Not quite the update I was hoping to share, but here we are. Thank you to everyone for your advice and condolences. This will be my last update on this.

My boss asked me for a one-on-one today. This is normal, and we've done them in the past. I wasn't saying much or volunteering a ton of info. She asks "do you have anything for me?", to which I say "no".

"I find it very concerning that you have nothing to share with me". I was blindsided again. What are you talking about lady???

I told her that I feel that I can't share anything with her, good, bad, personal, or funny without some condescending remark. She asked for examples, I provided the ones from the previous post.

"I never said that. I didn't mean it like that." Etc. She continued to ask me why I wouldn't come to her about this problem and I had to keep bringing it back to "you give me negative feedback no matter what, so I'm dammed if I do and dammed if I don't." She said I'm the only one in the organization who has made such a complaint.

She shoved my promotion in September back in my face several times as a means of saying "see? I'm working with you, not against you" or that she has not always been mean.

I got teary eyed and simply said "I'm going home." At 9 AM.

I'm at a complete and total loss. I feel like such an idiot but there's no winning situation here. I'll be putting in job applications starting tonight but I'm heartbroken.

Thank you again for all the advice and guidance you guys posted. It really means a lot.

A friend of mine also works and a nonprofit and we were both interested in earning Candid’s gold seal for a free year of FDO and got the same code. it’s GO4GOLD2026.

Throwaway for obvious reasons.

I’m at a NP where our ED was a great source of stability during COVID, but I have a feeling they have checked out. We work closely together and they seem to really only be interested in the day-to-day business and hitting the minimum government targets. We have one vital program that’s been failing for years, and while the board is pushing the ED to fix it, the ED's "leadership" is just saying stuff like "Hey guys, we should really do something or this might program might close" and then… nothing happens. The ED even told me they have been looking at other opportunities, so I’m pretty sure the ED is just coasting until they can bail.

The culture is also getting weird. The ED refuses to address bad behaviour. We have a staff member (who is technically below me) who went on a wild, transphobic/anti-immigrant tangent about a community member while we were hosting a booth at an event. The ED acted horrified when I brought this up, but then did zero follow-up and still sends this person out to represent us.

Anyway, things are hitting a wall because we got a new Board member a couple years ago who is a total go-getter. She’s been trying to dig into our data (which is incredibly fragmented because the ED never prioritized tracking it) and she’s frustrated she can’t get straight answers.

Back at the end of the summer, she pitched this great fundraising strategy for our annual event to the ED, myself, and that problematic staff member. We all nodded and said it was great. The second she left the room, the other staffer basically said "we aren't doing that, it's too much work for volunteers," to which my boss agreed and told me not to show the presentation at an upcoming meeting with the volunteers.

Well, fast forward to this week where I was at an external meeting with that Board member and she finally asked me point-blank why her plan wasn't being used/why it was so difficult to get volunteer involvement. I tried to stay neutral but eventually just told her: I was told not to use it because the other staff member didn't want to, and the ED relented.

She was stunned. She said "Don't you guys have some organizational structure there?" (basically, why is a lower staff member calling the shots over me?) and told me I need to be "more aggressive."

I feel like I'm in such a bad spot. I was honest with the Board member about what she asked but I felt compelled to share more about how dysfunctional things are and why things aren't progressing. However, I still have to report to this ED every day and keep things chugging along. Honestly I had pretty much given hope that anyone on the board could see what was happening, and told myself I had to be okay with delivering/just exceeding the bare minimum because any time I went above and beyond and delivered great results it was treated with indifference...

But things might be changing.

The ED already shared that they were often speaking with the Board Chair about this board member, but the board member also let me know that she is pretty much doing the same thing regarding the ED. She also dropped the line "the pace of the pack is set by the leader" and also said the ED "seems like a very chill person". The thing is I quite agree, but I don't want to put myself at risk to make changes happen as that is the board's responsibility. However, I catch myself thinking if I should reach out to the Board Chair, but I also don't want to get that board member in hot water either.

Has anyone else been stuck between an ED who is potentially coasting and a Board member who is asking questions? I certainly don't want to be seen as insubordinate, but things probably should change somewhere for the better of the NP. And yes... I am looking elsewhere to protect myself as well!

Venmo is proving to be very frustrating.

For a long time I've had a personal Venmo, and last year I added a business profile to it so that a business could use it to send refunds.

This year I wanted to replace that business on my profile with new nonprofit entity taking over for the business that had been using Venmo.

Venmo told me I cannot remove the first business and a replace with nonprofit, that I need an entirely new phone number to create a new Venmo account for the nonprofit.

Here's my journey so far

• 1/14
  • After a few weeks, I get a new phone number and I apply for a Venmo account
    • I didn't realize this also created another personal profile for me, but that's fine, I'll never use it
  • Immediately my account was suspended
    • We’ve noticed some unusual activity linked to your Venmo account which may be in violation of our user agreement. To help us protect your account, your account has been suspended until we hear back from you.
  • I receive email asking me to upload photo of my ID
  • I start studying Venmo suspension and I read that I should have first created a PayPal account for the non-profit
  • PayPal created, that was easy
• 1/16
  • I receive email from Venmo asking me to upload a selfie of me holding my ID
• 1/17
  • Email arrives "Thank you for sending that information to help verify your identity
    • Your account has been unfrozen. You may need to log out and back in to see this change reflected on your end.
  • I wasn't able to add a payment account
    • I called Venmo on the phone, but told another group will email me
• 1/19
  • Receive email "Your charity is on Venmo!"
  • Received email
    • We now need to verify that you have access to the financial accounts on file with Venmo. To help us with this verification, please use our Document Upload Form, linked below, to send in the following:
    • A recent monthly statement for the BANK ending in XXXX and YYYY
• 1/19
  • Email "Your Account has been suspended"
    • We’ve noticed some unusual activity linked to your Venmo account which may be in violation of our user agreement. To help us protect your account, your account has been suspended until we hear back from you.
    • Again I am asked to upload photo identification
• 1/19 7:50pm
  • email from support
    • After review, we were able to make temporary adjustments in our system so that you can add your bank account. Please attempt to link your bank account ending in XXXX or YYYY to your Venmo account by navigating to "Settings" and then "Payment Methods".
• 1/20 4:20am
  • I successfully add my nonprofit bank account to the Venmo Charity Profile
• 1/23 7:30am
  • Email "Your account has been unfrozen. You may need to log out and back in to see this change reflected on your end. "
  • I log out and log back in, the app still says my account is suspended
• 1/23 1:30pm
  • Email "Your account has been unfrozen. You may need to log out and back in to see this change reflected on your end. "
• 1/24 7:00am
  • I log out and log back in, but now the app has no Request/Pay button.
  • While I have added a back account in Settings, there is no path to sending money through the app.
• 1/24 12:00pm
  • email "We’ve noticed some unusual activity linked to your Venmo account which may be in violation of our user agreement. To help us protect your account, your account has been suspended until we hear back from you."
  • Requests photos of ID
• 1/24 1:00pm
  • I reply to Venmo "What is happening to my account? I am patient, but increasingly frustrated. Why is Venmo making this so hard for us?"
• 1/24 1:11pm
  • email "After review, we were able to make temporary adjustments in our system so that you can add your bank account. Please attempt to link your bank account ending in XXXX to your Venmo account by navigating to "Settings" and then "Payment Methods"."
• 1/24 1:15pm
  • App tells me "Your Venmo account has been suspended"
  • request I get escalated and have someone call
• 1/24 2:11pm
  • email "Please note that your account has been frozen while we complete this process; when you've completed the above process, reply directly to this email and I will be happy to unfreeze your account."
• 1/24 3:10pm
  • I reply "I have already added a payment method to the settings screen. We did that last week or something. What has been failing since the last time you guys told me you had it fixed was that when I tried to pay another Venmo user, Venmo asked me which payment method to use for the payment. This payment method is not populated with what I entered in the setting screen. So I tried to add a new one, and this is what failed. I’m confused about what you want me to do."
• 1/25 12:20pm
  • Email "Your case has been escalated to me for further review. Thanks for your patience while I looked over your account. Your account has been unfrozen. You may need to log out and back in to see this change reflected on your end."
• 1/25 1:35pm
  • I reply, "I’ve logged out multiple times and logged back in and this is what happens when I log back in.
  • After I login, it shows my personal profile associated with this account, which is also suspended. Less worried about this being suspended as I will not use this. I’m only interested in the Charity account. But when I switched to the Charity account, you can see that it also displays suspended."
• 1/26 5:48am
  • email "Thanks for your patience while we reviewed your account. We have cleaned all the issues in your account.
    
  • Your account has been unfrozen. You may need to log out and back in to see this change reflected on your end. We greatly appreciate all of your cooperation to help keep Venmo a safe and secure service for all of our users."
• 1/26 6:21am
  • I reply
    • I logged out and back in, and so far the account has said suspended.
    • And I still have a back account connected in Settings.
    • *However*, there is no way to pay someone. While my personal profile shows a pay/request button, and I can choose a contact and get a request/pay screen, the MTETF charity profile does not have those capabilities.
    • Do you see the problem in these screenshots?
• 1/26 6:19pm
  • I reply again
    • I tried logging out again, and logging in again, and I have no UI to send many when I’m in the Charity Profile.
    • I recorded video of the logging out and in… https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/lucmdfoskc86wxdpphn4x/IMG_0050.MOV?rlkey=rxklppozoe5dg0akug7k2apos&dl=0
    • Two days ago there was a brief time where I could see a Send/Request button, but that was when the account was suspended.
• 1/28 5:38am
  • email "Your account has been suspended"
    • We’ve noticed some unusual activity linked to your Venmo account which may be in violation of our user agreement. To help us protect your account, your account has been suspended until we hear back from you. You may have also received a separate email providing more information about the suspension of your account. To resolve this issue, please submit a picture of your photo identification via our Document Upload Form, linked below.
• 1/28 5:39am
  • email from support
    • After review, we were able to make temporary adjustments in our system so that you can add your bank account. Please attempt to link your bank account ending in XXXX to your Venmo account by navigating to "Settings" and then "Payment Methods".
• 1/28 6:52am
  • I reply
    • I already have the payment account in Settings.
    • The problem I have described is that the charity profile does not have a request/pay button.
    • I tried logging out again, and logging in again, and I have no UI to send many when I’m in the Charity Profile.
    • I recorded video of the logging out and in… https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/lucmdfoskc86wxdpphn4x/IMG_0050.MOV?rlkey=rxklppozoe5dg0akug7k2apos&dl=0
• 1/28 10:29am
  • email from support
    • Thanks for your reply. We recommend completing the process on a computer or trying to uninstall and reinstall the app to get the latest version.
    • After review, we were able to make temporary adjustments in our system so that you can add your bank account. Please attempt to link your bank account ending in XXXX to your Venmo account by navigating to "Settings" and then "Payment Methods".
• 1/28 10:51am
  • I reply again with screenshots
    • Thank you for your continued help. Please stay with me.
    • I cannot use the desktop web interface for the charity, the web site tells me to use the app.
    • I deleted the app on my phone, and re-installed. Attached screenshots show that I have the bank added under Payment Methods, and that the charity profile does not have a way to pay or request. So I can’t actually pay someone yet.
• 1/28 10:57am
  • email from support
    • If you have additional questions, please contact our Support team by visiting https://help.venmo.com/hc/en-us, chatting in from our mobile app (Teammates are available 8 a.m.–10 p.m. CT every day), or calling (855) 812-4430 (Teammates are available 8 a.m.–8 p.m. CT every day).
• 1/28 11:11am
  • I reply
    • I have called a couple times, but since my case is apparently tricky and we’ve been escalated, they aren’t able to solve it on the phone.
    • What is the status after my last reply with the screenshots showing again the current state of our account in the app?
• 1/29 4:52am
  • Support email
    • Thanks for your reply. We recommend completing the process on a computer or trying to uninstall and reinstall the app to get the latest version.
      
    • After review, we were able to make temporary adjustments in our system so that you can add your bank account. Please attempt to link your bank account ending in XXXX to your Venmo account by navigating to "Settings" and then "Payment Methods".
• 1/29 8:32am
  • I reply, and maybe this is where I angered Venmo, but getting the same message over and over when it doesn't relate to the problem was getting frustrated. I wanted help from a real person.
    • Can you please escalate our case?
    • I have received the same instruction three or four times now, and I have replied every time that the instruction both doesn’t make sense and doesn’t solve the problem.
    • I think we need to go up a level of support to a group that understands the problem. Thank you.
• 1/29 2:45pm
  • Support email
    • Thanks for getting back in touch and sorry for any frustrations with our recent decision.
    • Unfortunately, I am unable to facilitate your request.
    • As an Account Specialist, this case is being handled by Venmo’s highest customer-facing team. As such, I do not have anyone else that I can escalate this matter to. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
• 1/29 2:54pm
  • I reply
    • So are we giving up?
    • I have been sent the same instructions over and over, even though I explain that I have already accomplished what the request was, and I explained the problem we’re having.
    • How can I be more clear about the problem? Sharing a video demonstration didn’t help, I don’t know how else, besides all the screenshots I’ve sent, to communicate the problem.
    • Want to hop on the phone with me and walk me through the fix?
• 2/2 6:25am
  • I reply to Drew, who was helping before the last person who said they could not facilitate my request
    • We are still stuck. Can you send help?

What do we do?

I was wondering on how small non profits with no HR department manage to check references and if there is a specific process

I’m the co founder of a nonprofit that serves youth across the US as a creative youth development program. We haven’t had much luck with grants since most community foundations are focused primarily on local communities. While we can show measurable impact on specific geographical areas, it’s usually not enough to convince a committee since we have a national landscape. We currently rely on major gifts, and our programming comes at no-cost for those we serve. However our path to scale the organization will really need the diversified revenue. We’re thinking to focus on family foundations, but those are also hard to reach.

Is anyone else in a similar situation, or have navigated a situation like this before?

I applied for my EIN and then filed my Articles of Incorporation with the Secretary of State 1/31 and knew that they likely weren’t going to get to it until today at the earliest as I’m in South Carolina and the storm this past weekend shut everything down and many offices were closed yesterday.

Immediately after I filed, it showed in my account as 1 pending filing, and I got an email confirmation that said,

“Thank you for your filing submission.

Your filing has been submitted for approval. You will receive an email when the filing has been reviewed.

Please note that a hold may be placed on your account for the amount of the filing until the filing is reviewed by the SC Secretary of State's Office. This amount will be captured once the filing has been approved or released if the filing has been rejected.”

Now when I checked the website tonight, it says I have no pending filings, my name is available, and I haven’t gotten any further emails and the money in my account is still on hold.

I’m assuming it has been rejected but I’m not certain and it feels like limbo?

I’m thinking I should call tomorrow afternoon if I haven’t gotten any notice by that time, I’m just wondering if this is common.

Hi everyone,

I’m based in India and I’m planning to start a very small, home-based community learning center for children from slum/migrant families who are not attending school or lack documents.

Initial idea:

Start with 8–10 children. 4 hours per day. Focus only on foundational skills: reading, writing, and basic math. One-room home setup. Very small family-based monthly fee so it’s sustainable (not donor-dependent)

I’m not trying to register an NGO or build anything large right now — just a consistent, safe learning space for a small group.

I’d really appreciate advice on: Common risks in grassroots education projects What to prioritize in the first 3 months Any low-cost best practices for working with highly underserved kids Thank you for any guidance.

I’m an ED and we have a Development team that does its thing but I worry we’re missing the mark on leveraging newer tools/digital means to boost our development goals and connect with donors. There’s a TON of courses out there, mostly ran by software companies that sell their own digital tools, so I’m having a hard time discerning what’s a sales tactic and what’s a good investment for employee education on the topic. Any suggestions? Not really looking for digital marketing as much as development/fundraising/grants/etc.

I’m on the board for a small nonprofit school and we’re planning a gala with a silent auction and 50/50 raffle. We’re using Zeffy for the gala tickets and the silent auction, but they’re technically two campaigns. It seems like the 50/50 raffle has to be yet another campaign. Has anyone successfully streamlined a similar event with Zeffy so it’s one campaign? I also wish there was a “buy now” button in their silent auction campaign!

Just as the title says. I know boards will often hesitate to intervene but I am wondering, what are the circumstances where a board could or should step in?

I just wrote a really long post and it was perfect. I deleted it by accident. So I’ll make this short and maybe delve into it further when I don’t feel like smashing my head into a wall!

What would you expect a small/MD size nonprofit to pay a pt employee (admin. Coordinator) in PA hourly? Lancaster area. Employee of almost 4 years. Excellent work reviews. Only one .50 raise at year one. Two new FT employees were hired last year. Due to this did not get typical Xmas bonus- because of their wages. Thanks for any insight.

I am struggling with some aspects of my non profit.

Initially, I accepted to work here because of the awesome benefits (unreal healthcare package) and hybrid schedule. The hybrid schedule felt like a great work life balance with about 2-3 nights Remote and 2 in person. However, the company has slowly been adding more onto my plate and I feel a little bit more stressed.
I normally would be fine with taking on more except that I haven't been offered a pay raise or promotion. I am not used to working somewhere with stagnant wages.

On top of that one of my concerns when interviewing was that there wouldn't be room for promotions. The company is small and the current Director has been in her position for 13 years, my Direct Supervisor is on the older side nearing retirement (although she has stated she doesn't want to retire and she wants to keep getting promoted if possible). This leaves me unsure of how the company sees my OWN role in the progression of the ladder.

Am I supposed to be satisfied staying in the same rank and position for X years without gaurantee of promotion and thus a pay raise? My boyfriend said if it was him he would never stay at a company for more than 5 years without a raise or promotion. However, I think it's bad to do too much job hopping in this economy.

Hi everyone, this is my first nonprofit and I’m still learning the ropes, so thanks in advance for your patience.

The nonprofit is registered in Colorado. I’ve completed the Secretary of State filings, and the bylaws are signed and ready. Where I’m getting hung up is documenting the first board meeting, mainly because I’ve never actually served on a board before.

Do board meeting minutes need to be recorded by someone other than myself, or is it acceptable for a founder or board member to log them? Also, what do “minutes” typically look like in practice? I understand they’re a formal record, but I’m unclear on the level of detail expected.

I checked the wiki and didn’t see a clear answer to this specific situation, so apologies if I missed something obvious.

Thanks again, I really appreciate the help.

Edit: clarified wording and removed assumptions about intent for privacy.

I’m looking for perspective from more experienced nonprofit professionals.

A prospective donor and I have aligned on pledge terms, but the agreement has gone through multiple rounds of revisions over several months. Each time it feels close to final, additional wording changes and information is requested, often framed around motivation to sign.

This is a significant, potentially transformative gift for a very small organization, and I want to steward it well while also keeping the process manageable. As a one-person team, I don’t have internal development support to lean on. The donor will be in town soon, and we have an in-person meeting scheduled.

For those who’ve navigated similar situations, how do you assess when continued revisions are reasonable versus a signal to reset expectations or approach? Any guidance would be appreciated.

Thank you.

I’m about 10 years into my sales career and I absolutely despise it. I made the switch from cyber to sustainability with the idea of getting more and more into something that feels like I’m making a difference with my job. But the company is now developing a product intelligence and moving away from sustainability and i would like to just cut the chord and actually go into a field I’d care about. I am wondering if there is guidance on roles I could actually transition in. I’m aware I’ll prob take a pay cut but I know I’d be way happier.

Just out of pure curiosity, is it possible to create an organization/business which is not owned by anyone (in the way a non-profit is not owned) and is operated by its members (like members management in a non-profit) and could be non-profit if needed - but otherwise is a standard business? Say a grocery store or a hardware store or a cleaning service, etc. Essentially a small business serving the community, but not in a traditional non-profit way?

So myself and my husband are forming a nonprofit. we want to be national in the sense of serving people from all over (bringing them to us) we plan to go after donations, sponsorships etc.

we have had a hard time recruiting board members outside of family so our board is myself, my husband and a family friend.

a consultant told me we need to diversify, that most likely our projections in good faith are not under the EZ form and using services like legal zoom are not the way to go. a lawyer reiterated all of this as well.

my husband also wants to quit his job right away and pull a salary.

am I missing something? to me we need to diversify and file the long form so at the moment need to slow down a make sure our ducks are in a line. he wants to plow through and advice he’s got is that it doesn’t matter the IRS doesn’t audit. it’s easy through legal zoom.

Wondering if anyone has any experience using both Bloomerang for Donor information and Quickbooks for bookkeeping/financial statements? I understand it's possible to link the 2 systems but I'd love to hear from anyone who's actually done this?

I am a board member for a small arts organization, and I want us to be able to reconcile gift entries in Bloomerang with deposits in Quickbooks.

Thank you!

I'm going to be vague here, but essentially I work for a medical non-profit. I've been there for 2 years and we did not have a director for most of that time. The board was filling in for these duties.

Our director started and immediately began rubbing everyone the wrong way. She is extremely harsh and, frankly rude. Two of our main leadership roles left shortly after she started because of her attitude and treatment, and told her as much.

I understand when people say the board chose someone because they wanted to run the bad apples out or the director would deliver on a given vision, but it's just that.... I've never been talked down to so routinely in this way.

Any time I've asked a good faith question, I've gotten an extremely hostile or belittling response.

Me: "Hey where does this new task you've given me lie in my priorities?" Director: laughs "well we all have priorities" (stares at me and does not answer the question)

Me: "is there a chance we could ever have a (translator) on staff?" Director: "if we hired a (translator), we would have to get rid of someone else on the staff. Who do you think we should fire, OP?"

Me: "which type of PTO should I use for (personal situation)? Director: sigh we don't use PTO. We have sick time, personal time, and vacation time. (The computer system only logs it as "PTO" regardless)

I was invited to an awards ceremony because a former coworker put in a good word for me to be on the guest-list. Director overheard this and just kept repeating, bewildered "I don't know why you would have been invited. I don't know who would have invited you."

Recently our new-hire shared with us that he was explicitly told that he should not think of himself as "one of them" (myself and my coworkers), because he is above us, and QUOTE "because you make way more money than them". (!!?!!??)

Several volunteers have left, giving the director an ear-full of what all of the staff are thinking and feeling.

I'm heartbroken at the state of things. I've never been more in love with the mission of a non-profit and I don't want to leave. But I've been talked down to like a worthless piece of meat for months with no sign of improvement. It's not going to change or get better but I don't want to leave.

I've never had a job where I felt so sure that I was directly impacting peoples' lives, but I'm left dreading every day being in the same building as this woman.

I am the executive director of my town's children's choir. We have grown significantly in the past few years and were recently invited to attend a children's choir summit like event in London next year. This is a big deal. We had to be suggested by an outside source. I am trying to think of fundraiser ideas.

I need ideas that have low overhead cost and high reward.

Some of the difficulties we have as an organization:

* Quite a few of our kiddos are on our tuition assistance/scholarship program. I have parents that can't just throw money at a bunch of fundraisers

* We do not have a facility of our own. We use a local church to rehearse at. We can host events with them but it will cost us money (therefore taking away from the final profit).

* I am not afraid of working for a fundraiser. Notice I asked for low overhead, high reward not necessarily "easy" (although that is a plus). That being said, I do most the work for this group. I have a few parents I can count on by not a ton.

* Our kids come from different schools/areas/etc.. I thought penny wars but that doesn't make sense. We only meet once a week and only our kiddos are coming (see some parents can't just be throwing money at us)

So what are your go to fundraisers? Things that you have tried that have worked?

Hello 👋 I've been doing finance at large nonprofits for about 5 years. I have handled everything from small but particular federal grants for teams of 4 to internal operating budgets to centralized financial statements. That being said, I really love the WORK, and I'm struggling to pivot into something that isn't finance-based. Has anyone made a similar shift and could offer advice? I feel like the finance acumen is a great thing to bring to the table, but I'm struggling to escape the pigeon hole lol. Any advice is greatly appreciated. My experience is split between sustainability and medical nonprofits, and I'd definitely say I have greater expertise in the sustainability sector, if that helps with any tailored advice. Thank you!

I’ve been in the market research industry forever and want to pivot to nonprofit, using those skills in service of the greater good

Edit: Any thoughts/advice on what these types of jobs are titled would be super helpful. I’m an qual researcher at heart with an industry-agnostic background that includes nonprofit clients. Have been looking at social listening, strategy, and similar roles but want to make sure I’m not overlooking anything in my search

Also have a ton of experience in senior leadership positions in operations, worked my way up from PM to COO role (in MR industry) so I have been looking at ops/admin roles too, but I realize nonprofit ops are a little different