.

Special Offer!

I offer 10 major policies and procedures nonprofits definitely need for a flat fee of $990. This includes consultations and a full review round to make sure the policies and procedures fit the needs and operations of your particular nonprofit. Adopting the policies explained in this guide will ultimately save your nonprofit organization time and resources, and you can feel great about having a set of high-quality documents to guide internal operations, and present to the public.

Nonprofit Policy Special: 10 for Form 990

All Nonprofits Need These 10 Policies

Whether a nonprofit is large or small, new or decades-old, a mission that is narrow or multi-faceted, all nonprofits should have these policies in place. Yes, these policies are asked about on Form 990, but even if a tax-exempt organization is not required to submit a variation of the 990, the benefits are still immense. In general, having policies in place provides a framework and the expectations for an organization’s executives, employees, volunteers, and board members. Such policies can also be referenced if/when issues arise.

Another major reason to have proper policies and procedures in place is that they provide a foundation for soliciting, accepting, and facilitating charitable donations.

Additionally investing in strongly written, organization-specific policies is a practice in preparation in case of an audit. (The IRS audits tax-exempt organizations, just as it audits companies and individuals.

Policy Highlight

Among the major policies and procedures included in my special 10 for 990 offer are the following. (You can download my free guide with more extensive information and explanations regarding these policies and procedures.)

Compensation

Under IRS rules, compensation for nonprofit staff must be “reasonable and not excessive.” The IRS recommends a three-step process for determining appropriate compensation: (1) conduct a review of what similarly-sized peer organizations, (2) in the same or similar geographic location, (3) of comparable positions.

Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest policy should do two important things: (1) require board members with a conflict (or a potential conflict) to disclose it, and (2) exclude individual board members from voting on matters in which there is a conflict. If consistently adhered to, this policy can inspire internal and external stakeholder confidence in the organization, as well as prevent potential violations of federal and state laws.

Nonprofit Policy Spotlight: Conflict of Interest

Document Retention and Destruction

The document retention policy should specify what types of documents should be retained, how they should be filed, and for what duration. This policy should also outline proper deletion/destruction techniques.

Nonprofits & Sarbanes-Oxley Compliance

Financial Policies & Procedures

This specifically addresses guidelines for making financial decisions, reporting the financial status of the organization, managing funds, and developing financial goals. The financial management policies and procedures should also outline the budgeting process, investment reporting, what accounts may be maintained by the nonprofit, and when scheduled auditing will take place.

Form 990 Review

Form 990 asks about . . . . Form 990! That’s about as meta as the IRS gets. Specifically, this policy covers how Form 990 was prepared and how it was approved. A written policy is incredibly useful in clarifying a specific process for distribution and procedure review by the board of directors.

Fundraising

This one may seem obvious, but almost every nonprofit needs a fundraising policy, as almost all nonprofits engage in some sort of charitable fundraising. Your organization is no exception! This policy should include provisions for compliance with local, state, and federal laws, as well as the ethical norms the organization chooses to abide by in fundraising efforts.

Gift Acceptance

If well-written and applied across the organization, the policy can help the organization to kindly reject a non-cash gift that can carry extraneous liabilities and obligations the organization is not readily able to manage.

Investment

Before investments are made on behalf of the organization, there should be a sound investment policy in place to define who is accountable for investment decisions. The policy should also offer guidance on activities of growing/protecting the investments, earning interest, and maintain access to cash if necessary.

Public Disclosure

Form 990 specifically asks the filing organization to report if certain documents are made available to the public, such as governing documents (like the bylaws), conflict of interest policy, and financial statements. Additionally, the form asks for the name, address, and phone number of the individual(s) who possesses the financial “books” and records of the organization.

Whistleblower

Nonprofits, along with all corporations, are prohibited by the federal government from retaliating against employees who call out, draw attention to, or “blow the whistle” against the employer’s practices.

Collective Responsibilities of Nonprofit Boards

Keeping Up-To-Date

If you already have some (or all) of the above-listed policies in place, seriously consider the last time they were updated. How has the organization changed since they were written? Have changes to state and federal laws impacted these policies at all? It may be high time for a new set of policies that fits your organization.

Why 10 For 990

The mission of Gordon Fischer Law Firm is to promote and maximize charitable giving in Iowa, and to that point I want to help every Iowa nonprofit be legally compliant. It’s like how the coach wants to do everything they can to help their team win on the ice. The 10 policies a part of this promotion will save you time, resources, and you can feel good about having a set of high-quality policies to guide internal operations and present to the public.

Again, for now, I’m offering these 10 policies—including needed consultations—for the low flat fee of only $990. Contact me anytime at gordon@gordonfischerlawfirm.com or give me a call at 515-371-6077. I look forward to discussing your tax-exempt organization’s needs and how we can set you up for compliance success.

January 25, 2020/by Gordon Fischer

25 Days of Giving: Last Minute Year-End Fundraising Tips

Charitable Giving, Nonprofits

For better or worse, for most nonprofits in the U.S., end-of-year giving comprises a significant portion of the charitable donation pie. In fact, between October and December nonprofits receive half of all annual donations! Yes, you read that right.

The last quarter of the year accounts for donations equal to those raised the other nine months out of the year. Even more intriguing? 33 percent of donations made in December occur on the 31st of the month and 12 percent of all giving happens in the last three days of the year….talk about last-minute donors!

Why is this the case? There are multiple reasons. First, time is of the essence for donors to make a tax-deductible charitable gift before January 1 of the new year. Nonprofits are also racing to meet annual fundraising goals and typically spend a significant portion of resources in order to exceed fundraising levels of the previous year. Additionally, the holiday season is synonymous with the actions of gifting, love, peace, joy, and a time to be generous. This means donors can be extra receptive to a charity’s marketing campaign that extolls these feelings that now is the best time for giving.

This is all to say, last-minute fundraising efforts can and should be used to target prospective last-minute donors. It’s a busy time of year for all, but the return for a strong end of year fundraising push can be well worth the time and energy. Consider these quick tips:

What are you Doing New Year’s Eve?

Because New Year’s Eve day is such an important day for charitable donations, do not hesitate to keep fundraising through the very end of the year. Make those calls and get out the digital media campaigns. Reinforce to donors that December 31 is not too late and they’ll qualify for the charitable deduction federal income tax benefits on 2017 taxes.

Make Your Homepage Your Home Base

Your website should be the home base for year end giving. If you don’t have one yet, publish a dedicated page (or site) specifically for end-of-year giving information and brand it with your associated year end campaign. It doesn’t have to be complex, just consolidate the basics of who you are, what your mission is, and how donations help solve an issue or advance a cause on one campaign page.

To that point, also take a review of your online donation page. If you can, brand it to fit with your end-of-year campaign…branded donation forms can mean up to seven times more than a non-branded, generic donation portal. Also, make sure the online donation portal is easily accessible no matter “where” the donor is coming from. Also, ensure all giving and donations portals are optimized for mobile access. (18 percent of all digital-made donations come from mobile devices.)

Ready, Set, Action

If you haven’t already, make a 60-second (or shorter) video explaining how donations to your charity can make an impact. A video can be an incredibly powerful tool for cutting through the end-of-year giving noise; videos can leave a lasting impact of imagery and tell an emotional story often better than just words or photographs can. According to a Google survey on online donation patterns, 57 percent of online donors make a charitable donations after watching a fundraising video that tells an inspiring story. This is exemplified through the ever-growing crowdfunding platforms; crowdfunding pages that have a video promo component raise four times as many donations as those that don’t. Just like your website and online donation pages need to be optimized for mobile, more than half of all videos happen on mobile.

Video content creation can sound scary at first if you don’t have a marketing team in place to facilitate, but it doesn’t have to be. Consider these tips, bust out your iPhone, acquire a tripod if possible, and use your laptop’s basic editing software. If you don’t have enough “last minute” time for that, shoot a video like you would for your own personal Instagram story or Facebook page.

Communicate, Communicate, Communicate

Remind your prospective donors what you stand for and what benefits they stand to gain with at least one weekly email each week before the end of year. Also, send out a special dedicated email early on both December 30 and December 31. As most year-end donors know they will in fact donate, they’re just undecided about how much they will actually give. Make it ridiculously easy for donors to “see” what their donation could do.

In terms of timing, for example, on December 31 send out follow-up emails to only those donors who didn’t open the first iteration of the communication. Stay on message with all social media postings and branded links back to your donation page.

Celebrate!

After the year-end fundraising push, don’t forget to reward your nonprofit’s hardworking staff and volunteers! Refresh, refocus, and get ready to tackle your next year’s fundraising goals.

What year-end fundraising tactics have worked well for your charity? If you’d like to discuss any aspect of nonprofit fundraising, don’t hesitate to reach out via email (gordon@gordonfischerlawfirm.com) or phone (515-371-6077).

December 15, 2019/by Gordon Fischer

The Ethical Nonprofit: Beneficial Policies

Nonprofits

Acting ethically as a charitable organization is paramount to success. Even the illusion of unethical operations can cause lasting damage to your organization. (Case in point: Look at what happened to the Donald J. Trump Foundation and, by association, Eric Trump’s foundation.)

Smart nonprofit boards adopt, in writing, crucial values such as honesty, integrity, transparency, confidentiality, and equity. Sure a policy or two cannot “create” a certain culture or ethical operations by itself. But, well-drafted policies CAN actively promote and reinforce ethics in conduct and decision-making to all involved within the organization.

Reasons to Enlist an Attorney to Write your Nonprofit’s Policies

Major Benefits of Promoting Ethics

The realities of modern communication and social media mean that just about anyone can be a publishing “journalist.” This also means that organizations, especially nonprofits, can be subject to intense scrutiny. Because of tax-exempt status and dependence on charitable donations, nonprofits tend to be held to a higher standard than their for-profit counterparts.

An ethical issue—even the illusion of one—can split boards, cause stakeholders to pull back, snap donors’ wallets shut, and even result in expensive litigation. Fortunately, there are policies and procedures that can prevent your hardworking organization from having to deal with such controversy, by deterring unethical situations from every occurring. These policies include:

Code of Ethics

Every nonprofit should adopt a set of ethical principles to guide its decisions and conduct of its board members, officers, employees, independent contractors, volunteers, and other stakeholders. These ethical principles are typically called a “code of ethics,” “statement of values,” or “code of conduct.” Regardless of the title, the purpose of formally adopting a set of ethical principles is to provide guidelines for making ethical choices and to ensure that there is accountability for those choices. When board members adopt a code of ethics, they are actively expressing their deep commitment to ethical behavior. Making such a commitment can help earn and maintain the public’s trust.

Confidentiality

Respecting the privacy of donors, prospective donors, employees, and volunteers, as well the nonprofit itself, must be a paramount value. For example, financial information of a donor must be treated as highly confidential, and not be disclosed or discussed with anyone without the express, explicit permission.

Care should also be taken to ensure that unauthorized individuals do not overhear any discussion of confidential information and that documents containing confidential information are not left in the open or inadvertently shared. In short, it is critical to adopt a confidentiality policy regarding identity, financial institution accounts, credit card numbers, and all such information about finances.

Ethical Fundraising

Federal and state law significantly impact nonprofit fundraising. Beyond merely meeting what the law requires, nonprofits can demonstrate a first-class commitment to legal compliance by adopting an ethical fundraising policy. This would codify, for example, that all communications to donors and potential donors are honest and accurate. Another example: requirements to provide attributions for marketing imagery and never include information with minors that could be considered personal identifying information.

Fresh Iowa Lawyer Mag Read: Policies & Procedures Iowa Nonprofits Need

Financial Management

Nonprofit board members, both individually and collectively, owe a fiduciary duty to ensure the organization’s assets are used in accordance with donors’ intent and the charitable mission. To ensure prudent financial management, nonprofits should adopt financial management policies.

Financial management policies clarify the roles, authority, and responsibilities for essential activities and decisions. Examples of nonprofit financial policies commonly used include a description of how cash is handled; whether and how travel expenses will be reimbursed; and the board’s role in reviewing executive compensation.

Financial Transparency

Nonprofits also should adopt a financial transparency policy. An example of a fundamental financial transparency practice is to make information accessible to interested individuals regarding the nonprofit’s budget, sources of revenue, and information about board composition, programs, outcomes/impact, and staffing.

Basic “Good Governance” Practices

There are several basic practices every nonprofit should engage in to maintain “good governance”:

Maintain corporate minutes
Annual review of “conflicts of interest”
Annual review of compensation
Self-assessment process
Diversity
Board orientation/training

Updating Ethics Policies

If you already have some (or all) of the above-listed policies in place, seriously consider the last time they were updated. How has the organization changed since they were written? Have new legislative policies impacted these policies at all? It may be time for a new set of ethics policies for your organization.

Additional Policies Need

Note nonprofits also need additional policies for optimal compliance. In addition to the ten major policies and procedures that support the best possible IRS Form 990 (such as public disclosure, gift acceptance, and whistleblower) nonprofits should have documents in place covering the topics of employment; grantors and grantees; endowment management; and legal training for directors.

Smart Employment Policies for Nonprofits

Questions? Please don’t hesitate to contact me via email (gordon@gordonfischerlawfirm.com) or on my cell phone (515-371-6077). I’d be happy to discuss your nonprofit’s specific needs and policies promoting ethics, with you at your convenience.

January 7, 2019/by Gordon Fischer