How To Write Your Non Profit Annual Report

Here are some tips for leaders responsible for writing an effective annual report for their non profit organization.

Consider making these objectives for your report:

To demonstrate accomplishments (not activities) (results and how you did it).
To recognize important people (volunteers, donors, major funders, partners).
To provide an account of your organization's work for the past year.
To share your mission with a wide audience.
To generate new donations, retain donors and grow partnerships.

Consider these audience sectors when writing your report:

Donors
Volunteers
Community leaders
Future board members
Supporters (in-kind)
Elected officials
Potential partners, grant funding entities

Allow three to four months to prepare your report:

Create and outline
Gather an organize content
Engage your management team
Design
Review/Proof
Print
Distribute

Consider packaging your report with a theme, such as one of these:

Transformation
Day in the life
Milestones
Critical issues
Progress toward the future
New undertakings
Milestone anniversary

Present your financials with:

Pie charts and bar charts (use five or less elements in your pie charts)
Numbers and percentages
Explanations about where your revenue comes from and how the money is spent

Include at least these sections and elements in your report:

Executive Director letter
Accomplishments/Achievements
Financials
Donor list
Board of Directors list
Call to action
Lots of photos
Stories (profiles) to highlight your successes

And before you start preparing your next report, use this checklist:

Who will help prepare the report?
Do we need to engage an external freelancer (writing and/or design)?
Who will write the Executive Director letter?
Are we gathering photos all year long so we have enough come time to prepare our report?
Is our donor list accurate and up-to-date?
What will be our annual report's theme?
Will we distribute in print and/or online?
What are our best stories to tell?
What time of year will we release our report?
What are our three major accomplishments/achievements for the past year?
Who will double and triple check our reported financials and donor list for accuracy?
Where will we tell our key messages in different ways (Executive Director letter, photo captions, etc.)?
What calls to action will we include?

Comments

The Six Mindsets That Distinguish The Best Leaders

The key takeaway from the book, CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets That Distinguish The Best Leaders From The Rest , is the best CEOs think and act differently than the rest across each of six key CEO responsibilities , including: Setting the direction (vision, strategy, resource allocation) Aligning the organization (culture, organization design, talent) Mobilizing through leaders (composition, teamwork, operating rhythm) Engaging the board (relationships, capabilities, meetings) Connecting with stakeholders (social purpose, interaction, moments of truth) Managing personal effectiveness (time and energy, leadership model, perspective) Starting with a pool of more than 2,400 corporate leaders, McKinsey & Company senior partners and authors Carolyn Dewar , Scott Keller , and Vik Malhotra extensively screened the group to identify the elite core, then sat down with 67 of them for multiple hours to talk...

How To Recruit Rockstars

"Ninety percent of business problems are actually recruiting problems in disguise," declares Jeff Hyman , author of the book, Recruit Rockstars: The 10 Step Playbook To Find The Winners And Ignite Your Business . Hyman, who has recruited more than 3,000 people during his career, also explains that "nothing will accelerate the growth of your company faster than a commitment to placing Rockstars in every role at every level." As you read the book, you'll discover Hyman's 10-step method for landing the very best talent. Progressing through the book chapters you'll learn how to: Prepare for Rockstars Recruit only Rockstars Grow your Rockstars Keep in mind, however, that a Rockstar at one company isn't necessarily one at another. Rockstars are Rockstars because they are a fit in terms of both competencies and DNA characteristics . And the three things Rockstars prize most are: A challenging environment that allows for their best work Professional a...

How To Make Better Decisions

These eight decision-making tactics from David Lahey ’s book, Predicting Success , are helpful to me and hopefully useful to you as well: Deep breathing , to clear your mind. Researching , to feel confident that you have all the information in front of you. Listing your options , in either verbal or written form, to keep the whole picture front of mind. Following through on the possible outcomes , complete with likely predictions and acknowledgement of whether they’re negative or positive (or design yourself a decision tree, that lays out every possible consequence visually). Testing your intuition , by imagining a committed decision and then gauging the corresponding feeling it inspires in your gut. Taking the time you need , so long as it doesn’t become an overly indulgent distraction. Evaluating your decision , an after-the-fact exercise that engages a conscious inventory of the lessons learned. Coming to terms with your pick , always cognizant of the reality ...

How To Infuse Love Back Into Your Work

Do you have a chance to play to your strengths every day? Were you excited to go to work every day last week? How you answer these two questions will determine if you are more likely to be successful, resilient, and engaged at work – and likely to do something great in your life by taking seriously what you love and expressing it in some sort of productive way. This is what bestselling author, Marcus Buckingham , explains in his book, Love + Work . “You've long been told to ‘Do what you love,’ shares Buckingham. “Sounds simple, but the real challenge is how to do this in a world not set up to help you. Most of us actually don't know the real truth of what we love—what engages us and makes us thrive—and our workplaces, jobs, schools, even our parents, are focused instead on making us conform. Sadly, no person or system is dedicated to discovering the crucial intersection between what you love to do and how you contribute it to others,” declares Buckingham....

5 Tips For Generating Ideas From Employees

Your employees have lots of ideas. So, be sure you provide the forums and mechanisms for your employees to share their ideas with you. Hold at least a few brainstorming sessions each year, as well. And, when you are brainstorming with your employees, try these five tips: Encourage ALL ideas. Don't evaluate or criticize ideas when they are first suggested. Ask for wild ideas. Often, the craziest ideas end up being the most useful. Shoot for quantity not quality during brainstorming. Encourage everyone to offer new combinations and improvements of old ideas.

Effective Listening: Do's And Don'ts

Here are some great tips from Michelle Tillis Lederman's book, The 11 Laws of Likability . They are all about: what to do and what not to do to be a leader who's an effective listener : Do : Maintain eye contact Limit your talking Focus on the speaker Ask questions Manage your emotions Listen with your eyes and ears Listen for ideas and opportunities Remain open to the conversation Confirm understanding, paraphrase Give nonverbal messages that you are listening (nod, smile) Ignore distractions Don't : Interrupt Show signs of impatience Judge or argue mentally Multitask during a conversation Project your ideas Think about what to say next Have expectations or preconceived ideas Become defensive or assume you are being attacked Use condescending, aggressive, or closed body language Listen with biases or closed to new ideas Jump to conclusions or finish someone's sentences

Six Mindsets That Distinguish The Best Leaders

Communicate Often And Tell A Story

"Most leaders' visions fail, not due to a leader's inadequacies, but due to the leader's lack of communication," said Margaret Reynolds of Reynolds Consulting, LLC in Lee's Summit, MO. Reynolds shared her expertise with me recently during an interview. She added that it's not that leaders don't communicate, but that they don't beat the drum regularly enough. "Leaders need to communicate often, regularly and consistently," she recommended. "In terms of how to communicate so people get it, it is pretty widely accepted that story telling is the most effective," explained Reynolds. Leaders need to paint a vision where people see it often. She recommends that leaders share their vision at least seven to 10 times with their employees, and to make it clear to everyone what specifically each person can do each day to help achieve the collective mission. Reynolds' other advice to leaders is to be one who: •listens with respect...

How To Survive And Then Reset To Ultimately Thrive

“Uncertainty is here to stay. Rather than seeing it as an obstacle to overcome, integrate it into your strategic approach to invigorate your high-growth potential and outperform competition under any market condition,” explains Rebecca Homkes , author of the new book, Survive, Reset, Thrive . “Most books aren’t honest enough about how hard it is to reset ,” adds Homkes. Yet, resetting and leaning into change is essential. “If you are ready to embrace change as a central element of your growth strategy, this book is for you.” Homkes’ book is a timely, comprehensive, and essential read for business leaders looking to take the next step toward ensuring high growth for their companies. The book brings together more than 15 years of Homkes working directly with high-growth companies of all sizes and across a wide variety of industries. Survive, Reset, Thrive (SRT) is a practical and innovative interconnected three-mode approach : Survive : Stabilizing ...

Do You Really Need To Read Leadership Books?

The answer is yes. And, fortunately, there are lots out there to select from. However, if you don't have time to read books about how to be an effective and good leader, you can select a few words from the list below and then practice what those words mean, as you lead your team every day. Leaders on the LinkedIn Executive Suite group came up with these nearly 50 words in answer to a discussion topic I posted in the group forum: " A Good Leader Is [insert one word]." A big thank you to that group for this valuable list. Accountable Adaptable Approachable Authentic Aware Bold Brave Candid Caring Clear Challenging Charismatic Compassionate Courageous Credible Decisive Dedicated Ethical Empowering Engaged Fearless Forward-Thinking Gracious Honest Humble Inclusive Influential Inspiring Intuitive Loyal Mindful Moral Motivating Objective Open Passionate Pro-active Receptive Responsible Respectful Skilled S...

Eric Jacobson On Management And Leadership

Search This Blog