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News for May 2010

21 May 2010

XKCD on Why Infrastructures Matter
	I've been advocating for open standards and open infrastructure for a long time now. In the long run, they are good for civil society. And while I don't know if I've ever embedded a cartoon in Nonprofit Online News before, there is no time like the present to do so. So without further ado, here is today's take on infrastructure decisions, from the incomparable XKCD: Posted: 5/21/10; 10:34:47 AM #

20 May 2010

Is "Doing Your Bit" Enough?

As much as I believe in designing volunteer and donor experiences that are genuinely rewarding for the people involved, I think that short-term, feel-good thinking has gone much too far. In Is "Doing Your Bit" Enough? (4 page PDF), Richard Docwra takes a stab at the sort of incrementalism that encourages people to think that changing their brand of toilet paper is a social or environmental change strategy. It's a decent little thought piece and I encourage you to think about the long term vision of your organization and whether you are undermining it through short-term efforts designed to make people feel good about small steps. Posted: 5/20/10; 6:02:43 PM #

Ten Common Mistakes Made When It Comes to Fundraising Technology

Niroo Rad of ASI Europe has a really decent list of Ten Common Mistakes Made When It Comes to Fundraising Technology in NFP Techno. What I like about this list is that, unlike so many similar lists, the items are not flippant and anecdotal. This means that each one requires some thought to understand and implement. That's as it should be. Here are his ten mistakes (read the article for details): (1) Selection criteria are not clearly defined. (2) Users aren't involved in the selection process. (3) Solutions are selected primarily on looks not functionality. (4) The best solution is not necessarily the latest technology trend. (5) High expectations are set and widely communicated. (6) The planned budget is exceeded during the fundraising technology selection process. (7) The project is littered with assumptions. (8) Internal project personnel are frequently changed. (9) Suppliers are not trusted. (10) The project is kept away from senior management. Posted: 5/20/10; 5:50:01 PM #

Abracadabra Moments, the Opening Line You Should Never Use, and 10 More Ways to Sell Ideas

Many nonprofits that I work with are in the business of selling ideas. Actually, almost all of them are, if you consider the fact that we have to sell our ideas to donors. In Abracadabra Moments, the Opening Line You Should Never Use, and 10 More Ways to Sell Ideas, Sam Harrison gives us a few tips. They are just a wee bit sales-oriented, as you might expect from a Fast Company article. But you can see for yourself how useful they might be: (1) "If they feel they birthed it, they can't kill it." (2) Leave creative chaos at the door. (3) Pause before you start. (4) Never start your pitch with "You're going to love this idea." (5) Help clients visualize your ideas in living color. (6) Stand tall, talk short. (7) Throw out handouts. (8) Bank on leave-behinds. (10) Get personal. (11) Create abracadabra moments. (12) Once you've sold an idea, don't buy it back. Posted: 5/20/10; 5:42:35 PM #

Idealware's Social Media Research Preview

Although it's based on surveys and anecdotes, I think that Idealware's Social Media Research Preview is worth some attention. What you're getting here is a snapshot of nonprofit usage of various tools, along with their opinions about the effectiveness of that usage. I'm a little concerned that the published slides suggest conclusions that go further than self-reporting would permit, although I know that isn't intended. I would love to see Idealware open up the data for others to do further analysis - with appropriate credit through a Creative Commons License, of course. In the meantime, take a look at this with an eye toward what further research it suggests. Posted: 5/20/10; 5:29:32 PM #

4 May 2010

How Much Should Non-Profit Leaders Earn?

I think a million dollar salary is absurd, but I think the current scrutiny that some nonprofit leaders are getting for their compensation packages is sadly misdirected. How in the world have we come to a place where it's ok to earn enormous sums building bombs or polluting the planet, but if you are doing genuinely good work in the world, then you better not make too much money off it. Paul Light looks into this topic a bit in the Washington Post where he asks: How much should non-profit leaders earn? Posted: 5/4/10; 10:05:54 PM #

The Rewards of NonÂ≈-Commercial Production

Driven as much by the buzzwords as by anything else, civil society organizations are all hot about "user-generated content". I'm not sure that most of us get what this really means, in that we seem to focus on the content itself, rather than on the relationships which both drive its production and are in turn mediated by that production. In the latest issue of First Monday, Mizuko Ito takes a close look at The Rewards of Non-Commercial Production. The paper is focused on the field of anime music videos, but my reading of this work tells me that the lessons are very applicable to broader noncommercial efforts. Posted: 5/4/10; 10:02:15 PM #

Structuring Collaboration

There's a good discussion going on at Social Edge on the topic of Structuring Collaboration. I appreciate the frame of reference here. I have lost count of the number of collaborations which I've seen degenerate into complex, naval-gazing discussions (and conflicts) about beliefs and values, as though agreeing on those words will facilitate coordinated action. It's always been painfully clear to me that people and organizations who differ and disagree can work together very well indeed, if the structures and systems for doing so are established. But in our effort to establish affinity and to "get down to business" rather than plan, most collaborations skip establishing the right structures for success. It's such a pity. Posted: 5/4/10; 9:57:53 PM #

A to Z of Key Terms in "Social Media"

The indefatigable David Wilcox and Amy Sample Ward have published a great "jargonbuster" in the form of an A to Z of Key Terms. (Thank you to Deborah Finn for pointing me to this.) Now, I tend to think it is generally more powerful for civil society leaders and activists to deepen their understanding and increase the influence of their own language on the technology conversation (rather than adopting the language of the vendors and technologists), I am really tickled by this resource and can recommend it highly. I assure you that it's not just for people like me, who like to read dictionaries. It comes in web, PDF, and hard copy formats. Check it out. Posted: 5/4/10; 9:39:59 PM #

2010 NTC Session Materials Now Online

I haven't been attending NTEN's annual Nonprofit Technology Conference in recent years, but that doesn't make me any less of a fan. I am always so pleased by how much learning the organizers are able to capture and share online. Many of the 2010 NTC session materials are now online and they are growing rapidly. You can search by session, get slides off of SlideShare, and find all sorts of crowdsourced content as well. It's always a goldmine of practical material and this year is no exception. Posted: 5/4/10; 9:10:26 PM #

Grantsfire to Join the Foundation Center

I'm delighted to see that a project whose birth I played a role in inspiring is reaching a new stage in its maturity: The Foundation Center is taking on Grantsfire as a project. Grantsfire, as you may know, is a vision, set of standards, toolset, and website the purpose of which is to open up feeds of grantmaker data to analysis, mashup, discovery, and knowledge building. Depending on how this fits with the Foundation Center business models, this merger will speak well for the Grantsfire mission. Posted: 5/4/10; 9:04:10 PM #