Picks of the Week: January 25 - February 7, 2009

Website of the Week -- National Poverty Center

The National Poverty Center (NPC) was established in the fall of 2002 as a university-based, nonpartisan research center. We conduct and promote multidisciplinary, policy-relevant research on the causes and consequences of poverty and provide mentoring and training to young scholars. Located within the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, the NPC benefits from close proximity to an extensive and diverse group of University of Michigan-based scholars from such units as the Institute for Social Research; the Department of Economics; and the Schools of Education, Public Health, and Social Work. In addition, the NPC draws on the work of over forty nationally recognized scholars from around the country. The website includes extensive links to research, poverty data and statistics, publications and other resource in the field. Go to: http://npc.umich.edu/about_us.


Publication of the Week -- The Organization of the Future 2: Visions, Strategies, and Insights on Managing in a New Era by Frances Hesselbein and Marshall Goldsmith

From the publisher: With 26 inspiring chapters, this book celebrates the wisdom of some of the most recognized thought leaders of our day: emerging and established experts who share their unique vision of what the organization of the future should look like and must do to survive in the turbulent 21st Century. A partial listing of chapters and authors includes:

• Organization Is Not Structure but Capability, Dave Ulrich & Norm Smallwood
• The Leader’s Mandate: Create a Shared Sense of Destiny, James M. Kouzes & Barry Z. Posner
• The Values That Build a Strong Organization, Thomas J. Moran
• Mobilizing Emotions for Performance: Making the Most of the Informal Organization, Jon R. Katzenbach & Zia Khan
• Beyond Retirement: Mature Workers Are Essential Talent for Organizations of the Future, Richard J. Leider
• Reframing Ethics, Spirit, and Soul, Lee G. Bolman &Terrence E. Deal
• Designing Organizations That Are Built to Change, Edward E. Lawler III & Christopher G. Worley
• Refounding a Movement: Preparing a One-Hundred- Year-Old Organization for the Future, Kathy Cloninger
• Three Challenges Facing Nonprofits of the Future: People, Funding, and Strategy, Roxanne Spillett
• The Leader of the Future, William A. Cohen

Click here to preview this book on Amazon.com.


Trend of the Week -- What Girls Say about Election 2008

The Girl Scout Research Institute (GSRI), building on its comprehensive survey of girls’ leadership conceptions and aspirations, “Change It Up! What Girls Say About Redefining Leadership” (2007), decided to explore the impact of the 2008 election on girls’ leadership aspirations. GSRI conducted a survey from November 11 through December 2, 2008. The total sample of 3,284 respondents included 2,309 girls and 975 boys. Key findings include:

• Nearly one in two (49%) respondents reported an increased interest in politics; 44% reported an increased interest in social and political activism; and 71% said they intend to vote when they are eligible.
• 59% of girls and 52% boys reported that the election had a positive impact on their confidence in being able to achieve their goals in the future, and 51% of girls and 45% of boys said it positively impacted their confidence in being able to change things in this country.
• Substantial numbers (46% of girls and 38% of boys) reported that they think more highly of women’s ability to lead than they did before the election. Yet substantial numbers also reported a heightened appreciation for the difficulties women face in reaching leadership positions in our country.
• Barack Obama would have won the 13- to 17-year-old vote with a wider margin than he did the national election: 60% of the survey respondents said they would have voted for the Democratic Party nominee and 26% said they would have voted for John McCain, compared to the 53% - 46% split in the national election. Obama’s victory would have been based on majorities of both girls’ (61%) and boys’ (57%) votes.

To download a copy of the report, go to: http://www.girlscouts.org.


Resource of the Week -- Constant Contact

With more than 300 easily customized email templates, a step-by step Email Wizard, and point-and-click interface, Constant Contact is a powerful resource for nonprofits wishing to create high-impact email newsletters and promotions, manage contact email lists and measure results of email marketing efforts. Go to: www.constantcontact.com/index.jsp.


Tech Tip of the Week -- Back up a Microsoft Access 2007 Database

• Open the Database you want to back up
• Click the Microsoft Office Button (top left)
• Point to Manage
• Click Back up Database to open the Save As dialog box
• Choose the name and the location (By default Access 2007 adds the date of the backup to the name of the file.)
• Click the save button