Nancy at the Getting Attention blog has challenged nonprofit consultants to describe their top three 'to do' items for 2008 for their clients. Now before you think I am whining about working too many hours, read further - there is a story here.

Alone and at the top of my list would be creating a culture of philanthropy. Without this, there is nothing else that matters much.

This big wish is the one I hear from my clients and friends in the sector that is the most desired yet elusive. What is it and what would it look like? In my own admittedly poetic terms (as I come down from the natural high of National Philanthropy Day event today), this would mean an organization that is singing from the same songsheet, to an inspiring tune that people love and can't get out of their heads. Wouldn't that be top of the charts?

As noted today was the Association of Fundraising Professionals National Philanthropy Day awards presentation in my city. Once again I was humbled by the immense good so many people do, in so many ways and I am thankful to have the opportunity to support their work indirectly. One of the award recipients, Ted Foreman, responded this way when asked why he has made a lifetime of giving back to the community. His response was simple and profound: The givers sleep a lot better than the takers. Creating a culture of philanthropy means creating more givers than takers, and giving them fulfilling and rewarding opportunities and experiences. My To Do is to help create this culture.

Many people pride themselves on going with their gut instincts. A new book Gut Feelings provides evidence that too much analysis may be a bad thing, and may not result in any better decisions. Trusting hunches and intuition are really colloquial terms for what the author Gerd Gigerenzer and his colleagues call "heuristics", defined as fast and efficient cognitive shortcuts in the brain. Personally I am a big believer in instinct - but I feel equally strongly that "chance favours the prepared mind". My topic in this month's enewsletter gives you tips for planning on the fly, to be able to make sound communications decisions when the opportunities arise.

Here's my Top Ten list of questions to consider if you need to make a good decision quickly:

1. What objective does it serve? There’s a reason why this is number one. If your idea or opportunity does not further at least one larger objective, preferably from your organization’s strategic plan, you probably shouldn’t pursue it.
2. Who is the audience? Secondly, if the audience reached by the opportunity isn’t one that you have defined as a key audience for your organization, it may not make a lot of sense to spend too much time communicating to it. There are many promotional opportunities that fit into this category; they are often nice to haves rather than have to haves.
3. What do you want to achieve? If you determine the opportunity is a good fit to advance a larger objective, and that it reaches the right audience, you’ll want to identify specifically what you intend to achieve. For example, if you have accepted a speaking presentation, your goal might be to use it as a platform to announce a new initiative. Deciding this will help figure out what you’ll need to do to achieve the goal.
4. What’s the payoff? At the end of the day, there has to be a return on your investment. This can be measured in hard results, for example, the number of media calls, new clients or donations, or softer results, like making yourself known to a new organization or community. Events are a great example of this. They are labour intensive and not always a huge money maker, but they can’t be beat for cultivating relationships and raising the profile of a cause or organization.
5. How much will it cost – time plus money? Even “free” opportunities have a real cost. Be sure to factor in staff and volunteer time, as well as budget into your decision making and planning.
6. Is the timing suitable? Sometimes the best opportunity comes at the worst time. The timing should line up with your organization’s timeline. For example, participating in a newspaper supplement that comes out in a season your organization does not offer programs, or when your audiences’ attentions are focused elsewhere, may not provide you with enough return to make the expense worth your while.
7. Who will do the work? Beyond the actual delegation of tasks and deadlines, it’s important to think about who will need to be available and who else might be affected. You will need to identify and plan for this in advance. Examples that create communications mayhem are sending out a news release when the spokesperson isn’t available for interviews or followup, and not having people available or equipped to answer inquiries after a blitz of some sort.
8. How will you define and measure success? Back to number three, take the time to verbalize or document what you will consider as achieving your goal. Without doing this, you can only rely on subjective impressions to measure your success. When your action is complete, make sure you evaluate it and note any lessons learned for the next time.
9. What work have you already done that you can reuse? Don’t reinvent the wheel. Hopefully you’ll have something in your communications tool kit that you can use as a starting point. Nudge nudge wink wink.
10. How can you leverage it after it’s done? Sometimes the value in the opportunity is what it leads to. If you’re going to put a lot of effort into something, seek other opportunities to take it to the next level. A presentation is a good example. Identify other places you can present it, write an article based on it, make it available on your website, and use it as a basis of a cultivation letter with your donors or others important to your organization.

Some of the most effective newsletters I have seen are those that have the least amount of news. Whether the newsletter is intended for members, donors, clients or staff, the reason that some stand out is how far they go beyond facts and information.

Think of a daily newspaper. You want your newsletter to be more like the entertainment or business sections, which generally feature articles that explain an appealing topic from a more casual or personal objective. When you see an article that catches your eye, you read it, learn something new, and may be inspired to find out more. The news section, on the other hand, gives you factual, time-sensitive accounts of happenings. You may skim, read perhaps the first few paragraphs, or none at all. This could be because you’re not interested, you prefer to get your news from other sources or you’re aware of it already.

Which brings me to another very good reason to rethink how to approach your “news”letter. The time it takes to produce your publication means your news is old news before it gets to your reader. So save your “news” for email announcements, letters or other forms of communicating. The ideal solution is to have a brief print publication, with a focus on feature style articles, supplemented by a regular electronic newsletter that highlights news and events in a shorter format. The rule of thumb many follow, for a fundraising organization, is to send as many information vehicles out as appeals.

If you’re just beginning to develop a new publication, or have one that could use a little spice, the best way to make it work better is to bring your stories to life. Most of the time, all this takes is a new perspective. Write your articles as stories rather than facts. Show rather than tell. This will go a long way to making your publication something people look forward to reading.

If you find yourself on the receiving end of this statement, I feel for you. We'd like to think that staff and volunteers will enthusiastically respond to every request, and perform their best no matter what. However I'd venture a guess that many times there is a disconnect between your assumptions and someone else's regarding responsibilities and priorities. When was the last time you looked at your own job description?

If your own, or others' you have responsibility for, are so vague they could belong to anyone in a generic organization, do yourself a favor and take the time to make it real.

A clearly written list of expectations and functions is really important regardless of the size or structure of your organization, and whether this description is for a staff member or volunteer. The more specific it can be, and the better it describes how the role interacts with others, and in decision-making, will give clarity for all involved. What matters even more though, is ongoing communications and an environment that sorts out the disconnects before they become really sticky issues.

Watch for more about creating this environment in an upcoming article.

A new survey will review human resources issues among employers and employees in the voluntary and non-profit sector in Canada. The HR Council of Canada survey will provide key statistical information on a number of topics such as recruitment and retention, skill requirements and other key HR challenges that organizations and individuals face.