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Are your nonprofit's new board members prepared for success?  

On today's episode, Tim dives into 3 key areas that prepare new board members for a successful stint on your nonprofit board.  These 3 areas are:

- Identifying the Information a New Board Member Should Know
- Identifying the Expectations for New Board Members
- Implementing a Consistent Onboarding Process.

 Whether you're a small nonprofit focused on local issues or a larger nonprofit working on a global scale, this episode offers valuable insights to help your board members succeed and contribute to your organization's success.

Past PNPL Episodes Focused on Nonprofit Boards:
Ep. 54 - The Executive Director/Board Relationship
Ep. 61 - Putting Together Board Meeting Agendas
Ep. 76 - Executive Director and Board Chair - Staying on the Same Team

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The Hosts of The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR)

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH)

They can be reached at [email protected]

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

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Ever wondered how to effectively use lagging and leading indicators within your nonprofit organization?

On today's episode, Tim and Nathan provide valuable insights and practical tips to help leaders of small to medium-sized nonprofits improve their decision-making process by paying attention to lagging and leading indicators.  Discover how these indicators can inform future decisions on budgeting, recruiting, training...and even your health, as well as predict future outcomes and necessary changes.

Resource mentioned in the podcast:  The 4 Disciplines of Execution:  Achieving your Wildly Important Goals.

Support the show

The Hosts of The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR)

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH)

They can be reached at [email protected]

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

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Numbers.  Especially numbers on a financial statement.  Did you realize that numbers tell a story...the story of the priorities, focus, effectiveness, and challenges of an organization.

On today's episode, Tim and Nathan dive into the primary financial statements that a nonprofit should have and the story they each tell.  Tim breaks down each statement and what to be looking for.  4 practical tips are provided to Executive Directors on what to do with the financial statements and what to look for.

Here are three links to resources that we found helpful in explaining nonprofit financial statements:

• https://www.springly.org/en-us/blog/essential-nonprofit-financial-statements/
• https://donorbox.org/nonprofit-blog/nonprofit-financial-statements
• https://www.accountingcoach.com/nonprofit-accounting/explanation/2

Disclaimer:  Tim and Nathan are not financial experts and do not claim to be on this podcast.  They share from their experiences and understanding of leading in the nonprofit world.  Statements made on this podcast should not be considered financial advice.  You should consult with a nonprofit financial expert before taking any financial action within your organization.

The Hosts of  The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR) and can be contacted at [email protected].

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH) and can be contacted at [email protected].

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Support the show

The Hosts of The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR)

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH)

They can be reached at [email protected]

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Send us a text

Golf tournaments, 5ks, or banquets.  Are you planning an event for your nonprofit?

On today's episode , Tim and Nathan discuss the 3 primary types of nonprofit events  and how they best fit with you and your organization.  They answer the question as to whether every event is a fundraiser, share the key secret to every event, and provide a "pro tip" at the end of the episode.


The Hosts of  The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR) and can be contacted at [email protected].

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH) and can be contacted at [email protected].

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Support the show

The Hosts of The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR)

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH)

They can be reached at [email protected]

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Send us a text

Often the things that are important but not urgent are set aside and forgotten...until it's too late.

On today's episode, Tim and Nathan discuss three of those items:  Board meeting minutes, Donor notes, and Bylaws.   The items are discussed as to their importance and practical steps to keep them updated and ready to use are shared.


The Hosts of  The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR) and can be contacted at [email protected].

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH) and can be contacted at [email protected].

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Support the show

The Hosts of The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR)

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH)

They can be reached at [email protected]

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Send us a text

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and today's episode is focused on how Mental Health can impact an Executive Director's leadership.  Mental Health expert and national youth speaker, Brittany Richmond, joins Tim and Nathan to discuss his important topic.

For more information about Brittany's work or to contact her, you can go here.

Mentioned in this podcast:  The Gap and Gain by Dan Sullivan


The Hosts of  The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR) and can be contacted at [email protected].

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH) and can be contacted at [email protected].

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Support the show

The Hosts of The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR)

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH)

They can be reached at [email protected]

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Send us a text

On todays episode, Tim and Nathan discuss social media policy and practice with Sabrina Burkiewicz , an independent communication consultant.  Some of the topics they explore are:

• Why does a nonprofit need a defined social media policy and what components should be part of an effective policy?
•  Who is included in the policy and what happens if the policy is violated?
• What is the best way to use social media as a nonprofit?
• How should social media be used in a crisis?

Sabrina Burkiewicz has 18 years of corporate and nonprofit public affairs experience in social media, corporate and crisis communication, and marketing.  She is an independent communications consultant and is a small business entrepreneur as a vintage clothes reseller.  Sabrina can be contacted on Linked-In at www.linkedin.com/in/saburk.


The Hosts of  The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR) and can be contacted at [email protected].

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH) and can be contacted at [email protected].

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Support the show

The Hosts of The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR)

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH)

They can be reached at [email protected]

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Send us a text

As a follow up to Episode 75 on Delegation, today's episode of PNPL looks at how perfectionism gets in the way of nonprofit leaders ability to delegate.  In their discussion, Tim and Nathan provide 4 actions to take that can help stop perfectionism getting in the way of needed delegation.

The Hosts of  The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR) and can be contacted at [email protected].

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH) and can be contacted at [email protected].

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Support the show

The Hosts of The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR)

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH)

They can be reached at [email protected]

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Send us a text

Do you feel like your life is just a series of meetings?  Do you really need all those meetings when leading a nonprofit?

On today's episode, Tim and Nathan dive into "all things meetings".  In their discussion they explore the following questions:

•  What are the typical kinds of meetings in a nonprofit?
•  What makes for a successful meeting?
• How do you know when you need a meeting and or when you don't?

Resource mentioned in the podcast:  Death By Meeting - Patrick Lencioni

The Hosts of  The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR) and can be contacted at [email protected].

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH) and can be contacted at [email protected].

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Support the show

The Hosts of The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR)

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH)

They can be reached at [email protected]

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Send us a text

There are lots of stakeholders in a nonprofit organization, from the Board to staff, volunteers, and donors.  One of the big challenges for an Executive Director is help them all get on the same page, ensuring organizational alignment.

On today's episode, Tim dives into the topic of organizational alignment by sharing 3 benefits that comes from being organizationally aligned and 5 actions that an Executive Director can take to help move all the stakeholders to operate on the same page.

The Hosts of  The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR) and can be contacted at [email protected].

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH) and can be contacted at [email protected].

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.

Support the show

The Hosts of The Practice of NonProfit Leadership:

Tim Barnes serves as the Executive Vice President of International Association for Refugees (IAFR)

Nathan Ruby serves as the Executive Director of Friends of the Children of Haiti (FOTCOH)

They can be reached at [email protected]

All opinions and views expressed by the hosts are their own and do not necessarily represent those of their respective organizations.