In our recent travels to make presentations, conduct trainings, and meet with clients, we’ve been hearing a lot of talk about cutbacks in their government funding. Even human services organizations like free clinics, whose services are more in demand than ever, are losing state and municipal funding.
The reality is, this may get worse before it gets better. It’s partly the economy, of course. But it’s also the result of a growing mentality, at least in some areas, that the government shouldn’t be funding non-governmental agencies and services.
The question I ask, then, is what are you doing about it? Instead of simply lamenting these cutbacks, nonprofit staff and board members need to be proactive and figure out how to start raising money from the private sector.
Unless you want to reduce services and lay off staff, you have to invest in development and find other sources of income. Start getting out in the community and telling your story. Put a plan in place to cultivate donors. Get your board involved and make sure they’re trained.
The nonprofits that do this will not only survive funding cutbacks, they’ll end up thriving in the long run.
How are you dealing with funding reductions? We invite you to post your comments below.
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