Upcoming Conference

CASE Annual Conference for Development Researchers
Researchers as Knowledge Managers
February 6-8, 2008, Jacksonville, FL

Join Bentz Whaley Flessner consultants Pamela Poland and Josh Birkholz at the CASE Annual Conference for Development Researchers.

On Friday, February 8, Josh Birkholz will present Why do Donors Give?. The most successful major gift fundraising organizations benefit from effective prospect management systems. Prospect identification typically focuses on "Can they give?" and "Will they give?" Perhaps a better question is, "Why do they give?" In this session, expect to discuss the many diverse motivations for modern philanthropy. By understanding what drives donors, you might tap into a whole new world of potential donors to your organization.

Conference details

IRS To Keep Eye On Exec Compensation

The NonProfit Times reports that executive compensation compliance will continue to be in the crosshairs in 2008 for the Internal Revenue Service's Exempt Organization Division (IRS-EO) after compliance checks this year turned up significant errors and omissions.

Read more.

Charity's Share From Shopping Raises Concern

This New York Times article highlights the rising concern regarding building a donation into the purchase of items. Concerns are that such giving is unregulated and, in most cases, unaccountable.

Read this 12.13.07 article by Stephanie Strom from the New York Times.

Msnbc.com and Contribute Magazine to Share Content

Msnbc.com and Contribute magazine today announced a content agreement that will provide consumers with the latest news, information and ideas about philanthropy and the people making a difference in the world of giving.

In addition to including Contribute's specialty content, both sites will work together to host polls, offer surveys and showcase other interactive tools. The content will be featured in msnbc.com's Giving section.

Full-text press release is available via CNNMoney.com, 12.12.07.

Embedded Giving Regulations

Senator Robert Menendez, Democrat of New Jersey, announced plans on Friday to introduce legislation next week to better regulate embedded giving, the fast-growing fund-raising practice that involves building a gift to charity into everyday purchases.

Full text article by Stephanie Strom is available via the New York Times, 12.16.07.

New Podcast Available!

Bentz Whaley Flessner senior associate Scott Fendley talks with Brian Dowling, the Associate Vice President for Development Services at the University of Michigan and co-founder of supportingadvancement.com, about new technologies available to advancement.

View the "Podcast" section of this blog (in the column on the right) to download the podcast or click on the link to listen to the interview.

New online tool helps prospect for wealthy clients

NOZA offers unique glimpse into individualized giving patterns.

Read this 12/10 Investment News article by Davis D. Janowski.

Update on IRA Charitable Rollover

Late last week, the Senate decided to drop extensions of expiring tax provisions (also known as "extenders") from an alternative minimum tax bill (AMT). That likely means that the IRA charitable rollover will not be extended prior to Dec. 31, 2007. Leaders in both chambers have said that they would like to pass the extenders in early 2008, but the timing is uncertain.

Latest News from Capitol Hill...

Senate Passes AMT Patch Without IRA Charitable Rollover, UBIT Provision
On Thursday, Dec. 6, Senate leaders decided to split an alternative minimum tax (AMT)/tax extenders package, leading to Senate passage of a one-year AMT patch bill that does not include an extension of the current law IRA charitable rollover nor a provision changing the tax treatment of tax-exempt hedge fund investments. The AMT patch bill was passed on a vote of 88-5. Senate leaders expressed hope that the tax extenders could be approved at a later date, most likely in 2008.

Read more about this on the CASE website.

Kintera, Jenzabar Announce Partnership for Higher Ed

Jenzabar, a vendor of software and services for higher education, has announced today a strategic partnership with Kintera.

Read more about this partnership by David Sims, TMCnet Contributing Editor.

Philanthropists Demanding Measurable Results from Their Donations

Strategic philanthropists (a new breed of wealthy charitable donors) are increasingly judging the return on their contributions by examining measurable performance results.

Read a summary of the Financial Times article on the Chronicle of Philanthropy website or view the full Financial Times article.

Blackbaud in the News: Nonprofits Profitable For Blackbaud

A CNN Money report on how "Blackbaud has carved out a distinctive niche, making software that helps nonprofit groups, schools, charities and philanthropies manage their activities much like for-profit companies."

Read this 12.04.07 article.

Getting Smart With Database Enhancements

Advancement and development services provide fundraising's core operational resource - data. These data tell us who to call, solicit, cultivate and steward. The more relevant, actionable data we have, the more we can help drive progress. From list purchases to email appends, some elements of data enhancement will be essential for your team's effective support of fundraising. This article offers some insights about enhancing data sets.

Read this NonProfitTimes article by Marta Nobles.

The 13 Scariest Things in IT in 2007

Tracking IT developments in the business world is a smart way to stay ahead of your organization's technology needs. This humorous look at challenges being faced across the globe by for-profits presents the key issues for non-profits, although many of us have not yet run into these issues.

Click here to view the 13 scariest things in IT in 2007.

SaaS Goes To Work At Motorola And The Humane Society

Do you need to understand SaaS? Software as a Service is expanding as a means of offering database and CRM applications via the Internet. Sometimes referred to as "hosted" or even "Application Service Provider" options, this nuanced approach is increasingly used by Big Business and non-profits and educational institutions of all sizes. The following article details the Humane Society's use of SaaS technology as a case study.

Read this 12.01.07 InformationWeek article by Andrew Conry-Murray.

MySpace for Millionaires

"A new crop of online social-networking sites has taken aim at the rich, seeking to create exclusive Web communities of like-moneyed friends. The sites -- essentially MySpace for millionaires -- promise safe havens for the affluent where they can flirt, swap advice, plan parties and find new pals without mixing with hoi polloi..."

Read the full 11.30.07 Wall Street Journal article by Robert Frank.