Introduction
Welcome to the Endeavour New Year 2012 Newsletter. Get the latest on Endeavour’s changes, as well as Client and Community updates. Here are just a few highlights:
- A 2012 Forecast for Canadian Non-Profits >> read more
- Client Survey Results Revealed! >> read more
Thanks for reading!
Endeavour News: Looking Ahead
Happy 2012! Endeavour wishes everyone a very happy and productive New Year. In the year ahead, Endeavour looks forward to serving new clients and supporting former clients, to building our roster of talented volunteers, and to interacting with our virtual and real communities in new and meaningful ways. Stay tuned for details as they happen!
As Endeavour continues to grow, unique opportunities arise across the organization for motivated and results-driven individuals. Give back to your community and develop your skills! Details here: http://bit.ly/z0rW6F.
The application process to volunteer as a consultant for Endeavour’s Spring/Summer 2012 projects is now closed. All applicants will be contacted by Endeavour’s volunteer recruitment committee shortly, concerning next steps. Potential applicants who are interested in volunteering in the future can apply for the Fall 2012/Winter 2013 projects. Look for the application announcement in late summer.
Look who’s new! Congratulations to two new Director appointments: Haydn Liang, Director of Development; and Anuj Tickoo, Director, Volunteer Recruitment and Retention. To these two former consultants, thanks for your dedication to Endeavour and we look forward to continuing to work with you. Please visit our Director biographies page to learn more about Hadyn http://bit.ly/yXFMJH and Anuj http://bit.ly/xfCCDr.
- Wall of Fame; Donor List from 2011: A heartfelt thank you to the following donors. Your important gifts support Endeavour in our effort to serve valuable non-profits, strengthening our community.
$100 Level
Ada Tsang, Azer Hann, Jane Zhang, Shain Widdifield, Diana Wong, Alex Gill, Helen Seibel, Ming-Young Tam$200 Level
Emily Murray and Steven Ayer$500 Level
Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
Client and Community Updates
New in 2012, TechSoup Canada has customer service (phones and email) that is 100% Canadian and bilingual! To learn more about TechSoup Canada’s Product Donations Program, please reach out to customer service here: http://bit.ly/yydfso.
Interested in social finance or impact investing? Looking for new ways to get involved? TORONTO+acumen, a volunteer-run chapter of Acumen Fund, is seeking passionate volunteers to fill the following positions on their Executive Committee: (1) Co-Chair, Dignity in Focus, (2) Managing Editor, TORONTO+acumen Blog, (3) Marketing and Communications Lead. Find out more here: http://bit.ly/jmiPf0.
Client Spotlight
Client Survey 2011: What Our Clients Say
Endeavour is committed to providing actionable and high-quality recommendations for our non-profit clients and the issues they face. Our recent Client Satisfaction and Impact Survey shows that our non-profit clients are very satisfied with our work, our volunteers and our recommendations. In 2011, 22% of our clients provided their feedback and here is what they said:
- 100% of non-profit clients said that the project recommendations exceeded or met their expectations
- 100% of non-profit clients would recommend Endeavour to another non-profit organization
- 89% of non-profit clients are planning to implement all or most of the recommendations provided by the Endeavour consulting team.
Endeavour strives to continue exceeding client expectations as we move forward with Round 10! For full results from the client survey and graphs, please visit http://bit.ly/wo8K3R.
Expert’s Corner
Contributed by Steven Ayer
Biggest Trends in Canadian Non-Profits in 2012
While it’s unlikely to bring about the end of the world, 2012 will still prove to be an interesting year for non-profits, as all levels of Canadian government begin to cut-back to balance their budgets, threatening the sectors biggest source of funding. At the same time, some significant changes in the way non-profits are operating are becoming more widespread. Here are some big trends to look at in the non-profit sector in 2012, along with additional hyperlinks for more information:
- Canadian non-profits are going to face a wide variety of uncertainty across their funding bases, including individual donations, federal government contributions, provincial government contributions, and municipal government contributions
- While many non-profits will use new technology to increase revenue and impact, many will still struggle with finding resources for full implementation.
- Evidenced-based practice and data visualization techniques will be an increasing important factor for success for non-profits as they seek more stable funding
- However, with data collection of a key decision metrics becoming easier through online surveys and other technology, non-profits will need to seriously pay attention to whether their data quality is sufficient to truly inform strategic and operational decisions
- Social enterprises, while functionally existing for nearly as long as the concept of non-profits, will continue to grow as an interest for non-profits and their funders trying to achieve sustainability.
Author Biography: Steven Ayer serves an Advisor and member of the board of Endeavour and currently holds the position of President of Common Good Strategies, which helps non-profits with research, evaluations, and strategic planning. Previously, Steven Ayer was a Senior Research Associate at Imagine Canada. He has co-authored a number of major reports on corporate giving, individual giving, volunteering, and revenues and fundraising for non-profits. Steven holds an MBA from Laurentian University.
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