As most non-profit boards will shortly be regrouping after the summer hiatus, this seems like a good time to highlight board development resources. This list includes both on-line and print materials that can be accessed through Volunteer Victoria’s library.

A very good on-line source for board governance information is the Voluntary Sector Knowledge Network that includes an extensive selection of board materials, from board roles and responsibilities to the board – CEO relationship.

Another excellent resource is the HR Council for the Non Profit Sector Toolkit. The site covers the full spectrum of human resources in non profits, one section ...

[Continue reading Building Better Boards]

As we continue to celebrate 35 years of community service, it is inspiring to see how we have grown over the years.  Here are some highlights… Then and Now:

Then: 2 part-time staff.  Now: 4 full-time, 3 part-time and 1 contract staff.

Then: Referred approximately 450 volunteers annually. Now: Refer over 16,500 volunteers annually! If only 5% of those referred go on to volunteer for one year, the economic value to our community is over $3.3 million!

Then: Primary focus – volunteer recruitment. Now: Focus is on volunteer recruitment, providing leadership to the non-profit sector, building capacity for community agencies, broad community outreach and celebration of volunteerism.

Then: Primary recruitment/promotion tools used ...

[Continue reading Did You Know? 35 Years in Review]

This post first appeared in Volunteer Victoria’s E-Link newsletter on July 30, 2010. Sign up for E-Link and keep current with news and information from Volunteer Victoria.

The HR Council for the Nonprofit Sector has recently released their report, Tapping into the Talents of Early Career Employees. This report is based on research undertaken by the Council over the past 2 years (literature search, research, focus groups).   The purpose of the research was to help the sector improve their hiring and ...

[Continue reading Engaging Younger Workers in the Nonprofit Sector]

It’s only been eight weeks since we launched our Emerging Leaders Network but the group’s membership has already risen to 85 people and we’ve held several fantastic events so far.  This is an update on what has been happening with the Network since it began in late May, and is also a glimpse of the exciting events we’ve got planned for the next few months.

It didn’t take long after we announced the creation of the Network’s online community for younger nonprofit professionals in the Victoria area to start signing up in droves.  In fact, within a week ...

[Continue reading Emerging Leaders Network: The first eight weeks]

Our sector, in fact all sectors are experiencing an era of profound change. In many ways, this is a period of great uncertainty. We are seeing new non-profit leaders emerging, and long-term leaders starting to transition out. Community leadership is also evolving and changing. While there are many challenges within this shifting environment, there are also opportunities. History has shown us that times of great change frequently spark new ideas, creative leadership and inspired vision.

Within this context, this year’s theme for our 35th anniversary Annual General Meeting emerged. Our three panellists (Beth Cougler Blom, Mitchell Temkin and Sandra Richardson) gave a brief glimpse toward the ...

[Continue reading Embracing the Future – Leading for Change: Three perspectives.]

NOTE: This post is part of the Embracing the Future-Leading for Change post regarding our Annual General Meeting.

We’d like to thank Mitchell Temkin for delivering the following thought-provoking speech on community leadership at Volunteer Victoria’s Annual General Meeting on June 24, 2010.  Mitchell’s bio can be found at the end of this post.

Good morning.

Val asked me to speak a little about what is coming in the future for community leadership. I was foolish enough to say yes!

I am sure we can all agree that prognostication is a dangerous and iffy thing. It is so easy to be clever and look insightful, but ...

[Continue reading Speeches at Volunteer Victoria’s AGM: Mitchell Temkin]

NOTE: This post is part of the Embracing the Future-Leading for Change post regarding our Annual General Meeting.

We would like to thank Sandra Richardson for the following very informative speech she gave at Volunteer Victoria’s Annual General Meeting on June 24, 2010.  Sandra’s bio can be found at the end of this post.

We are all too familiar with the riveting impact on non-profits from the economic crisis.   We are all asking what next? I feel the sector is now at an inflection point that will reshape it long after the economic crisis.  Non-profits will find themselves in a new reality – not just economically, ...

[Continue reading Speeches at Volunteer Victoria’s AGM: Sandra Richardson]

NOTE: This post is part of the Embracing the Future-Leading for Change post regarding our Annual General Meeting.

Volunteer Victoria held its Annual General Meeting on June 24th, 2010.  The meeting featured a panel of three speakers talking about leadership in the nonprofit sector.  Our first presenter, Beth Cougler Blom, Manager of Training and Outreach at Volunteer Victoria, spoke on the recent creation of our Emerging Leaders Network in Victoria and what local emerging leaders think about sector leadership and the path to get there.  Here is the text of her speech:

About a ...

[Continue reading Speeches at Volunteer Victoria’s AGM: Beth Cougler Blom]

Sandra Richardson (Victoria Foundation) presented Val Green (Volunteer Victoria) with a plaque recognizing our accomplishments over the past 35 years and thanking Volunteer Victoria for ‘giving heart to our community for 35 years’.      

Each year our Youth Program Coordinator and Access Program Coordinator present Agency Awards to dedicated leaders ...

[Continue reading AGM Awards]

  For charities and some non-profits (those receiving more than 40% of their revenue from the province) who currently receive a GST rebate, this will mean a change in the rebate calculation.   The province has set the PST portion of the HST rebate at 57% for charities. Thus when paying an invoice, the rebate will be calculated by taking 57% of the 7% PST portion and 50% of the 5% GST portion (as you do currently) and adding these together.   A quick look ...

[Continue reading Charities and the HST Rebate]