Exempt Magazine: Fall 2013 Edition

The new issue of our sister publication, Exempt Magazine, is now online for our readers to enjoy. Here's a look at some of the stories you can find within the pages of the Fall 2013 edition:

Articles

• Transparency, Terrain And Terrorism: Transferring hard currency is always an issue, whether it is due to terrorism rules or the remoteness of the target. There are also vital issues of accountability for the currency transfer and to the donor.
• Confusing Extension: Registrations have increased but major misconceptions about .ORG extensions remain, according to the new domain name report released by Public Interest Registry (PIR), the nonprofit that manages the .ORG top-level domain (TLD).

Column

• Salary Hikes For Online Giving: A study of the past three Nonprofit Organizations Survey and Benefits Surveys sponsored by The NonProfit Times indicates that a relatively new position, online giving manager, is becoming more established while the position of major events manager/specialist has stalled or declined in compensation.

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Webinar: Social Media, #GivingTuesday and End-of-Year Fundraising

UPDATE: The webinar begins today but it's not too late to register! Sign up today to learn about this important topic.

Every nonprofit wants to be a part of the social media scene. Not only will it increase your organization's visibility, it could potentially lead to an increase in donations. But beware: Being popular on social media doesn't automatically mean you will be seeing improved fundraising.

Join us along with Salsa Labs for "Social Media, #GivingTuesday and End-of-Year Fundraising," a free webinar on September 26 at 2:00 p.m. Roz Lemieux, CEO of Attentive.ly, Drew Bernard, founder and CEO of ActionSprout.com, and Christine Schaefer, VP of Community and Marketing at Salsa Labs, will be speaking about how your organization can turn your social media success into guaranteed donations.

Whether it's on #GivingTuesday or end-of-year fundraising, these three speakers will walk you step-by-step through how even with just a small team and some technology tools you can easily plan, execute and measure to segment and target the right people with the right message at the right time.

This webinar might not be for another three weeks but it's never too early to register. Sign up for free today so you can learn how to turn online popularity into dollars.

Mich. Gov. Snyder Defends Use Of Nonprofit Funds

Amid reports that his nonprofit paid for the living and travel expenses of a government official, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder is saying that taxpayers should not be alarmed.

According to a report in Crain's Detroit Business, Snyder spoke out in defense of the New Energy to Reinvent and Diversify Fund (NERD), a foundation he started to promote various charitable causes. Various reports indicated that NERD paid $4,200 to cover Detroit Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr's stay at a hotel and that the fund is also paying for Orr's flights home to see his family in Maryland on the weekends.

When asked about whether taxpayers should be concerned about this at an event at the Michigan State University club, Snyder indicated that it was an appropriate use of the organization's money and that it was actually saving people money.

"We've been very clear it's all legal, it's all been presented, the information that's required," Snyder said. "It doesn't go to my personal benefit, it's actually offsetting costs of government, so people should feel comfortable with that."

NERD is registered as a social welfare, or 501(c)(4), organization, meaning that donors can contribute to the fund anonymously. Federal tax records show that the organization raised $368,000 in 2012, down from the $1.3 million it received in 2011. It had total expenses of $590,453 last year, compared with spending of $865,830 in 2011.

You can read the full story in Crain's Detroit Business.

9 Sobering Stats About Fraud

Every nonprofit manager knows that fraud is a bad thing but too many operate under the belief that it can never happen to them. It's that attitude that can lead to fraud occurring in the first place.

Managers can’t eliminate human weakness, but they can be vigilant in preventing fraud or, if necessary, dealing with it right away. Further, prevention can be helped in part by awareness throughout the organization.

During the recent AICPA Not-for-Profit Industry Conference, Mitchell Lewis, David McRoberts and William Mellon shared several statistics regarding fraud, taken from the Association of Fraud Examiners 2012 Global Fraud Survey (which includes for-profits). Get ready to be demoralized:

• Asset misappropriation schemes made up 87 percent of reported cases.
• The typical organization loses 5 percent to fraud each year.
• Reported frauds last approximately 18 months before detection.
• Some 77 percent of frauds were committed by individuals in one of the following six departments: accounting, operations, sales, executive/upper management, customer service, purchasing.
• Owners/executives and managers committed median losses at $573,000 and $180,000, respectively.
• The median loss caused by occupational fraud was $140,000.
• Median losses for nonprofits totaled $100,000.
• Approximately 85 percent of fraudsters are first-time offenders.
• Approximately 54 percent of fraudsters were between the ages of 31 and 45.