Dear Members,

Thirty years ago, Reagan was our president, gas was $1.40 a gallon, the Baltimore Orioles were World Series victors, "Every Breath You Take" was the number one song, and FAR was starting to provide innovative programs for its members. When I joined seven years ago, I felt like I hit the jackpot. New to DC, I'd discovered a group of service providers and peers who I could turn to for advice, solutions, encouragement, and support.  

I can say with confidence that FAR has never been more keenly focused on providing value to its members. This was evidenced recently in the careful and collaborative process that resulted in an improved resource member benefits structure. Every month FAR's program committee puts on a high quality luncheon with engaging speakers, timely content, and tangible takeaways.

As a volunteer driven organization, FAR's success directly reflects your efforts. Please continue to invite your nonprofit peers to the luncheons. Send us your topic and speaker ideas. Volunteer for a committee. Most importantly, mark that second or third Wednesday of the month on your calendar and make it to the luncheons. It has never been a better investment of time.

Thank you for your membership.



David Diedrich
Chair

November Luncheon

"Preparing for Your Next Executive Level Nonprofit Job:  Tips from the experts"

In a time of uncertainty, having a contingency plan for your career is critical.  This session, moderated by David Keen, CFO, National Association of Counties, will prepare you to properly position yourself  in the marketplace and to potential new employers.  Whether you are actively looking for a new job or simply interested in being prepared this session will prove to be valuable.  Hear from Russ Capps the new CFO of American Dental Education Association,  executive recruiter Jim Zaniello from Vetted Solutions, and Uma Ramesh, the COO of ICMA.
 

David Keen

Russ Capps

Uma Ramesh

Jim Zaniello

Learning Objectives:

• Learn how to build your brand so that you are more marketable when its time for a change
• Gain an understanding of how the recruitment process works for both the organization and the incoming executive
• Understand how your organization's reputation and recruitment process impacts your ability to attract candidates
• Gain tips for an effective onboarding process for a smooth transition

When and Where:
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
11:15 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
SunTrust Building,
1445 New York Avenue, NW 9th Floor
Washington, DC 20005

Membership Renewals Update

The New Age of Evaluating Charities

Charity Navigator claims to be "one of the nation's largest and most-utilized" evaluators of charities. I had dismissed them a few years back, when they confessed their sins and pledged to come back with something better. Earlier this year they released CN 3.0.

Charity Navigator was a private foundation (the polar opposite of crowdfunding) established in 2001 and only recently qualified with the IRS as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. They operate with a budget of $1.2 million and assets of $2.4 million. For their first 12 years of life, they rated nonprofits under two fundamental assumptions: 1) it's better to have expenses classified as 'programmatic' than as 'administrative' and 'fundraising'; and, 2) more transparency is better than less transparency. (Read more, click here.)

FASB is Changing Lease Accounting for Everyone

In 2004 the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) estimated that off-balance sheet leasing commitments by SEC registered firms totaled approximately $1.25 trillion dollars. Leasing is big business.

In May of 2013 the US and International Accounting Boards (the FASB and IASB) issued Revised Exposure Drafts on proposed changes to the accounting for leases that will significantly change how lessees and lessors account for and report leases in their financial statements. - Read more, click here.

The Search for Unrecorded Royalty Revenue - a Different Perspective

One of the key elements to every financial statement audit is the assessment of an Association's revenue recognition policy.  As a result, one primary audit focus is to ensure the proper existence of earned revenue and the corresponding completeness of the deferred revenue liability.  All of this should sound familiar to those involved in financial statement audits.  I was recently involved with a special project for a large domestic nonprofit client that resulted in the examination of revenue recognition through a different prism.  The ensuing engagement plan put me on an expedition to seek out potentially unrecorded royalty revenue through trips to the United Kingdom and Greece. - Read more, click here.

FAR HOLIDAY LUNCHEON

FAR is preparing for the annual holiday luncheon! We rely on the generosity of our Resource Members and their donations to the "goody bags" and door prizes for our nonprofit members.  Click here for the donation form for goody bags and door prizes. Stay tuned to the FAR website in the coming weeks for more information on the luncheon!

Volunteers Welcome!

Register Now

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