Nonprofit Organizations: A Non-Profit Analysis

Best Buddies is a non-profit organization that promotes the good through one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). It has created lasting relationships between students with disabilities and their peers, therefore, helping to improve the quality of life and level of inclusion for a population that is often isolated and excluded. It has also provided employment opportunities for those with IDD, allowing them to be productive members of the labour force. Lastly, Best Buddies has given those with intellectual and developmental disabilities the chance to realize their potential by encouraging them to become leaders.

Grand Junction, Colorado is a town in Western Colorado that has taken steps to excel in the health care field by providing cost effective and efficient care to their community. In lecture this week, we have learned that the key system concepts are: shared vision, shared reality, people, parts, interrelationships, leverage, adaptability and iterative learning.1 The article: Grand Junction, Colorado: A Health Community That Works, is an example of a patient-centered medical home that currently exists in the United States, and should be looked at as a possible solution to our current health care overspending crisis. I believe that the health care provided in Grand Junction, Colorado has excelled in all these concepts and will discuss their

In this week’s lesson we are looking at the importance of having a chart of accounts in our nonprofit business. At HOPE which is the business that I support. The main focus is to house and provide support to those who are homeless, mentally ill and may be struggling with dual issues. Because there is a need in a nonprofit to show measurements to determine success in each area. Charts are created for every service area the HOPE supports ( Margolis, S. (2014, 11).

Until spending time in the nonprofit program at Johnson, I never considered the many different tasks associated with starting a nonprofit. Additionally, through growing up at a long-established nonprofit, I took for granted the work involved in establishing it as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. The IRS website provides explanation for the many these required tasks needed to file for tax-exemption status. Filing the articles of incorporation and establishing bylaws remain crucial for an organization to receive recognition as a legal entity. However, establishing a nonprofit involves a great deal more than simply attaining tax-exemption status. Tschirhart and Bielefeld highlight many of these aspects, such as developing the mission and vision statements of the organization (Tschirhart and Bielefeld 49). As the reading from last week discussed, evaluating and acquiring resources for an organization should stem from the mission of an organization. Even more so, in order for that to take place, the organization needs established with a mission that will keep it rooted in its cause and a vision

The nonprofit sector faces many challenges that make it more difficult to measure its financial performance. Young (2007) states that the survival of nonprofit businesses depends upon receiving financial funding from outside donors such as donations from charities, government contracts, endowments et cetera, and the necessity for having several different revenue sources is a challenge for nonprofit management. In addition, he points out that securing capital for operating is also much different than in the traditional business world. Fortunately, scholars have provided tools and information that will help nonprofits manage and measure their unique financial performance so they may make informed decisions and guide their organizations to sustainability (Young, 2007).

I enjoyed reading Chapter 11 especially what the author writes on page 281 as it summarizes the importance of a message. It keys on the relevance of accessibility, accountability, education, interaction, and empowerment. I think that is the key element of fundraising. I also believe that from a theory to reality there are some gaps. Nonprofits are often under tremendous pressure to perform with very little resources. Some nonprofits can navigate the process successfully and grow, while others do not.

The White Paper released by the Camden Group and presented for review by the contributing authors (Rebecca Bales, Kelly Tiberio, and Tara Tesch) offers a perspective from one of the nation’s leading Health Care advisory firms. The paper brings to the forefront the characteristics of Non-Profit and for-profit hospitals, and the outlook for conversion from one industry classification (Non-Profit into a For-profit) business entity. Contained within the paper are a wide-range of topics with regards to the similarities between the two health care models, laws and regulations from both the State & Federal levels that guide their respective classification, market outlook for the health care industry and case studies that highlight the impact of actual conversion from Non-profit to For-profit hospitals from an industry standpoint. The health care is a challenging and competitive environment, therefore the paper focuses on providing insight on a strategy based on adapting from one business model into another in order to remain competitive.

There is a non-profit organization located in Greenville NC called, The Junior Women’s Association of Greenville, NC. They have a board of directors in addition to members of the organization. They state on their website, http://www.jwagreenville.org/ , that this organization is comprised “of women committed to promoting volunteerism, developing the potential of women, and improving the community through the effective leadership of trained volunteers.” I feel that in order to serve with full potential on any board of directors one must feel a real passion for the goal of the organization. I do truly support what this organization stands for and believe that it can help make Greenville a better place. They partner with Association of Junior

In the modern fear of inflation and taxes a huge concern arises by allowing millions of dollars of taxes remain uncollected by religious exempt property (Hageman 405). Many wonder why they are forced to pay the tax burden when religious organizations could easily lessen the economic burden. Nonprofit property in all 50 states are exempt and this creates problems for assessors and tax departments. Assessors must determine if the activities of the non-profit organization like churches are providing a sufficient amount of charitable care. In a 2011 survey done among assessors by the Center for Business and Economic Researches, 96% of assessors say churches will become tax exempt after an evaluation.

Being that my nonprofit organization is a dog and cat rescue in Visalia, California, it is important that I develop a plan for organizing and staffing for my organization along with developing the board. As mentioned previously, we are located in the Central Valley in the city of Visalia, California. Now that we have assessed our needs and objectives for the organization, we must now focus on developing a plan for organizing, staffing our organization, and working on the development of our board in order to help the organization be more successful in the future. A big responsibility of being on a board is raising awareness and funds for the organization (Blakemore, 2013).

The ability to convey financial information in a simplified manner without hiding or misrepresenting the financial standing can be challenging. There are many different types of nonprofit organizations and each meets a specific need. I work for an organization that began serving a particular population of homeless individuals in Jacksonville Florida in 1972. We have grown, changed and adapted over the years, which has been determined by data, changes in need, and governmental indicators. This nonprofit has grown from a small, two-person organization to an agency employing thirty full time employees. As a result, capacity has increased, as well as funding of which is now approximately $7 million in Federal and State grants serving Northeast Florida. These funds need to be represented in a financial statement that is consistent with regulations that have been established for nonprofits. The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) is an

The first aspect in determining a financial conclusion is whether or not a event is staged for profit of non-profit reasons. Since the 1980's, those responsible for organising the Olympic games have made definitely small profits in relation to operating budgets. This profit is distributed between the host county's National Olympic Committee (NOC), the IOC, and on small occasions to those responsible for sport facility maintenance. The IOC is largely responsible for revenue generated by marketing rights (brand sponsors, television rights, media coverage), which they redistribute to international sports federations represented at the games. This cycle of internal investment means the Olympic Games is a non-profit event (Catherwood and Van Kirk,

Non-profits are known for working on issues pertaining to society’s problems, but where can they improve? Where do the ideas of sustainability, justice and responsibility fit into their framework? In the twenty years of working with various nonprofit organizations within the United States I’ve seen many areas where improvements can be made. Starting with transparency, ethical treatment of their volunteers and clients and competency of boards and executive directors. I’m excited by the idea that the triple bottom line is where nonprofit and for profit organizations intersect. Whereas profitable organizations are now looking to sustain their environmental and social surroundings, yet have always had their eye on the financial bottom line, nonprofits

There used to be a time when zoos used to be full of animals. A time when extinction was not a problem. That was the past. Today, zoos all around the world are missing many animals such as the African elephant or the dodo bird. All of these wonderful animals became extinct because we were careless enough to let them all die. World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is an organization that is trying to prevent extinction from happening. WWF is an environmental organization dedicated to “protecting the world’s wildlife and wetlands” ("World Wildlife Fund"). It is one of the largest private supported conservation organizations in the world, with support from one million members in just the United States. WWF was formed on September 11, 1961 in Morges,

The Bridgespan Group, a non-profit consultancy, conducted a study on the potential of global NGOs.The study found that since 1990 NGOs registered with USAID (United States Agency for International Development) had doubled to 579, and average annual funding has tripled to $50 million and in few cases the annual funding exceeds $1 billion (Queenan et al. 2). Increasingly, NGOs, or Non-Governmental Organizations, dominate healthcare aid and interventions. Their overwhelming presence comes with equally charged influence over key societal issues such as dispersal of aid and types of interventions. This has proven to be controversial as some view NGOs as facilitators of empowerment, change, and progress. Others view them as promoting special agendas and interests, plagued with misinformed and poor policy making, and heavy reliance on funding. Aggregation of these trends raises important questions about the efficiency of NGOs and their impact on the regions they serve. Critics charge that increasing neo-liberal policies fragment healthcare alternatives in host countries; NGOs may not offer sustainable healthcare intervention programs; and that their objectives and policies often work against the host populations, which reinforce inequalities.