Focus INC workshops for board directors and chief staff officers

Are you a board or senior staff member of a nonprofit/community organization?  If so, do you: * Know your legal, fiduciary and accountability responsibilities as they pertain to organizational documents, such as Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws, and Sarbanes-Oxley legislation? * Know why board size and term limits may affect your organization’s capacity to grow and thrive? * […]

June 10, 2008; 9:52 AM • by brenda p

Are you a board or senior staff member of a nonprofit/community organization?  If so, do you:

* Know your legal, fiduciary and accountability responsibilities as they pertain to organizational documents, such as Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws, and Sarbanes-Oxley legislation?
* Know why board size and term limits may affect your organization’s capacity to grow and thrive?
* Know how your financial policies can help you terminate an under-performing staff member or detect fraudulent behaviors?
* Know what situations may constitute a conflict of interest and how to appropriately address them?
* Know when your Bylaws or financial policies can protect you in court if a legal action is brought against your organization?

If you answered, “No” to any of the above questions, you may want to register for one or both of the next two Cameron Foundation sponsored Focus INC workshops which are primarily geared toward board directors and senior staff officers:

Wednesday, June 11th – Financial Policies & Procedures: Write Them Down!
at the Eastside Community Enhancement Center, 7301 Boydton Plank Road (Dinwiddie), Petersburg, 23803, 1pm-4pm, with Randy Howard. 
Written policies can provide a continuum of institutional knowledge during the recurring stages of administrative and finance staff turnover. In addition, written policies can provide all staff with direct context of the board’s expectations and clearly define the respective responsibilities of each staff member. This session will include a review of basic financial policies and will also cover whistleblower and document retention/destruction policies required by Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX).
$20 per person includes light refreshments.

Saturday, June 14th – Bylaws: To Do or Not To Do
at the Hopewell Public Library, 209 East Cawson Street, 23860, 12pm-3pm, with Betsy Schmidt.
Bylaws are significant, and legal, written rules by which an organization is governed. With some exceptions, they are very similar for all organizations because the mission of the organization does not usually affect the structure of the governing document. This session will cover the “must”, “might”, and “most definitely not” elements of bylaw construction that board members from any organization will benefit from. Attendees are encouraged to bring copies of their organizations’ bylaws for review and insightful critique.
$20 per person includes light refreshments.

Thursday, June 19th – Precision Marketing: Defining Your Targets
at Harrowgate Elementary School, Parent/Community Trailer, 15501 Harrowgate Road, Chester, 23831, 9am-12pm, with Jess Fowler. 
Nonprofit organizations are different from private sector businesses in that they have two classes of competitors: in private business, you are concerned about competition for customers; in the nonprofit sector, you are concerned about clients (customers) and revenue sources (funders). This session will teach participants how to present themselves as highly attractive sources of community service and, at the same time, a social investment opportunity.
$20 per person includes light refreshments.

For planning purposes, pre-registration is strongly encouraged; however, walk-in registrants are welcome.  To read course descriptions or to obtain registration forms, please go to The Cameron Foundation’s website, www.thecameronfoundation.org (under Nonprofit Resources / Focus INC), the Southside Virginia Nonprofit Resource Center website, www.svnrc-online.org (under Learning Opportunities), or contact Gail Merridew at (804) 795-9009 Richmond or (866) 403-5505 Toll Free.

June 10, 2008 9:52 AM 0