Month: April 2013

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Simple Steps to Small Business Savings

A person stacking coins

(Guest post from Brittany Evans)

It’s amazing how much small purchases can add up when they are being done by an office. That’s because of the volumes involved. For example, a house may have five or 10 lamps inside, but an office can easily have 50-100 bulbs running during operating hours.

Therefore, it’s important to pay attention to these sorts of things so they don’t become stealthy profit killers. Here are a few ways you can lower your operating overhead without compromising operations:

Use a Thermostat With a Timer

To maintain productivity and health, the office thermostat should always be set to comfortable levels during working hours — but you shouldn’t bother heating or cooling an empty building.

If your company is always closed at night or on the weekend, set the thermostat to shut down the climate control during those hours. Make sure to have everything come online about an hour before people arrive for the next workday so no one has to be uncomfortable when the shift starts.

Get Rid of Energy Vampires

If you’re using standard incandescent lighting, switch to compact fluorescent bulbs or LED lights. Fixtures that already use fluorescent tubing should be checked to make sure that bulbs and ballasts are working properly.

If either component begins to fail, it loses efficiency and fails to provide the proper lighting. Flickering fluorescent tubes will also cause lower productivity among workers who are sensitive to the flashing effect.

Go Paperless

Buy supplies online. To ensure that you have purchase protection, get a business credit card at American Express. Online stores often have much better rates than their physical counterparts. Don’t avoid small businesses either — these often have the best deals of all.

Eliminate Disposable Cups

Make everyone bring their own mug to work. This will eliminate both the expense of the cups and the need to make someone do all the dishes. If someone wants to let his mug go until it looks like it’s tar coated, it won’t affect anyone but him.

Carry the Right Amount of Insurance

If your policy is too low, you can find yourself on the hook for unexpected costs — but most businesses don’t need a policy that covers everything, either. Pick a level of coverage that will take care of anything you couldn’t afford to pay for yourself, but no more.

Also, make sure you’re covered against specialized, local disasters like floods or hurricanes. Remember, hurricane insurance usually doesn’t cover water damage — if you’re in a hurricane zone, buy flood insurance too.

Buy Nonperishable Supplies in Bulk Whenever Possible

It’s almost always cheaper to buy a big package instead of a small one, and the savings are even greater if you can get a truly huge package. For items like toilet paper, ear plugs or other things your company will always use, buying small units is just throwing money away. Use a business credit card to make it easy to buy wholesale quantities and keep track of the purchases.

By taking common-sense steps like these, you can save your company a surprising amount of money every month. Other tips include always seeking bids for contracted work and reviewing contracts for ongoing services on an annual basis. Even if you’re satisfied with your current providers, having competitive information handy can allow you to negotiate a better deal.

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How Constructive Conflict Can Supercharge Teams

team work

We often talk about good teamwork as everyone getting along and coming together with the same vision. It may sound counter intuitive to say the best way to promote teamwork is through conflict.

Teamwork coaching rhetoric often tells us conflict is something to be avoided, but the truth is that a healthy amount of discord will help your team perform at its best. Conflict can feed your team’s creativity. Using it effectively allows you to mold your team dynamic into something that is collaborative and intensely productive.

Constructive v. Destructive Conflict

Many leadership training manuals focus on how to resolve conflict, but in truth, this approach fails to recognize the need for constructive conflict. There is such a thing as positive confrontation, and though destructive conflict hurts the team, constructive conflict drives it forward.

When two team members have a personality conflict or when one refuses to respect another, this is destructive conflict. The things fueling this are generally not related to the project at hand but competition and individual egos. Destructive conflict involves personal attacks and insinuations that people are not doing their jobs based on personality traits.

On the other hand, constructive conflict allows people to move forward together, attacking weaknesses in processes and designs without attacking each other. They have the same goal; they just disagree on the best way to get there. When kept under control, this can be very synergistic.

Spurs New Ideas

Studies show that better policies emerge from groups where dissent is welcomed than when there are a lot of people in a room who think exactly the same way. When people know they can safely express their own opinions, new ideas are forthcoming.

To jump start this kind of culture, a team leader may ask members to formulate their opinions on a matter and write it down before a meeting of minds. This allows them to organize their thoughts and gives them confidence to defend their own position while critiquing others’ ideas intelligently.

Acts as a Vehicle for Collaboration

Constructive conflict allows people to take a good idea, bang it around, and reshape it into a great idea. The result is that teams can benefit from each others’ strengths and different points of view.

As a team leader, you may need to referee to make sure confrontation stays constructive. Sometimes it means staying out of the way and letting arguments run their course. Other times it means wading in and restoring focus to the discussion. This type of leadership encourages teams to talk and to share ideas freely, but it allows them to feel safe doing so because they know you will not let things get out of hand.

Conflict Keeps Energy High

We’ve all been there. When you’re eight weeks into a project it can feel like all the teamwork coaching in the world could not keep your people motivated. The issue is that we are all prone to lose energy and motivation as projects draw out or become repetitive. We all get tired, and there is nothing wrong with that.

However, when people have something to spur them forward they can stay much more energized for extended periods of time. Team members challenging each other to constantly look for new and better ways of doing things, talking through road blocks, etc. helps feed the creativity and the synergy of the team. In this way teams can be their own sources of energy during the long hauls.

Gives Everyone a Voice

The strength of constructive conflict is that everyone has a chance to give their two cents. Instead of one or two people blazing forward through trial and error, a focused team can often whittle away at dead ends until all that’s left is the right way. A diversity of voices and solutions is necessary for growth in a competitive environment.

Keep in mind that it’s common in charged discussions for a couple of dominant egos to take over the room. It’s the manager’s job make sure everyone gets a chance to speak. Call on people, or find another way for them to make sure their words are heard and you are benefiting from their expertise.

As a team leader, the better you can set the ground rules for conflict in your team, the sooner individuals will learn to live within them. This will make conflict a tool of productivity and unity among team members, not just a problem to be avoided.

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Matthew Goyette is a team leaders and a lifelong student of team building. He also serves as a blogger for Moementum, a company that provides organizational coaching and consulting.

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Getting The Information

Colleagues having a meeting in an office space

We’ve all faced similar problems where we can’t get answers to questions we have for a project. What do we do when it comes to road blocks? One solution is to gather your knowledge base and hold a meeting and communicate to all project members and stakeholders that you have hit a wall. But prior to the meeting, be sure to create a plan and email an agenda.

Communicating In A Meeting

Break up the meeting by agendas, groups or one-on-one, level of expertise, or departments. Present the reason for the meeting and define the problem. Let them know your concerns, status, and what information you need from them. Let them know that the project will be in jeopardy or that deliverables will be late. Present a list and let them know what you have and what is missing. Review the list and see if they can assist in any way or give you some leads. Just as you would deliver your documentation in a presentable manner, do the same for your plan. Simultaneously, find out why you cannot get the information or the help that you need. Maybe your associates are overloaded as well. Find out their issues and concerns and see if you can assist them in some way. Teamwork plus collaboration always equals a positive outcome.

Asking Questions

These gatherings are your key to finding answers. Ask all the questions you can as part of your plan. You could make a list of assumptions and ask people if your assumptions are correct. For example, describe what a process does or what job someone performs and see if they agree and follow through on the subject with more questions. Once people begin to talk, they’ll keep talking and it is a painless way to get information. It is, however, dependent on the individual. Some personalities will need coaxing, and others might give too much information. Sometimes you get direct answers and sometimes you go in circles, i.e., when trying to find the exact solution to a trouble-shooting issue. For cases like these where you have no control over getting a reply, just put it aside, and make note of it. But be persistent and return to the subject when there’s a possibility for an answer.

External Help

Sometimes you need to go outside the group to find some answers and in so doing, be able to ask the right questions. The more you know, the better questions you can ask. There is nothing wrong with finding some outside help to get to the root of a problem.

Respect

Just as you need to respect the knowledge holders, they need to respect you In other words, you have to not only know the audience you write for, or answer to, but you also need to know the audience you are gathering information from. Is what they’re working on impacting your priority? Can you help them so that they can help you? Find out at these meetings, what the issues are and work with them on analyzing and resolving them. As always, two heads are better than one.

If you have had similar experiences and other solutions, please leave a comment.

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Do You Need More Time? Then Delegate

female-entrepreneur-distributing-work

“I know I should delegate but: “I can do it faster…He won’t be able to get it done on time…she’s bound to make some mistakes.”

These are things I’ve been hearing frequently from overworked, stressed out managers. I jokingly mentioned, in a recent presentation, if there was something in the air that’s causing this outbreak of “I must do it myself if it’s going to get done right.”

Leaders, who are reluctant to delegate, can usually come up with what they consider logical explanations for their stand. But these explanations are based on fears of letting go and of losing control. What they don’t realize is that while they’re busy “doing it all themselves”, they are falling further behind.

Of course there are times when we and we alone “own” the project or task. But how often is that the case? The real problem with delegation I have found lies not with the person being delegated to but rather with the one who needs to delegate.

The Fail-Safe Way To Delegate

Delegation, if done right, is a both a time management and leadership development tool. Here are 7 tips to delegate effectively. It will make you a better time manager and a better leader as well.

1. Delegate early.
Make an effort to delegate the task early to avoid unnecessary pressure. This allows the person to better plan the task.

2. Select the right person.
Ensure that the person has the time to take on the responsibility. Assess the skills and capabilities of your staff and assign the task to the most appropriate person. Make sure the person has the training and resources to succeed.

3. Communicate the rationale.
Identify the reason for the task and how it will contribute to the goals of the company or department or team. Also, point out how the delegated task could benefit the person. Remember a routine task to you may be a new challenging task to your subordinate.

4. Set clear goals and expectations.
Be clear and specific on the parameters – the what, why, when, who and where- and the amount of authority – what she can decide and what you must decide, etc. You might leave the “how” to them if they are experienced. Or ask how they might go about handling the task so you can identify any missteps right from the start. so you can . Confirm and verify task goals and expectations.

5. Delegate the entire task.
This gives the person the responsibility, increases their motivation and avoids ambiguity in accountability. Otherwise, different people will have different ideas about who does what when.

6. Don’t just drop it.
Request regular updates or progress reports especially if it’s a large or new assignment. That way you can catch problems or mistakes early and provide assistance when necessary.This will also give you a comfort level that things are going as planned.

7. Evaluate results.
Did the person meet the set expectations? Did the task get done accurately, on time, on budget If so, recognize the person’s performance. This will reinforce both yours and the person’s confidence in their abilities. If it didn’t, then analyze the cause of insufficient performance and coach on how to improve. But don’t throw in the towel. Remember, most of us learn more from our mistakes than successes.

Management Success Tip:

Delegation is about more than just taking work from you and giving it to someone else. It’s about getting work down in the most efficient manner using the resources you have available. Yes, sometimes a staff person can actually get better results than you. In addition, delegation is about valuing people and allowing other to develop by giving them increased responsibility and authority. That’s what makes an effective leader.

Do you want to develop your Management Smarts?

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What Do You Call The Officer/Staff Person In-Charge of Raising Charitable Contributions?

Volunteers sorting donations into the right boxes

This posting by: Hank Lewis

There are two steps to take in answering that question.

The first is asking, “Who cares?” Isn’t what we call that person largely irrelevant? Isn’t that person going to do what has to be done, no matter his/her title?

Definitely not !! We are greatly affected by how we are labelled. Titles are important to people because they impact both self-image and how others see us. With the “wrong” self-image and/or the “wrong” face to the world, our effectiveness must suffer.

The second step involves defining/understanding that person’s role/job.

So, here we start with the concept of development – the process of identifying potential donors, sparking their interest in the organization, identifying the needs of those individuals, determining how giving to the organization can satisfy those needs, helping to build a bond between them and the organization, and growing that relationship.

Bottom line, development is about creating, maintaining and enhancing the relationships that lead to charitable contributions. Fundraising is merely the end result of the development process. Without the relationship building and the satisfying of donor needs, there can be no real/substantive fundraising.

Now, having gotten that out of the way, let’s look at some of the titles commonly used by nonprofit organizations:

The title to which I object the most is Director of Philanthropy. Aside from that being a really pompous designation, the reality is that you don’t/can’t direct philanthropy. Philanthropy comes from the individual. Philanthropists give because of their desire/need to help other people … or society in general. Those feelings are internally generated, not such that someone can direct them.

Director of Charitable Giving: I’m sure that everyone has heard the expression, “Charity Begins At Home.” Well, the organizational staff person can show potential donors possible places/programs where they can put their money. S/he can show them how their giving can make a difference, how it can help others, but, as with philanthropy, you can’t direct charity. The word, “charity,” is also so very passé.

Of all that I’ve heard, I like “Director of Development,” because the focus is on the building of relationships, but that’s become a euphemism for “fundraiser.”

The Staff Person In-Charge of Raising Charitable Contributions can (personally or through others) show a potential donor how making the gift will not only help other people but will satisfy the needs of the donor. The key to successful fundraising, however, is getting the donor to want to make the gift.

So, what do we call that staff person whose job it is to get the donor to want to make the gift? Not somebody who directs fundraising; not someone who directs philanthropy, not a director of charitable giving; maybe not even a director of development.

There’s also “Director of Community Relations,” “Director of Donor Relations,” and “Director of Constituent Relations.” The first seems so very broad, even encompassing institutional marketing; and the second and third seem to come after the fact.

Finally: Sophisticated (potential) donors know that a nonprofit organization has to raise the funds to run its programs … to help the people it serves. And, they know that, whatever the title, that the person “cultivating” them is working to move them toward a specific end result.

The answer to the question, therefore, is that the Staff Person In-Charge must have a title that is comfortable for (prospective) donors, unpretentious, and satisfying to the Staff Person.

What do you think it should be ?? Why ??
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Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating or expanding your fundraising program? With over 30 years of counseling in major gifts, capital campaigns, bequest programs and the planning studies to precede these three, I’ll be pleased to answer your questions. Contact me at AskHank@Major-Capital-Giving.com
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Have you heard about The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
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The Danger of Disappointing

A-male-worker-disappointed-from-work-activities

Failure to live up to expectations creates a need for crisis management

Failing to live up to stakeholder expectations is one of the quickest routes to reputation damage. Compounding this is the fact that sensation sells, meaning reporters, reviewers and bloggers are happy to crank up the drama in order to draw more readers.

Just take a look at this quote, from the viciously titled TechCrunch article by Josh Constine, “Vine, The App That Eats Your Precious Memories”:

No app has ever broken my heart quite like Vine, Twitter’s six-second animation maker. You capture a scene, then pocket your phone while you think of a witty way to describe it. But when you open it a few minutes later or the app randomly crashes, it’s gone. That moment, that memory, deleted. I still love Vine, but I’ll never forgive it for the visions it stole from me.

Consumers are demanding satisfaction like never before, and it’s your job to give it to them. If you’re advertising yourself, as Vine does, with the tagline, “the best way to see and share life in motion,” then your users better be able to multitask while they’re using your app.

Same goes for any industry, grocery shoppers expect their food to be safe to eat, car buyers presume their vehicle will perform as advertised, the list could go on forever.

Bottom line is that failing to meet expectations WILL result in a backlash, and it’s more and more likely that this backlash is going to be blasted across social media and the ‘net when it comes, drawing hundreds, thousands, even millions of eyes.

Now, even if you’re doing your best, at some point this is going to happen. What does Crisis Management 101 dictate you do in response?

Simple, fix it! Make the changes your stakeholders are demanding, and invite the same people who were feeling negative to give you another try. If there are things you just can’t change, explain why! Who knows, you may even be able to crowdsource a solution (for free, no less) from one of your stakeholders.

What you don’t want to do is bury your head in the sand and avoid the issue, because it’s not going away on its own.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is Social Media Manager for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

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Money Can’t Buy Me Trust

Person-counting-dollar-bills

Proving you’ve changed is a key goal of crisis management for reputation damage

When your brand’s been in hot water repeatedly, simply talking about the changes you’re making isn’t enough. For instance, is anyone out there rushing to hop on a Carnival cruise right now? We sure aren’t! The company hasn’t been able to get out of the news for the past few months as it continues to have problem after problem.

Now Carnival is throwing some much-needed money at its issues, announcing a massive budget to implement safety recommendations and upgrade various areas, like ship generators and fire prevention, which have proven to be trouble spots. Asked if this would solve the company’s woes, BCM’s Jonathan Bernstein shared the following with Ragan reporter Matt Wilson:

“I’m going to paraphrase The Beatles here: ‘I don’t care too much for money; money can’t buy me trust,'” he says. “Nothing short of reliable performance over an extended period of time will help Carnival overcome its recent series of mishaps.”

Did Carnival need to spend this money in order to secure its ships? Yes. Are customers to come rushing back simply because Carnival’s telling them all the issues are fixed? Nope.

To use another famous phrase, “the proof of the pudding is in the eating.” When you’ve had nothing but problems, it doesn’t matter what you say you’re going to do, or even what it looks like you’re doing. What matters is that you prove to enough people that you really have made changes, and that should be the goal of your crisis management plans.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is Social Media Manager for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

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Are We Training Corporations to be Too Powerful?

Are-We-Training-Corporations-to-be-Too-Powerful
leaders6
Don’t believe everything you see on television.

The following is strictly commentary. The comments made here are mine and mine alone, and in no part are related to The Free Management Library.

Powerful corporations taking advantage the general population seems to be the stereotype, doesn’t it? Are, we, trainers, helping them do that? I know this sounds somewhat sacrilegious, since I, too, have been in the business. I have been watching a show on Netflix. I know. Don’t believe everything you see on television. This show is about a future where the corporations are united and are the government, and this corporate government is having the problems with anti-corporate factions, or freedom fighters.

We see a little of that anti-corporate sentiment going on right now–that image in the media–the big corporation against the little man always makes a better story. In this TV story the focus is on a corporate cop who gets transported back to 2012 along with a bunch of criminal freedom fighters from that future world. Interesting premise except these freedom fighters are more like terrorists.

So, why am I going off on such a weird tangent? I’m sure you’ve heard it said that contempt grows from within. Stockholders want to make money and corporate officers want to get ahead. Who could blame them? However, it is they who are responsible for the widening gap between the highest paid and the lowest paid worker. Maybe it isn’t any of our business, but I think we have some responsibility to the people who are being trained by us to produce more for the company.

One way we can help is to encourage leadership, union and the workers whom we train that transparency is best for all. It does make for a happier and more contented workplace. And, with that we have made our customers happy. So it’s win-win.

I was not so amused the other night when a local professional theatre performed HAIR. Three of us reviewed it, and from the reviews I think I was the only one who had lived in the era because the other reviewers saw definite relevance to today’s world. I did not think there was much relevance in the way that the musical intended in 1968, when there was a mega-clash of freedom and the uptight corporate world. Now, it’s not like that; if the clash is coming, it’ll be economic, and corporate greed will be apart of that. That’s the world we live in today. By the way, HAIR was excellent in song, music, sound and choreography, but it did not resonate in relevancy. Yes, there is war, and yes there are people who oppose it, but far more people are understanding it all. They aren’t as divided, making eventual solution possible. HAIR was a wake up call in 1968; HAIR is a reminder in 2013 we need to keep things in perspective.

To be sure, we aren’t directly involved. We don’t have anything to lose really–business-wise. We can carry-on as always–do what we’ve always done and still make a buck. However, to not notice the world around us and the people we train who are part of that world may be a bit irresponsible. Perhaps, it just takes more of us being aware and analyzing our audience as best we can.

This has just been a couple of my thoughts on a Thursday afternoon. I hope maybe I’ve stirred some of yours.

For more resources about training, see the Training library.

A final reminder: I do have a website where you can find other items I have written, including coupons for my best selling, The Cave Man Guide To Training and Development and my novel about the near future, Harry’s Reality! You might even get them for free. Happy Training.

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Mirror, Mirror on the Wall…

view-from-back-man-looking-mirror.

 

For any CxO or company seeking to adopt or scale Agile for their software development groups – get ready for some organizational soul searching! The mindset and processes of Agile reflect back your culture, your enacted (not espoused) Theory of Management, and the structural inefficiencies of your org chart…and these are just the beginning!

Culture Clash

Culture is the oxygen of your organization. You are swimming in it, nurtured by it, yet it remains invisible. Ask any new employee to describe Culture and you will get a sense of the constraints it places on the organizations ability to change and adapt. Adopting Agile methods to “upgrade” your product development process, speed up cycle time, and generate flow and suddenly that squishy, amorphous mist (Culture) condenses into a brick wall. What is going on here?

Culture is the container that holds all the dilemmas of your organization in dynamic tension. It is the fairy dust that allows your to be:

BOTH Competitive AND Collaborative

BOTH Controlling AND Creative

BOTH Focused AND Flexible

BOTH Simple AND Complex

BOTH Relational AND Actionable

BOTH Results-oriented AND People-oriented

The contours and interactions between these dynamic polarities make up your Culture, and to a large part your organization. When Agilists come to stay the Culture dynamics shift and the whole system groans…audibly.

dilemma of change

Suddenly “red flags” show up everywhere. Your “Greatest Fear,” which normally lurks in the basement, begins walking the halls in broad daylight. As soon as these new methods begin producing change, the promise of Agile, the downside extremes of the polarities become visible, providing fodder for resisters and those being forced out of their comfort zone.

Theory X or Theory Y

This squeeze is most obvious in your management team, many of whom have been promoted due to their functional/engineering expertise or excellence. Do you know how they view the developers they manage – widget or creative genius? How do they define their role – benign dictator or all-star coach? Are they ready – willing and able – to look in the mirror of their leadership and confront their weaknesses and leadership skill level? Are they able to consider their obsolescence? And if you’re planning on scaling Agile, how high up does this personal reflection need to go? All the way to the top?

This becomes a real bear trap when the consultants troop in and begin training everyone in the development organization to self-organize, manage their own work, decide how much they can do each sprint, and even how to do it. Cross-functional teams!?! There goes my turf, but not without a fight! Changing priorities every two weeks, who is in charge here – I set the priorities around here! Your greatest risk of “sand in the gas tank” or a “stick in the gears” comes from the managers who used to have authority, respect, power, control, and a reason to exist.

As Agile squeezes managers of people and project aside, a new dilemma arises – Flatten the organization or Lead with new skills and actions. At this point you may want to re-read the previous section on Culture. Perhaps the biggest challenge of scaling Agile comes with the shifting roles of those managing product development. To be successful they must adopt the Servant Leadership required to support the sprinting development teams. As they speed up and new processes reduce the “friction” created by waterfall and project management the previous value of management can become waste and be wrung out of the system. The new Theory of Management that Agile requires is only now being written. In fact, the ink isn’t even dry.

Structure Follows Function

If you are not dizzy yet, contemplate this last piece of the puzzle. When organizational culture shifts and management is reorganized what happens to structure? Think PMO, Portfolio Management, Centralized Strategy, design and business analytics, functional silos! Is this the time to call McKinsey, PWC, BCG…do you need to spend the money on the big guns of the consulting industry? Agile doesn’t work like this…remember, that is why you wanted it in the first place.

Agile is fundamentally about learning your way forward, minimal structure, and Just in Time planning. This is not a structure that can be designed by external draftsmen, posted on the wall of the CxO’s office, and “rolled out” to an unsuspecting organization. The biggest process change in adopting Agile is the process of organizational development. It becomes downright biological, you have to grow into this new way of working. Even more distracting is that it follows the rules of quantum physics (emergent and self-organizing) and networks (Hubs and connections determine information flow). How on earth can you “manage” something so organic, so alive??

Hear we look to the leaders in operating in unpredictable environments – the US Army War College. In environments that are volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) you need everyone to be confident in their ability to assess the situation, set up some really smart experiments to test the water, and take small steps forward to see what works. This is not the time for a gigantic change initiative because you cant predict what kind of change you need.

How ironic that the only way to adopt Agile is using Agile!!

So, Dear CxO, are you ready for the roller-coaster ride? Are you prepared to explain this to the functional heads of your executive team and your peers (because they will get sucked into the vortex as well)? Are you ready to herd [cat]tle with only a few sheep dogs (who are the ones doing the on-the-ground thinking and reacting)? That is what you’ll see when you look in the Agile Mirror on your wall.

 

Dr. Carol Mase is an executive coach who challenges leaders and their organizations to think differently about the world and how they can achieve their fullest potential. Her unique background applies the principles of business, biology, psychology, and physics, to all levels of the organization. She has worked as an entrepreneur, consultant and pharmaceutical executive introducing fresh ideas that produce innovation and adaptive change. She can be reached at Carol.Mase@CairnConsultants.com or 215-262-6666.

 

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Timeless Principles versus Technology, Why Workplace Giving Works

Workplace giving has been around for a long time. Indeed, you can make the case that the person who invented workplace giving was Benjamin Franklin … but that’s an analysis for a different venue.

The Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) was established in 1961, and has been going strong for the past 52 years; and one reason that is so is because an integral part of a CFC campaign is face-to-face communication.

In a CFC campaign there are multiple opportunities for face-to-face communication, including some that non-profits may be able to participate in – i.e., the kickoff events and charity fairs.

One of the aspects about the CFC that is often overlooked, is that one of the “tasks” of the federal CFC volunteers (including those making the direct solicitation – called: keyworkers) is to engage in face-to-face communication with their colleagues.

Aside from the dollar goal(s), a major objective a CFC campaign is to have a 100% rate of asking people to participate.

This face-to-face communication is one of the reasons that the CFC continues to be successful. More than 50 years after its creation, it just keeps chugging along, generating millions of unrestricted dollars for thousands of local, national, and international non-profits.

I have a mouse pad that I got at a charity fair years ago that lists the ten reasons people give – as follows:

WHY PEOPLE GIVE

  1. People are inherently generous.
  2. People give to people.
  3. People give because they are asked.
  4. People give in relation to the person who asks.
  5. People respond to a specific request for support.
  6. People give to peers.
  7. People give to people in a campaign atmosphere—annual or capital.
  8. People give to positive, enthusiastic solicitors.
  9. Most people want, and all donors deserve recognition for their gifts.
  10. People give to successful and beneficial programs and to make an investment in advancing good work.

When you look at this list, you see that workplace giving actual hits 9 of the 10 reasons listed, the only one that does not take place in a CFC campaign is Number 5, because the keyworkers are not asking for the donors to support a specific charity, rather for the donor to support the ones he or she cares about. Also note that Numbers 2,3,4,6, 7, and 8 all relate to face-to-face communication.

Meanwhile, some private companies that have attempted to move their workplace giving campaigns to 100% online, have seen significant drops in the amount of money raised and in the participation rate … a decline that has often been more than 50 percent in both categories.

This doesn’t mean that the CFC hasn’t kept up with technology, at this point all CFC campaigns have a website, and in most cases the listing of the CFC charities for a region is searchable online as well, and these are just a few basic examples. Many are also on Facebook and are using other tools of the 21st century to help accomplish their goals.

Within a CFC campaign, the central contractor to the government that is responsible for the campaign management is what is called the Principal Combined Fund Organization, or PCFO. (I know it’s a jargon term, but it is a government program after all). The PCFOs are the organizations that manage the overall campaign (and later are responsible for the disbursement of funds – hence the “Fund” part of the name), print the campaign materials, and organize regional kickoffs. The Federal government periodically recompletes the contracts for non-profits that wish to apply to be the PCFO for a given region.

Earlier this year the contract for the largest CFC in the country which is the National Capital Area CFC, and effective April 1, 2013 the new PCFO is EarthShare. The CEO of EarthShare is Kal Stein, who was a member of the CFC-50 Commission that held hearings on ways to improve the CFC during its 50th Anniversary Year.

I had the opportunity to interview Mr. Stein and the several areas that he said EarthShare intends to concentrate are: ways to increase the awareness of the CFC in the community, to implement more of the social media tools in campaigns, and to make sure that Federal employees are recognized for their contributions to the non-profit world via their CFC participation.

He also expressed a commitment to finding ways to help CFC charities by increasing the emphasis on finding ways for Federal employees to volunteer with the charities they support.

If you have suggestions for EarthShare, please share them by posting comments on the blog, or by sending them directly to me, and I will be glad to share them with Mr. Stein.

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During his 25-year career in the Federal sector, Bill Huddleston, The CFC Coach,
served in many CFC roles. If you want to participate in the Combined Federal
Campaign, maximize your nonprofit’s CFC revenues, or just ask a few questions,
contact Bill Huddleston

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Have you seen … The Fundraising Series of ebooks.

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