Recent Posts
Navigating the nonprofit world can be challenging. Blue Avocado offers expert guidance on a range of topics — from building strong boards to maximizing your fundraising impact. Explore our latest posts for practical tips, strategies, and solutions to common issues facing nonprofit organizations today.
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Nonprofit Retirement: Calculating retirement Needs & Exploring Choices
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Ask Rita: Zero Cell Phone Use While Driving Policy
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A Family and Medical Leave Act Checklist
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Ask Rita: Can an Employee Come and Go Using Family or Medical Leave?
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Is It Time for an Audit?
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Gas Rates, Volunteers, and Justice
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Should the Board Hold Executive Sessions?
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More Than the Olympics: Sports, Nonprofits & Community
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Boards of All-Volunteer Organizations
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Three-Step Immigration (IRCA) Compliance for Employers
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Obama: the Nonprofit Sector’s Favorite Son?
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Overtime Pay for Nonprofit Preschool Teacher?
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The Best Way to Raise Money? Choose a Revenue Strategy
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What Should Nonprofit Boards Know About Insurance Brokers?
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In Search of Unicorns: Finding & Hiring Outside Grantwriters Part 2
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Unicorns Found: Meet Two Grantwriters
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Word on the Street from the Council on Foundations Conference
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The Unrecognized Value of Community Nonprofits, Hiring Grantwriters, Extended Warranties, MTV
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In Search of Unicorns: Finding & Hiring Grantwriters, Part 1
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Nonprofit Budgets Have to Balance: False!
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Don’t Drive, Chew Gum and Use the Phone at the Same Time
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Meaningful Acts of Appreciation for Nonprofit Boards and Staff
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Nonprofits and the Media
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Pay Off My Student Loan or Pay Into a 401K?
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Why is it called Blue Avocado?
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Abolish Board Committees?
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Reasons to Have (& Not to Have) an Attorney on a Nonprofit Board
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Can We Require An Employee To Take Her Meds?
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Promises, Promises: Rural Advocates vs. Big Philanthropy
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Five Ways to Let Government Money Run You Over
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Good Management vs. Good Leadership
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What Do I Say to a Donor or Funder?
A powerful approach to determining your board’s agenda and work for the year.
A nonprofit dashboard gives important information to decision-makers such as executives and boards in a quick-read way.
How to involve board members in decision-making, staff mentoring of staff, and fundraising — even when they’re in unexpected circumstances.
The 990 Online software issue and a modest investment that would ease the implementation burden for nonprofits nationwide
Urban myths and legends gain a measure of credibility just by their frequent telling and longevity — and nonprofits aren’t immune.
Ask Rita responds to two reader questions about what nonprofit employees can do when a difficult boss is beginning to become a real problem.
Blue Avocado takes a quick look at the mostly inaccurate way nonprofit organizations are depicted on the big and small screens.
Consultant David La Piana discusses how boards tend to be frustrated with their committees when they don’t know how to organize them.
A board of directors proactively supporting volunteer involvement can dramatically increases its potential achievement level.
Martin Gorfinkel explores the difficulties and roadblocks that seniors and retirees can encounter when seeking volunteering opportunities.
John Killacky explores how the arts can survive and thrive — even as civil society changes, and health and human service needs rise.
How a Make-A-Wish Executive Director took an unusual approach to raising funds for her organization.
In most nonprofits, board members need to fundraise to provide for the financial sustainability of their organizations. But how?
To mark one year exploring nonprofit life, we asked readers to enter our competition for the a wacky nonprofit moment. Here are the winners!
Here we take an unconventional look at three dimensions of why boards exist: Legal reasons, mission reasons, and political reasons.
Here are the basics for how a nonprofit should handle an employee’s request to take Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave.
Administering the FMLA can be challenging. Ask Rita offers some guidance on the technicalities of recent changes to the law.
Watching indicators of financial health like performance-to-budget or reserve size are important, but may not say if you need to worry now.
Mark Ishaug, CEO of the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, expresses concern about reduced support for the HIV/AIDS community.
Personal finance guru Steve Zimmerman brings us some welcome good news that may help you keep health insurance if you’re laid off.
Elizabeth Heath shares her thinking about the impact of the economic challenges of today on the nonprofit sector.
Financial notes for the article, “Tracking Volunteer Time to Improve Your Bottom Line: A Complete Accounting Guide,” by Dennis Walsh, CPA.
CPA Dennis Walsh of North Carolina explains why and how to include volunteer time in your nonprofit’s budgets and financials.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if nonprofit boards could foresee the obstacles ahead — in time to make the right decisions?