Introduction to the Standards for Excellence®

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Welcome to an Overview of the Standards for Excellence® Agenda: Accountability, Management, and Self-Regulation The Standards for Excellence Code The Standards for Excellence Institute Resources Available for Implementation Earning the Seal of Excellence Questions / Answers

Why Care about Ethics and Accountability? Public Opinion Competition for Funding Federal and State Legislation

Public Opinion Confidence / Expectations in Nonprofits History of scandals (tax tricks) Disconnect between opinions about quality of service versus quality of organizations Questions about who to support?

Americans are Active Donors, Volunteers, and Advocates 6 There are 209,128,094 adults in the U.S. who are 18 or older.* Approximately 163, 119, 913 or 78% of adults volunteer, donate or advocate with a philanthropic organization.** *Source: 2000 U.S. Census **Calculation based on 2008 DonorPulse Data; Categories are not mutually exclusive *citation: “Harris Interactive Donor Pulse Webinar February Donor Pulse

Nonprofit Engagement 7 *citation: “Harris Interactive Donor Pulse Webinar February Donor Pulse Among the adult general population:  42% Volunteered in the past year  72% Donated in the past year  Low Spending donors: Less than $1000 (72%)  Medium spending donors: Between $1000-$5000 (21%)  High spending donors: $ (7%)  50% Advocated in the past year, people who look at least one action to express their opinion about an issue.  More engaged adults have higher favorability and views of sector (perhaps because they have made a bigger investment in the sector)

Charity research performed by donors, what they care about, and want 8 *citation: “Wise Giving? Most Donors Spend Little Time Researching Charities.” June Hope Consulting.  35% of donors in 2009 did research before their donation  65% did none at all

Charity research performed by donors, what they care about, and want 9  56% who did research spent an hour or less  44% only looked at simple facts and figures *citation: “Wise Giving? Most Donors Spend Little Time Researching Charities.” June Hope Consulting.

Charity research performed by donors, what they care about, and want 10  15% want a full report  85% care about nonprofit performance *citation: “Wise Giving? Most Donors Spend Little Time Researching Charities.” June Hope Consulting.

Adjusting their Giving 60% will change their giving if nonprofits do a better job on areas important to the donors. 11 *citation: “Wise Giving? Most Donors Spend Little Time Researching Charities.” June Hope Consulting.

Public Opinion In general, do you think the nonprofit sector in America is on the right track or has pretty seriously gotten off in the wrong direction? 37% Right Track 22% Wrong Track 37% Not Sure Question asked of US Adults who volunteered, donated or advocated in the past 12 months Harris Interactive, Donor Pulse February 2009

Public Opinion Based on what you know, please rate your agreement with the following statement: Most charitable organizations are honest and ethical in their use of donated funds. 64% Strongly agree or somewhat agree 22% Somewhat or strongly disagree 14% Neutral Question asked of US Adults who volunteered, donated or advocated in the past 12 months Harris Interactive, Donor Pulse February 2009

Competition for Funding Increase in the Number of Nonprofits In 1998 there were about 1.1 million nonprofit organizations In 2010 there were over 1.5 million registered nonprofit organizations registered in the United States. Source: National Center for Charitable Statistics

Federal and State Regulatory Scrutiny US Senate Committee on Finance Hearings on Charity Oversight and Reform US House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means Hearings on the Tax Exempt Sector Internal Revenue Service Joint Committee for Purchase/JWOD State Attorneys General, proposals in 19 states

Why Care about Ethics and Accountability? Public Opinion Easily swayed / high expectations / Limited confidence Looking for easy answers Competition for Funding How do you set yourself apart? Federal and State Regulatory Scrutiny Demonstrate the ability to self regulate

Why Care about Good Governance & Management

Standards for Excellence A History 1996: Volunteers started developing the code 1998: Maryland Association of Nonprofits Launched its own Standards for Excellence Program 2001: Began replicating the project nationally 2004: Launch of the Standards for Excellence Institute 2005: Launch of National Standards certification program 2007: First organizations to earn the Seal of Excellence through the Standards for Excellence Institute

Standards for Excellence®

Standards for Excellence What are They? 8 Guiding Principles and 55 Benchmarks Mission and Program Governing Body Conflict of Interest Financial and Legal Human Resources Openness Fundraising Public Affairs and Public Policy

Assess Your Organization Against the Standards Code Self Assessment Checklist

Mission and Program Defined Mission Statement Evaluation Program Service Standards

Governing Body Roles and Responsibilities Board Composition Board Conduct

Conflict of Interest Disclose Everything Define Interested Parties How Decisions Are Made? Conflict of Interest Policy Conflict of Interest Statement Disclosure Forms

Human Resources Personnel Policies Volunteer Policies Employee Evaluation Employee Orientation

Financial and Legal Budgets Audits Financial Reports Financial Impropriety Written Financial Policies Legal Compliance

Openness Annual Reports Board Key Staff Financial Data Program Data Mission Public Access

Fundraising Fundraising Activities Donor Relations/Privacy Acceptance of Gifts Fundraising Personnel

Public Affairs and Public Policy Public Policy Advocacy Public Education Promoting Public Participation

Standards for Excellence An Organizational Tool A model for nonprofit organizations to implement accountability in their management & governance practices A framework with a clear statement of the organization’s commitment to best practices A self-regulatory tool to ensure public confidence and public support A demonstration of the organization's commitment to public service

Most Challenging Benchmarks Conflict of Interest Policy/Statements (61%) Program Evaluation (55%) Advocacy Policy (51%) Confidential Means to Report Impropriety (47%) Financial Policies (46%) Gift Acceptance Policy (43%) Board Development (39%) Employee Orientation (39%) Internal Review of Legal, Regulatory Requirements (36%)

Educational materials specifically focused on the Standards For Excellence® code MOST ED PACKETS REVISED IN Direct technical assistance Standards for Excellence® specific seminars Other topical training seminars Providing the Help You Need

Voluntary Implementation and Certification Program Implementation process is an opportunity to learn about and clarify organizational practices and behavior Application process coordinated through the Standards for Excellence Institute Staff assisted Peer Review Process Approved organizations licensed to display the Standards for Excellence seal

Introducing: Tiered recognition Easier to navigate Go at your own pace Start at level one or three Each tier builds on the previous!

Tier One: Essentials Adherence to Basic Legal, Regulatory, and Governance Practices Benefits Lower initial cost Responsive to limited time and resources Formally recognizes achievement and your organization’s progress towards full Standards for Excellence certification. Informal recommendations from program staff for future improvement and application to next tier.

Tier One: Essentials Application process Submission of the Tier One application package and checklist and application fee. Completion of a free online self- assessment and orientation is also required. Program staff will complete the formal review of the application. Organizations can remain at this tier for a term of three years

Tier Two: Enhanced Enhancing the Foundations of Nonprofit Management and Governance Benefits Discounts for quickly moving through the tiers. Ability to state completion of the Standards for Excellence Enhanced Tier. Additional informal recommendations from program staff for future improvement and application to next tier.

Tier Two: Enhanced Application Process Prior completion of Tier One. Submission of the Tier Two application package and checklist and application fee. Completion of the free online self- assessment. Program staff will complete the formal review process, with final approval by the Ethics Standards Committee. Organizations can remain at this tier for a term of 3 years

Tier Three: Certified Standards for Excellence Seal Holder All 55 Standards are included in the third tier Benefits Earn and display the Seal of Excellence State that their organization is “Certified Under the Standards for Excellence”, “Awarded Standards for Excellence Seal”, or “Approved Under Standards for Excellence” or “is a Standards for Excellence® Accredited Organization.”

Tier Three: Certified Application Process Can apply directly for Tier Three, or previously complete both Tiers One and Two. Submission of the application package and checklist and application fee. Review Process Program staff will first review the application. Anonymous peer reviews will evaluate the application second. Lastly, the Ethics Standards Committee must approve the staff and peer reviewers’ recommendation for certification. The Standards for Excellence certification will be awarded for three years.

How do organizations earn the Seal? Application Submitted to The Standards Institute Is the application complete? Undergo 2 nd review by Peer Reviewers Have the Standards been met? Undergo 3rd review by Ethics Standards Committee Should this organization be approved? Phase I Phase II Phase III

Standards for Excellence® Replication Partners 2011

Questions and Answers

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