Profit The Books

In law school, we learned law by studying cases - one case at a time. It was slow, excruciating, and at times confusing. But when we wanted to put it all together, if truth be known, we'd pick up a hornbook. (U.S. Lawyers in the audience will be nodding with me, as they recall Corbin on Contracts or Prosser on Torts.)

The Nonprofit Guide to the Internet - How to Survive and Thrive is a kind of "hornbook" for nonprofits wishing to embrace the Internet.

This second-edition book is not for cybergeeks. Like its first edition released in 1996, it thankfully assumes little or no prior Internet expertise. Indeed, in Chapter 1 it walks the reader through a description of the Internet and its basic structure. Those with a good grounding in things Internet can skip Chapter 1 and move into the meatier portions of the book - and there are plenty of them.

"Why a Nonprofit Should Go On-Line," Chapter 2, covers such benefits as improving internal and external communications, providing better access to information, professional development, and "cyber-fund-raising" and "cybercampaigning." In other words, it provides a conceptual framework for an organization to identify the reasons why it should go on-line. (I have to wonder, frankly, why any organization could even question the wisdom of doing so - but then, that's just me.)

It is not enough to decide to go on-line. There is the question of how best to do that. With a bewildering array of options these days, Chapter 3's discussion of "Getting Connected" will help. I liked how the author presents a step-by-step linear process that starts with an assessment of current equipment and office communication needs and moves forward to such topics as selecting an Internet service provider.

Sound dry? The author moistens the discussion considerably by weaving into the discussions with short case studies. It's as though we're looking over the shoulder of someone just like us as various decisions are being made. It's almost a little voyeuristic - the author lets us peek at "journal entries" of the person making these decisions. It's highly instructive and helps us understand how we might go through the same process for our own organization. I like that.

Where the book hits stride - and where the book's main value resides - begins with Chapter 4's treatment of "Turning Knowledge to Action: Finding the Full Potential of the Internet to Improve Your Communication, Outreach, and Public Awareness." For many in this audience who have a strong grasp of the Internet - and maybe even an expertise - this is where you'll likely begin reading.

Author Michael Johnston correctly counsels the reader: "Simply getting a computer, an Internet account, and a phone connection is not enough. A nonprofit decision maker needs to know how to use this new medium in ways that save money, serve more clients, and ensure the long-term stability of the organization." To illustrate, Johnston provides a case study showing the effectiveness of the Internet for improving communication with Internal audiences - volunteers, in this case. Organizations who rely on volunteers will find the case study of interest.

Without diminishing the importance of reaching and supporting an organization's "internal audience," I found the book's treatment of the "external audience" outstanding. In a section entitled, "The External Audience: Collaborating and Cooperating on the Internet," Johnston walks us through a case study that illustrates the amazing variety of communications tools offered by the Internet. I found the discussion on membership recruitment especially valuable.

The book's appeal is not just in the use of brief case studies, but also in its ample use of screen shots. Somehow just reading about various sites is not enough; we need to be shown them. And that's just what Johnston does, and amply, throughout. For a book on the Internet, this is as user-friendly as you can get. If the Internet is a hot topic with nonprofit organizations, then on-line fund raising is the hottest of the hot. Though it is probably impossible to write a definitive chapter on this topic, given the break-net pace with which "cyber-fund-raising" is galloping along, Johnston's treatment is among the better discussions I've seen in print. Even if it cannot hope to keep up with the changes taking place in this arena, it provides a way of approaching on-line fund raising that will continue to be valid for some time, in my view. Besides, the book is published this year, so it's current as of now and probably will remain so for a couple of years - until the next, inevitable, edition.

Surprisingly, though, the book omits a discussion on the legal issues of on-line fundraising. Of course, such a topic is sufficiently deep to warrant an entire chapter or even a book. Still, even a brief mention of the issues would have been expected. We'll look for such a discussion in the next edition.

I recommend this book for any board member, officer, staff member, or volunteer who is seriously considering whether and how to take a nonprofit organization online, or make its online presence more effective.

Here are the book's chapters:

Chapter 1 - Learning about the Internet

Chapter 2 - Why a Nonprofit Should Go On-Line

Chapter 3 - Getting Connected

Chapter 4 - From the Knowledge to Action: Finding the Full Potential of the Internet to Improve Your Communication, Outreach, and Public Awareness

Chapter 5 - Research on the Internet: Tools and Tricks

Chapter 6 - Cyber-Fund-Raising

Chapter 7 - Making it Happen: Establishing a Presence on the World Wide Web

Chapter 8 - Reaching Future Supporters Now

Chapter 9 - Harnessing the Idiosyncratic

This book provides comprehensive information for nonprofit organizations, its directors, trustees, and development officers to make sound investment decisions. Content covered include topics such as the importance of establishing investment policies, creating an investment committee, and developing financial goals. The book is written in a language suitable for both the financial and non-financial individuals. There is also a glossary section of financial terms used throughout the book. Besides providing a solid background and overview of issues nonprofit organizations need to think about, the author gives many examples, including typical conversation that may occur in a board meeting and the methods to prevent such conflicts from happening. Finally, the appendixes sections contain many helpful templates, including investment policies form, monthly/quarterly reports, and some sample legal document agreements. One of the very few books of its kind, (investment for nonprofit organizations) this book is definitely worth the time for nonprofit organizational officers or the general interested reader.

The need to tediously plow through back issues of various industry magazines, request information from trade associations, search the library and/or bookstore, or call (expensive) consultants and professional advisers is now obsolete. Every Nonprofit manager now has an easier way to find listings of management resourceses. This book is the only book out there which provides instant answers to all questions concerning nonprofit-oriented product and service providers, Internet sites, funding sources, publications, assocociations support and advocacy groups, and much more. And the best part is that it comes with a CD-Rom packed with even more information.

McLaughlin does a painstaking job of providing an indepth analysis of mergers and strategic allainces in america's nonprofit sector. Highly recommended for scholars and students of nonprofit sector. An insighful work!

Barbara Gilles is an exceptional model for educational excellence and potentials. Against this background, her inspiring book, Nurturing Civilization Builders, clarifies the need for educators to prepare students for a lifetime of personal growth and cooperative responsibility. She emphasizes the value of contribution, as not only personally gratifying, but imperative for community character building. A must-read for anyone working with children - no matter the age. The future depends upon it.

Oil Industry Profits, by Shyam Sunder, examines the profitability of the oil industry over the fifteen-year period from 1961 to 1975, using data from accounting reports and stock prices. Sunder's analysis of accounting data supports the conclusion that the oil industry has been more profitable than other industrial firms during the past fifteen years. His analysis of the stock market data indicates that the risk-adjusted profits to the investor during this period have been slightly greater than the average profits for all firms listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The small positive abnormal profits realized over the fifteen-year perod may be attributed to a small improvement in the prospects of the industry over these years. Because of the competitive nature of the stock market, stock prices reflect the investors' assessments of an industry's future prospects, and abnormal profits appear only in periods when those prospects change. -- from book's back cover

This book describes how to select board members, establish their responsibility, and structure board activities. It is easy to read. The section on board member responsibility sets high standards for every aspect of board participation, yet it recognizes that interest in each area varies by board member.

This book is an introduction to wood cutting for the beginner. The author describes how he and his wife retired to rural Vermont from the big city and discovered that they could make money from the wood lot that they had purchased. They called the county forest extension agent, who helped them identify which trees they had that could be harvested, and which should be culled to make room for more valuable trees. After working with the extension agent for several years, Stephens and his wife were able to continue on their own with an active forest management program that provided them with wood for heat, constructions projects, and cash. The book covers specific details about logging, such as felling trees, carving trees, moving trees once they're down, firewood, cash crops, and planting. At the back of the book there is a lot of useful miscellaneous information, such as the relative values of trees for cash or for heat, how to calculate board feet of lumber, and some great black and white photos for winter tree identification from bark patterns.

My husband grew up on a farm where logging and splitting wood were everyday chores. He leafed through this book and said "Ho hum. It's all common sense. Why write a book about it anyway?" But I was a city kid, and I found the information in the book quite useful. After reading this book, I can understand much better what is involved in cutting down a tree safely, and I can have a much clearer idea of the steps involved in getting from a standing tree to wood cut and split for the woodstove. I even know the difference now between a bucksaw and a hacksaw, and which one might be useful in the woodlot. If you're standing on the edge of your new woodlot, and you're not sure whether you should take a bucksaw or a hacksaw in with you, then this book is for you.

If you can't find at least one grant that you meet the requirements for in this book, you didn't look at the book at all! The subject index is indespensible in narrowing down the grants. I was looking for grants for our local Humane Society, so I looked up "Animal". I found listings for twenty-eight grants geared toward Animal Care and Animal Rights. I looked up each grant by it's Accession number, read the details of the grant and narrowed it down to eight that I could submit to, add that to the seven general "Non-Profits" and I've got detailed information on fifteen grants, all in the matter of one evening of looking through this very detailed book. Listings for each grant include all contact information, web site addresses if available, email addresses and requirements/restrictions. You've heard of "How-To's", well this book is a "Where-To"!

Like I said in the review title, this book (it's the 2000 edition) isn't the freshest off the press. However, much of the information remains the same from one year to the next; this should really be considered a reference book. This is a good book to have on hand for nonprofits.