By NEO Law Group
An engaged board can be one of the most important organizational assets of a nonprofit. But nonprofit boards are often underutilized and are not always effective in significantly advancing an organization’s mission. Educating boards and executives about their legal duties, practical steps to take to effectively meet those duties, and best practices in mitigating exposure to organizational and personal liability/harm is key to establishing board engagement and effectiveness.
Many nonprofit board members recognize the impact artificial intelligence (AI) is having at their workplace and in their personal lives. But it seems that only a small percentage are taking proactive steps, or even reactive steps, in response to the implications AI may be having on the nonprofits they...
Purpose-driven board leadership (PDBL) is a governance model championed by BoardSource* that embraces four basic principles: * Disclosure: I’m a board member of BoardSource While the literature on PDBL continues to grow (see the list of references at the end of this post), there has been little discussion on...
I had the honor of delivering the opening plenary address at the Contra Costa Nonprofit Partnership Fair on March 28. Prior to the Fair, I published a post with information and resources on nonprofit legal compliance and boards and board members. In this post, I provide some additional information and resources...
I have the honor of delivering the opening plenary address at this month’s Contra Costa Nonprofit Partnership Fair taking place on Saturday, March 28, 2026 from 9 am to 3:30 pm at Contra Costa College. The plenary will focus on nonprofit compliance and governance, with acknowledgement of the turbulent...
BoardSource announced its release of Authorized Voice & Power in the Boardroom: Reimagining Governance to Fulfill Philanthropy’s Purpose, an incredible resource meeting the moment and embracing Purpose-Driven Board Leadership. The free-to-download publication is both a call to action and a guide for foundation boards. Centering community voice in board...
I recently joined fellow Nonprofit Radio contributor Amy Sample Ward (CEO, NTEN) in conversation with host Tony Martignetti about artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, governance, and the general state of the nonprofit sector. Listen to the latest podcast here or on your favorite podcast apps. This year, any conversation about...
The secretary of a nonprofit corporation is typically a required officer position under state laws. The post on the Duties of the Secretary of a Nonprofit Corporation written by my colleague Michele Berger wrote in 2017 remains one of the most read on our blog. This post expands on...
Nonprofit board members and managers rely on delegating their responsibilities to others. Of course, the size of the organization will dictate the options, persons, groups, and contractors involved. This post is aimed principally at nonprofit corporations with at least a few employees holding management-level responsibilities and will not discuss...
As readers of this blog may be aware, I’m a big fan of the governance model known as Purpose-Driven Board Leadership (PDBL). If you’re not familiar with PDBL, it follows four basic principles: PDBL in Context It’s important to understand that PDBL does not fully inform the roles and...
The National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) and National Association of State Charities Officials (NASCO) held their 2024 Charities Conference on October 8-10. This conference is the sole annual event at which charity regulators and nonprofit organizations and their attorneys, accountants, fundraisers, and advisers can meet, learn about, and...