Picks of the Week: January 11 - 17, 2009

Website of the Week -- Economic Xchange

The Council on Foundations, in collaboration with partner organizations, has launched Economic Xchange, an online platform for the exchange of information, ideas, strategies, tactics, and dialogue.
Be sure to follow the link on the home page to The Foundation Center’s new online feature, Focus on the Economic Crisis which provides a wide array of resources to help nonprofits and foundations alike as they face the challenges of an unstable economy. Go to: http://www.cofinteract.org/economy.


Publication of the Week -- Designing Your Future: Key Trends, Challenges, and Choices Facing Association and Nonprofit Leaders by ASAE & The Center for Association Leadership

From the publisher: Some organizations have a clear sense of how they will shape their future, but many do not. Keeping abreast of current events is one thing; viewing trends through the lens of implications and action plans for your organization is another. That's where Designing Your Future can serve as a valuable resource. Identifying and analyzing trends, issues, and events that are likely to cause transformational change within the association and nonprofit sector are critical undertakings if organizations are to pinpoint and execute their options and opportunities for sustainability, growth, and responsive strategies. Thinking through the implications of the environment that is continually evolving around your organization is not a one-time exercise. It is a continual process of reflection and action. Designing Your Future began with the analysis of several hundred trends. Association leaders and other experts and practitioners have winnowed the lengthy list of impacts to the most critical trends ranging from social to economic to political to environmental to technological impacts likely to affect associations. Use Designing Your Future and subsequent resources to prepare yourself, your board, and your staff to anticipate and plan for the realities of the world in which we all work. Click here to preview this book on Amazon.com.


Trend of the Week -- Trends Affecting Social Entrepreneurship

Change.org has identified seven trends shaping social entrepreneurship in 2009 and beyond. They include:

• Globally-Engaged Education
• Measuring Social Impact
• Mobile Technology
• Online Action Platforms
• Blended Value Investing
• Green Innovation
• A Partner in the White House

To learn more about the impact of these seven trends: Go to: http://socialentrepreneurship.change.org.


Resource of the Week -- Free GuideStar Webinars

Last year, GuideStar began offering free on-line seminar for grantmakers and nonprofits. Based on the success of these webinars, GuideStar will continue to series. Future Webinars will focus on a variety of topics, such as grantmaker due diligence, fundraising, the new IRS Form 990, and governance. Check back at http://www.guidestar.org to learn about future offerings.

The first webinar in 2009, "Compensation Best Practices," will be held Tuesday, January 27, 2009, at 1 p.m. ET. Attorney and former state charity official Karl Emerson and GuideStar vice president Chuck McLean will discuss IRS regulations governing nonprofit compensation and the steps nonprofit leaders should take to protect their organizations from penalties. The Webinar is being offered at no charge; for more information or to register, go to https://www.livemeeting.com.


Tech Tip of the Week -- Turning Photos into PowerPoint 2007 Slide Shows

To turn your digital pictures into PowerPoint 2007 slide shows:

• Click the Insert tab
• In the Illustrations group, click Photo Album
• On the Photo Album dialog box, click the File/Disk button to Insert pictures
• Click the Create button

Click here if you're using an earlier version of PowerPoint.