Just thinking…
posted on: Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Gary Snyder
Some random thoughts:
• Is the sacred self-regulation mantra gone forever in favor of the endorsement of the charity sector leadership endorsing stronger government intervention?
• Are the “accountability and transparency” efforts of GuideStar now being picked up by the IRS?
• Why is the IRS monitoring and giving training programs to charities when there is a large network of organizations (IS, Board Source, state associations, more) that are doing the same?
• Is the IRS being “helpful” and “watchful” going to eliminate the taint on charitable sector?
• In view of record malfeasance, why are the state regulatory bodies’ efforts being so poorly funded?
• Where are the efforts to instill confidence to a sector that has diminishing trust by donors?
• Has the upsurge in charitable organization applications for tax-exempt status served the sector well?
• Has the vast amount of money spent on board training shown any benefit?
• Why does the IRS say that no regulation fits all organizations, but proposes regulations that are to fit all charities?
• Why does everyone embrace empirical evidence but so few are gathering it?
• Why does everyone talk about dialog within philanthropic sector and large sections are not at the negotiating table or even consulted?
• Is the federal government’s belief that an active and independent board is the best defense against the misuse of charitable assets as well as bad press valid? What is the staff’s role in that regard?
• Why is there such an uproar when there are suggestions about how old and tired approaches should be changed?
• Is strategic planning a good activity, or expenditure, when the results frequently sit on the shelf?
Not sure what to think...
Gary R. Snyder is the author of Nonprofits: On the Brink. He is a frequent lecturer and author of articles in numerous publications and blogs. His email is http://gary.r.snyder@gmail.com; website: http://www.garyrsnyder.com/, phone: 248.324.3700.Labels: accountability, government oversight, Philanthropic Malpractice, regulation
Some random thoughts:
• Is the sacred self-regulation mantra gone forever in favor of the endorsement of the charity sector leadership endorsing stronger government intervention?
• Are the “accountability and transparency” efforts of GuideStar now being picked up by the IRS?
• Why is the IRS monitoring and giving training programs to charities when there is a large network of organizations (IS, Board Source, state associations, more) that are doing the same?
• Is the IRS being “helpful” and “watchful” going to eliminate the taint on charitable sector?
• In view of record malfeasance, why are the state regulatory bodies’ efforts being so poorly funded?
• Where are the efforts to instill confidence to a sector that has diminishing trust by donors?
• Has the upsurge in charitable organization applications for tax-exempt status served the sector well?
• Has the vast amount of money spent on board training shown any benefit?
• Why does the IRS say that no regulation fits all organizations, but proposes regulations that are to fit all charities?
• Why does everyone embrace empirical evidence but so few are gathering it?
• Why does everyone talk about dialog within philanthropic sector and large sections are not at the negotiating table or even consulted?
• Is the federal government’s belief that an active and independent board is the best defense against the misuse of charitable assets as well as bad press valid? What is the staff’s role in that regard?
• Why is there such an uproar when there are suggestions about how old and tired approaches should be changed?
• Is strategic planning a good activity, or expenditure, when the results frequently sit on the shelf?
Not sure what to think...
Gary R. Snyder is the author of Nonprofits: On the Brink. He is a frequent lecturer and author of articles in numerous publications and blogs. His email is http://gary.r.snyder@gmail.com; website: http://www.garyrsnyder.com/, phone: 248.324.3700.
Labels: accountability, government oversight, Philanthropic Malpractice, regulation
posted by Gary at
3:27 PM
6 Comments:
Excellent questions. I think the answers are out there but a short list of explanations for much of the above includes:
1) Ignorance
2) Fear
3) Lack of funding
4) Vested interests not interested in change
5) Hubris
Ken Berger
Charity Navigator
By
Ken Berger, at 9:24 AM
Gary:
Hard to know where to begin. The more I thought about it, the longer my response got. So I've posted it here: http://is.gd/1zStD
Some quick responses to some of your specific questions, however.
Re: governance training, the problem is not with the teaching but with what we consider governance to be in the first place. When this many boards are making the exact same bad mistakes, we must acknowledge this is a systems problem, not the fault of each of those individual boards. http://is.gd/1zOhG
Re: "Is strategic planning a good activity?" Strategic planning as it is currently practiced neither builds strong communities nor strong organizations. Again, a systems problem - What are we planning to accomplish?
Much more at my post - thank you for asking these incredibly thoughtful questions. I look forward to talking with you and others about just these issues!
Hildy Gottlieb
Author: The Pollyanna Principles: Reinventing "Nonprofit Organizations" to Create the Future of Our World
By
Hildy Gottlieb, at 12:45 PM
Ken/Hildy,
Thanks for the thoughtful causes and possibly solutions to the charitable world's challenges.
In reading both of your responses, I thought of another question: Why do schools of nonprofit management send their impressionable students on mentorships to nonprofits that are practicing bad behavior? Does this perpetuate the problem for another generation?
Confused more than ever...but thanks for your help!
Gary
By
Gary, at 1:07 PM
Gary,
In answer to your follow-up question - Yes it does.
Those schools share the same five problems I noted earlier!
Ken
By
Ken Berger, at 1:19 PM
Good flow, Friends!!!
I remain amazed by the number of schools that are teaching young leaders to lead just like old leaders have. I dig lots of old leaders (now that i think about it, I guess I'm one) but we need to be teaching young folks how to bust the mold, not make the old model bigger still.
I think it's also a mistake that so many of the nonprofit programs are run out of business schools. I dig business, but too often the mantra is scale and bigger is better.
BUT...and this was a huge leap for me when it dawned on me...none of these leaders or groups are bad--they are just doing what they learned. It's normal to become boring, to fall back on routine and go with the flow.
What would be great is to acknowledge that and then teach students how to avoid it.
We should also be teaching older leaders how to share power and loosen the grip.
GOOD post, Gary
By
robert egger, at 1:26 PM
Oh this conversation is such a sirens' song - I must get back to work! :-)
This sector inherited & adopted systems that do not work for our highest purpose - creating the future of our world. With those systems in place, we codified them as best practice, teaching them as the gospel. Now the powers that be will turn those ill-functioning systems into law and voila - guaranteed failure, finger-pointing, more and more spirals of dysfunction.
Individuals will go where systems lead them. If the systems are not aiming us at the only thing that matters - creating visionary, significant change in our communities and our world - then the answer is easy: Create new systems. But it’s not a system here or there - it’s everything.
This video starts to explain what those systems can look like when they DO work. We know it is possible because we have done it. It's practical and it's doable.
http://is.gd/yXAV
Now the bigger question: Can I resist the temptation of checking back here between appointments and deadlines today? Now that's a system I'm not so sure I can change!
:-)
Hildy
Hildy Gottlieb
Author: The Pollyanna Principles: Reinventing “Nonprofit Organizations” to Create the Future of Our World
By
Hildy Gottlieb, at 1:41 PM
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