The New Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporations Act

From the Halton Nonprofit Network:

“The new Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporations Act is scheduled to come into effect in January, 2013 (a change from the previous target of September, 2012) and it will have implications for many nonprofits. The Ontario Nonprofit Network suggests “many organizations in the nonprofit sector will have great difficulty using the Act and face the risk of it destabilizing the governance mechanisms of their organizations.”

Participants at HNN’s June 25th Learning Session on the Act had an opportunity to hear first hand from Lynn Eakin of the ONN about the act and its implications for nonprofits. A copy of Lynn’s presentation can be found here and notes from the Table Group discussions among participants can be found here.

To read more about the Act and its implications, and to learn about steps you can take to voice any concerns you may have over the Act, go to http://www.theonn.ca/what-we-do/constellations/onca/“

Resource: Building Capacity through Financial Managment

From Oxfam 

“Building capacity through financial management is a key way of achieving a more effective organisation. This then leads to an improved programme of activities. With strong financial management capacity, the group or organisation becomes more able to control its own affairs. Without it, the future is often uncertain: it may be impossible to predict when money will be short and, crucially, it may become impossible to fund programmes.  This book presents practical ways to build financial management capacity in an international development context (although much of it applies to any non-profit organisation). It describes best practice in the specific tasks of financial management – for example, planning and budgeting and financial controls. It gives examples of how groups and organisations build their own capacity. It also considers what leadership teams can do to guide their organisation’s long-term direction (an activity sometimes called ‘governance’) and it describes other financial management aspects that can be built into an organisation’s structure.”

Click here to access resource - 146 pages in pdf

Resource: Basic Financial Management for Nonprofits – a Common Sense Guide

From GVConsulting:

“This manual was created with the intention of providing basic financial management information, guidelines, methodologies, and sample report templates for CIC-funded organizations in Ontario. The content of this manual is geared to program, project and department coordinators/managers, finance coordinators/managers, directors/senior managers, and board members of nonprofits and charitable organizations. However, every organization is different, in size, structure and function, so not all of the recommendations, descriptions and examples in this manual will be applicable to, or suited for, every organization.

It is important to remember that you don’t have to know it all. If (or when) you are uncertain about a piece of financial information or unclear about what steps you should take in response to a financial issue or problem, take advantage of your organization’s finance experts and advisors. Your own in-house finance staff, accountant, bookkeeper, and most importantly, your organization’s auditor are all resources upon which you can draw. “

Click here to access manual in pdf  – 63 pages

May 8th – Imagine Canada launches new Standards Program

From Imagine Canada:

“The Standards Program is first and foremost a capacity-building initiative. Any organization may use the standards to improve and monitor its practices. Information about how to comply with the standards, as well as tools and resources to help organizations continue to strengthen their practices, is available free of charge. Organizations wishing to demonstrate publicly that they meet the standards can participate in a voluntary peer-review-based accreditation process.

In the coming weeks, we will be hosting information webinars to walk interested organizations through the accreditation process and to share the insights and tips learned from the pilot group that were the first to achieve accreditation. Register for one of these webinars today if your organization wants to learn what it takes to be accredited.”

For more information click here

The 2012 Federal Budget – What Charities and Nonprofits Need to Know

From Charity Village:

“Canada’s charities and nonprofits have had a lot to digest since the release of the federal budget last Thursday. Though there were no big surprises, the government made several significant changes that could have important implications for the sector.

We’ve sifted through the 500-page document and picked apart the responses and reactions, pulling out everything we think you need to know to understand its impact.

So what does it mean for you?”

Click here to read more

Financial Independence: Six Approaches

From NP Quarterly:

“Organization A has control over Nonprofit B to the extent that B is dependent on A for resources. This common relationship is the essence of resource dependency theory: the idea that organizations are not simply free actors, but are subject to the powers of outside forces. Managerial discretion remains, of course (within a limited range of choices), but larger forces loom over organizations and define what is possible for them. The predicament for many nonprofits is that B is supposed to be serving C, but must satisfy the conditions set by A.

For nonprofits seeking resources, this is their daily reality and existential dilemma. Formed for charitable purposes but existing in a market economy, nonprofits must come to terms with the world as it is if they are to gain access to the resources required to do their work.

Among the funders of nonprofit activity, the practices of imposing conditions and using targeted funding are considered valid methods for increasing the accountability and effectiveness of grantees. Whether they represent a government agency or a private foundation, these managers have authority over a finite resource with many requests from the outside. They conclude from previous experience the type of activities most likely to succeed, and seek the “biggest bang for the buck” by focusing and restricting their money to a narrow range of activities.”

Click here to read full post

News: Report on The National Summit for the Charitable and Nonprofit Sector

From CharityVillage:

“Last week, nearly 500 nonprofit leaders came together in Ottawa for the National Summit for the Charitable and Nonprofit Sector. Not your traditional conference, National Summit participants, including more than 80 young leaders, selected in advance one of four priority areas for action (identified through Imagine Canada’s National Engagement Strategy) to focus their energy and experience on over the course of the two-day Summit.”

Click here to read more about the Summit and the 4 priority areas

Workshops Jan 26th, 2012 – Charity Law Information Program

The Peel Leadership Centre is pleased to partner with the Charity Law Information Program to bring 2 of their informative workshops to Peel region.  The Charity Law Information Program (CLIP) is a project of Capacity Builders in Toronto, funded by the Canada Revenue Agency..

 Please click here for flyer with for more information and registration form.

Date: Thursday, January 26, 2012

Location: Centre for Health & Safety Innovation, 5110 Creekbank Rd, Mississauga, ON

Cost:  One workshop $25, or sign up for both workshops and pay just $40.00

Who should attend these workshops?: CEOs, directors, staff, and volunteers of Canadian registered charities that are involved with either fundraising, issuing donation receipts or governance

 Workshop #1:  Governance, Corporate Law Changes and CRA’s Fundraising Guidance (9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.)

Workshop #2: The Dos and Don’ts of Charitable Receipting (1:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.)

PwC – Leadership Grants Program

From PricewaterhouseCoopers Canada Foundation: Deadline for applications October 28th, 2011

“The PricewaterhouseCoopers Canada Foundation Leadership Grants Program provides funding for professional development opportunities for staff and volunteers who work at small- to medium-registered charitable organizations in Canada. Since the program’s launch in 2006, the PricewaterhouseCoopers Canada Foundation has awarded more than $973,000 in grants to 358 recipients.

Grants are available in two categories through a request for proposal period in the fall of each year:

• Individual Leadership Grants: $2,500 for individual staff members or volunteers for professional development opportunities of their own design
• Team Leadership Grants: $5,000 for teams of two or more staff members and/or volunteers (including the applicant) for professional development opportunities of their own design”

Click here to read more and access application form

The Charitable Challenge – good and bad overhead

From Business Week:

“For my money, the fourth question may prove most significant of all. For it is when discussing how to get the job done that Tierney and Fleishman tackle what is among the most pernicious problems facing nonprofits: the reflexive bias that many donors have against “overhead.”

“There are two kinds of overhead: good and bad,” they explain. “While it’s wrong to waste philanthropic dollars on goods and services that aren’t needed, it’s equally wrong to limit the impact of philanthropic dollars by depriving nonprofits of the funds they need to sustain, improve, and expand their performance (‘good’ overhead).”

Click here to read full post – over 2 pages