Palm Beach County Nonprofit Agency Certification Initiative FYIMIAMI September 27, 2005

1
Palm Beach County Nonprofit AgencyCertificatio
n InitiativeFYI-MIAMISeptember 27, 2005
2
Mission Statement

• Promoting quality
• and accountability in the nonprofit sector

3
Primary Goal

• To strengthen the administrative capacity of
  nonprofit agencies in Palm Beach County and
  promote best practices in nonprofit
  administration by
• creating a unified set of administrative
  standards for certification that nonprofit
  agencies meet core requirements of public and
  private funders and
• streamlining the administrative review process to
  reduce the administrative burden on nonprofit
  agencies and funders

4
Community Partners

• Allegany Franciscan Ministries Foundation
• Area Agency on Aging
• Childrens Services Council
• Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin
  Counties
• Lost Tree Charitable Foundation

• Palm Healthcare Foundation
• Palm Beach Community Chest
• Palm Beach County Board of County Commissioners
• Prime Time of Palm Beach County
• United Way of Palm Beach County

5
Guiding Principles

• A shared commitment to establishment of minimum
  administrative standards (and promotion of best
  practices for nonprofit agency management in Palm
  Beach County
• Promoting partnerships across funders to provide
  technical assistance, training and other
  management supports to build organizational
  capacity of nonprofit agencies and reduce the
  administrative burden on nonprofits in Palm Beach
  County
• Capacity building is essential to the success of
  the certification process
•  

6
Major Stakeholders Target Audiences for the
Agency Certification Initiative

• Nonprofit Agencies
• Public and Private Funders
• Private Philanthropists/Donors
• Business Community
• Public at Large
• IRS (Due to pending changes in Federal rules to
  increase accountability standards for 501c3
  agencies)

7
Overview of the Certification Assessment Tool

• Administration and Governance
• (Corporate Book, Board Meetings, Minutes,
  Resolutions, Agency Policies)
• Human Resources Personnel and Volunteers
• Fiscal Management
• (Policies and Procedures, Board Oversight,
  Banking, Journals and Ledgers, Budget, Accounts
  Payable and Receivable, Petty Cash, Procurement,
  In-Kind Contributions, Travel Expenses, Property,
  Sub-Contractors, Insurance, Credit Card, Cash
  Reserves)
• Client Services (for Agencies that provide direct
  client services)

8
Three Levels of Nonprofit Agency Certification

• Mandatory Minimum Standards for Certification
  must be met (Pass/Fail)
• Best Practices in nonprofit administrationhighly
  recommended, but not required for certification
• Nationally Accredited COA, CARF, JCAHO, Maryland
  Nonprofits-Standards of Excellence

9
5-Step Certification Process

• Self-Assessment of Compliance with Certification
  Standards and Best Practices
• On-Site Review Process conducted by retired
  Nonprofit Agency Executives and business
  community representatives
• Preliminary Certification Assessment Report the
  Agencys 10-Day Response Period
• Organization Improvement Plans (which may call
  for technical assistance, training or
  consultation) to help agencies achieve
  certification status over a six-eighteen month
  period.
• Authorization to Release Information

10
Accomplishments to Date

• Development of a Steering Committee with nine
  funders participating a Governing Board composed
  of the four major funders and a Community
  Stakeholders Advisory Council comprised of eight
  highly respected community leaders
• Development of the Certification Assessment Tool
  (CAT) with agreed upon minimum administrative
  standards for all nonprofits and a Handbook for
  Nonprofit Agencies use
• Completion of Focus Groups to obtain input from
  nonprofit agencies about certification standards
  and the review process, and a Pilot Test of the
  draft CAT in eight diverse nonprofits
• Development of Executive Volunteer Corps
  comprised of retired nonprofit agency executives
  and business community representatives to conduct
  the on-site reviews
• Preliminary Inventory of Nonprofit Agencies
  Technical Assistance Needs and Expansion of
  Training and TA Resources (Underway)

11
Executive Volunteer Corps

• Retired nonprofit agency executives (Executive
  Directors/CEOs, Chief Financial Officers, Program
  and Grants Administrators)
• Finance and Human Resource managers from the FOR
  profit sector
• Other volunteers with experience in Disaster
  Preparedness/Recovery or Volunteer Services
• Volunteers are screened for any potential
  conflict of interest
• Nonprofit agencies also have the opportunity to
  see the list of panelist, and can screen out up
  to 2 panelists

12
Inventory of Training and Technical Assistance
Needs

• The Governing Board of ACI is working with other
  Community Partners and nonprofit Agencies
  involved in the certification process to identify
  training and TA resources nonprofits may need to
  achieve certification status, and build their
  administrative capacity, including
• Self-study materials
• Small group skills-building sessions and
  workshops
• One on one consulting services
• Management support services for nonprofits (MSO)
  that want to purchase back-office services,
  such as Finance, Human Resources, Risk Management
• Partnership with Maryland Nonprofits Standards
  for Excellence program

13
Brief Overview of Grantee Handbook

• Section IStep by Step Instructions for
  Conducting Your Agencys Self-Assessment
• Sections II-V Detailed How To guidance for
  organizing your Agencys documentation for each
  section of the Certification Assessment Tool
  (still a work in progress)
• Appendices Hard copy of the CAT, Checklists for
  required forms and attachments, in addition to
  other resources that can help your Agency prepare
  your Self-Assessment

14
Feedback/Discussion