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]

Well, the temperature has shot up and summer is finally here in Victoria.  And, as we all know, the summer months in Victoria are full of festivals.

For nonprofit agencies, summer festivals can be opportunities to showcase the missions, activities and needs of their organizations.  Whether an agency is running a festival itself or simply attending one alongside other agencies (e.g. participating in a small fair), it’s best to know how to put a professional face forward to the general public. 

In this vein, and because we run volunteer recruitment fairs of our own each year in various locations, ...

[Continue reading Putting Your Best Face Forward]

  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]

In early May we held a workshop taught by facilitator Martin J. Cowling, CEO of People First – Total Solutions and an expert in volunteer management.  Martin hails from Australia; we first welcomed him to Victoria three years ago when he taught two half-day workshops for us on topics related to managing volunteers.

Since Martin was very well received here in 2007, (his first time training in Canada!) we asked him to come back this year.  He delivered a full-day workshop entitled “How to Turn Your Organization into a Volunteer Magnet” to 37 participants, who all have roles managing volunteers at their organizations.

The ...

[Continue reading How to Turn Your Organization into a Volunteer Magnet]

Earlier this week we announced our creation of an Emerging Leaders Network for younger nonprofit professionals in the Greater Victoria area.  We are now pleased to let the nonprofit sector know that the new online community for this network is ready.

If you’re wondering whether the Emerging Leaders Network is right for you or someone within your organization, please read through the following Frequently Asked Questions to find out more.  Any individuals who see themselves as an emerging leader as described below are welcome to join the online ...

[Continue reading Join the Emerging Leaders Network Online Community]