The United Way of New York City has funding from IBM to support the advancement of technology at nonprofits. They sponsor high quality low cost workshops for nonprofits and publish a Technology News eNewsletter. If you are responsible for technology at a nonprofit you should sign up for the free newsletter and consider attending the workshops. The United Way building is conveniently located a short distance from the PATH and is a reasonable commute for people located in northern New Jersey. This month's newsletter has an excellent article on conducting a technology self audit. Topics covered include:
-Policies and Procedures
-User Password Policy
-Administrator Password Policy
-Software Updates
-Limiting Administrative Policies for Software Installations
-Software Inventory
-Hardware Inventory
-Wireless Access Points
-Network Infrastrucuture
-Backup
-Server Room Policies
-External Vendors

Conducting a technology self audit is a perfect New Year's resolution for those of you responsible for technology at a nonprofit. Even if you are an "accidental techie" - maybe especially if - this is an important part of maintaining your system in good order.

United Way of New York Tech News


www.MarionConwayConsulting.com

I believe that the best overall web resource for nonprofits is Charity Channel. Charity Channel has a long list of listservs with specific nonprofit topics, eNewsletters and teleconferenced minicourses. The lists are frequented by very experienced people in the specified field and the discussions are excellent. I have learned a great deal on Charity Channel lists over the last few years. It costs just $24 a year to become a member of Charity Channel and it is well worth it. The lists include Development, Technology, Boards, Volunteer Issues, Consultants, Charity Law, Charity Books and many more. The eNewsletters include Nonprofit Boards and Governance Review, Grants and Foundations Review, Charity News-USA, Volunteer Management Review and others.

Make sure you visit Charity Channel at: :
http://www.charitychannel.com

Marion
www.MarionConwayConsulting.com

There are soooo many great websites for nonprofits on the Internet and I find that when I recommend websites at my workshops that most people have never heard of some of the best ones. Therefore I am going to make a series of posts which highlight some of the best resources websites for nonprofits that I know.

Boardsource.org

Boardsource is the premier website for nonprofit boards. It is a must visit site for nonprofit board members. This website has a ton of free information for Boards including such topics as board orientation, board manual, board calendar, officer responsibilities, etc. Boardsource also publishes excellent books and other resource materials that you can buy on the website. You can join Boardsource and have access to members only information and discounts on its publications. It is a primary resource for me in my work with Board Development. Make sure you visit:
http://www.boardsource.org

Marion
www.MarionConwayConsulting.com

Fundraising Thought for the Day

The latest statistics from Giving USA show that charitable giving in the U.S. totaled almost $250 billion in 2004. That is incredible! The totals breaks out like this:

* Individuals gave $187.92 billion, or 75.6%
* Foundations gave $28.8 billion, or 11.6%
* Bequests accounted for $19.8 billion, or 8%
* Corporations gave $12 billion, or 4.8%

Even with these statistics many nonprofits concentrate on foundations and corporations to increase their revenues. Rather than trying to go after this 16% of total giving why not work on increasing your revenues from where over 75% of donations come from - individuals.

Check out GivingUSA.org for more information.

www.MarionConwayConsulting.com

mc@marionconwayconsulting.com

Make sure you check out my website for upcoming events....
www.marionconwayconsulting.com

One website that all nonprofits should know about is Techsoup.com. Many nonprofits do but only visit the website when they want to purchase a specific software at a discount. Tech Soup is such a rich website. Make sure you check out the treasure chest of information for technology planning,and definitely sign up for their enewsletter - TechSoup...By The Cup. There are always great articles on current topics and notice of special offers. Here's a sample about an important upcoming event to help you curb spam on your system.


STOP SPAM TODAY! FREE ANTI-SPAM SOFTWARE
--------------------------------------------------------------
Mark your calendars!
The 3rd annual "Stop Spam Today!" campaign, sponsored by
Mailshell and TechSoup, is happening 11/8-12/15. Throughout the
campaign, TechSoup will provide articles, tips, and resources to
help nonprofit organizations and public libraries fight spam.
And for 48 hours only, on 12/14 and 12/15, your organization can
order Mailshell Anti-Spam Desktop software absolutely FREE
through TechSoup Stock. There is no admin fee thanks to
Mailshell's generous donation. For more information about the
campaign, visit:
http://ga0.org/ct/rpAyLK61OX0j/

Help spread the word, and let other nonprofits and public
libraries know about this special campaign and software
giveaway:
http://ga0.org/ct/r7AyLK61OX0u/

Happy Thanksgiving!

Marion

Good Morning

As I looked over my blog I realized that I didn't have my website URL easily displayed. If you would like to learn more about me and the services I provide for nonprofits check out www.marionconwayconsulting.com.

November has been a busy month for me as I have offered a workshop entitled "The Nonprofit Board – Responsibilities, Leadership and the Emerging Board Trends for the 21st Century" for two local United Ways and facilitated two Board Retreats for nonprofits. I am happy to report that I have great feedback from all of these events.

Coming up next...workshops to be offered in 2006. Details will soon be posted for the Strategic Planning workshop scheduled for January 10th. Let me know if you would like to be on my mailing list.

Marion
Marion Conway Consulting
Specializing in Strategic Planning, Technology Planning, Leadership Development, Facilitation and Research for Nonprofits
www.MarionConwayConsulting.com
Verona, NJ 07044
973-239-8937
mc@marionconwayconsulting.com

Hello All,

This Fall I am designing the fomat and content and facilitating Board Retreats for Nonprofits. Topics include board development, board orientation, strategic planning and leadership. I am currently developing a new workshop on Visionary Leadership in Nonprofits. The material I am using to develop the workshop is awesome. Let me know if you are interested....in attendting or hosting one of these workshops.

Marion