Comments on: Administrative Fee http://www.asmallchange.net/administrative-fee/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=administrative-fee Making Sense of Fundraising Wed, 08 Feb 2012 18:58:30 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Dana http://www.asmallchange.net/administrative-fee/#comment-843 Dana Tue, 06 Jul 2010 19:05:26 +0000 http://www.asmallchange.net/?p=1028#comment-843 Great post and comments. Jason, I've linked this to The Collins Group's Facebook page. Great post and comments. Jason, I’ve linked this to The Collins Group’s Facebook page.

]]> By: Shannon Aronin http://www.asmallchange.net/administrative-fee/#comment-842 Shannon Aronin Tue, 06 Jul 2010 02:43:40 +0000 http://www.asmallchange.net/?p=1028#comment-842 I completely agree. Overhead has become a meaningless word. Every organization calculates it differently. In small nonprofits I'm not sure any staff fits into overhead. Even your development staff is contributing to program development in grant writing. Hospitals can be nonprofits and have a very high cost of doing business. I don't think we need an overhaul of the organizations, but we do need standardized metrics that make more sense and that donors at all levels can understand. I recently got into a debate with someone who felt good about giving to charity:water because they have no overhead. So I looked into it and of course that's not true. But they get their "overhead" funded by more sophisticated philanthropists who understand what it really takes to run an organization. Sigh. It's an endless battle to improve this kind of understanding. I completely agree. Overhead has become a meaningless word. Every organization calculates it differently. In small nonprofits I’m not sure any staff fits into overhead. Even your development staff is contributing to program development in grant writing. Hospitals can be nonprofits and have a very high cost of doing business. I don’t think we need an overhaul of the organizations, but we do need standardized metrics that make more sense and that donors at all levels can understand. I recently got into a debate with someone who felt good about giving to charity:water because they have no overhead. So I looked into it and of course that’s not true. But they get their “overhead” funded by more sophisticated philanthropists who understand what it really takes to run an organization. Sigh. It’s an endless battle to improve this kind of understanding.

]]> By: Donna Cook http://www.asmallchange.net/administrative-fee/#comment-841 Donna Cook Mon, 05 Jul 2010 20:19:47 +0000 http://www.asmallchange.net/?p=1028#comment-841 I work with a small non-profit that provides gifts for children in need during the holidays. Our administrative fee runs about 30%. We had two part-time paid employees...now only one. Everyone else is a volunteer.( I am the volunteer "President"/CEO.) We have a budget of about $40,000. We receive a large amount of in-kind donations that we do describe in our literature and grant aps. (Sometimes valued $20,000 and up, and our volunteers log in over 30,000 hours a year.) On paper, we look inefficient. But we provde gifts for over 4,000 children in the Greater St. Louis area, layettes for about 500 moms/newborns in need and wheelchair bags with toiletries for area Veterans and Seniors. www.brostl.org. We "live" rent free in the lower level of the Presbytery of Giddins - Lovejoy PCUSA St. Louis, MO I work with a small non-profit that provides gifts for children in need during the holidays. Our administrative fee runs about 30%. We had two part-time paid employees…now only one. Everyone else is a volunteer.( I am the volunteer “President”/CEO.) We have a budget of about $40,000. We receive a large amount of in-kind donations that we do describe in our literature and grant aps. (Sometimes valued $20,000 and up, and our volunteers log in over 30,000 hours a year.) On paper, we look inefficient. But we provde gifts for over 4,000 children in the Greater St. Louis area, layettes for about 500 moms/newborns in need and wheelchair bags with toiletries for area Veterans and Seniors. http://www.brostl.org. We “live” rent free in the lower level of the Presbytery of Giddins – Lovejoy PCUSA St. Louis, MO

]]> By: Robyn McIntyre http://www.asmallchange.net/administrative-fee/#comment-840 Robyn McIntyre Mon, 05 Jul 2010 19:56:14 +0000 http://www.asmallchange.net/?p=1028#comment-840 The arts nonprofit I worked for participated every year in a payroll deduction giving campaign in which our (and the other NPs' fees) were prominently featured. There was always a flurry leading up to the campaign as our Finance Mgr. and E.D. worked with the Development Dir. to try to find ways to make the Admin fee look lower. You'd think education on how the percentage is arrived at/where the money goes would help, but how many donors/grantors are looking for a quick and easy way to determine "worthiness" and settle on low Admin fees, though the breakdown may show apples to oranges comparisons. I think @Andy Savage is onto something - a comprehensive replacement might be the way to go, though maybe that replacement lies in finding apples to apples comparisons like listing the sodium content in a pre-packaged food. I'm shocked that a NP would have to use an endowment just to bring down their Admin Fee percentage, but I'm impressed with the creative thinking. The arts nonprofit I worked for participated every year in a payroll deduction giving campaign in which our (and the other NPs’ fees) were prominently featured. There was always a flurry leading up to the campaign as our Finance Mgr. and E.D. worked with the Development Dir. to try to find ways to make the Admin fee look lower. You’d think education on how the percentage is arrived at/where the money goes would help, but how many donors/grantors are looking for a quick and easy way to determine “worthiness” and settle on low Admin fees, though the breakdown may show apples to oranges comparisons. I think @Andy Savage is onto something – a comprehensive replacement might be the way to go, though maybe that replacement lies in finding apples to apples comparisons like listing the sodium content in a pre-packaged food. I’m shocked that a NP would have to use an endowment just to bring down their Admin Fee percentage, but I’m impressed with the creative thinking.

]]> By: Andy Savage http://www.asmallchange.net/administrative-fee/#comment-839 Andy Savage Mon, 05 Jul 2010 13:28:44 +0000 http://www.asmallchange.net/?p=1028#comment-839 I think you may be right. How does one deal with those organizations that do not put their mission to the forefront? I agree in principle with your statement but we need a comprehensive replacement...somethingbetter. The B corporation may have something for you here. They are measuring for-profit co pains but they represent a third party entity that judges the organization. I think that may work. Andy I think you may be right. How does one deal with those organizations that do not put their mission to the forefront? I agree in principle with your statement but we need a comprehensive replacement…somethingbetter. The B corporation may have something for you here. They are measuring for-profit co pains but they represent a third party entity that judges the organization. I think that may work.

Andy

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