LUKE MICKELSON
LUKE MICKELSON RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS
QUESTION 4: If a person wants to start a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation, what suggestions do you have based on your experience doing this? Did you complete the paperwork yourself, or did you hire professionals? If you experienced any problems with this process, please share the problems and how they were resolved.
RESPONSE: I highly recommend that you find a local CPA to help you with setting up your 501. It’s not hard and most of the time they are willing to do so as part of a donation using their talents. They love to help with this kind of stuff, plus they know what they are doing. Find a CPA that may have a little experience with this kind of stuff. Setting up the 501 takes some time, but remember, it doesn’t stop there. Most states require to register as a business, have a registered agent and file for your solicitation registration. For starting out charities, I recommend finding agencies that will do this for you or find a volunteer that can work with states and keeping your registrations all up-to-date for each state you are working in.
QUESTION 5: The selection of members of the Board of Directors for a new nonprofit is important. What characteristics for Board members do you believe are important? What contributions by Board members do you believe should be expected? Did your Board members receive any training? If so, please identify that training.
RESPONSE: This can be difficult and I can only speak to my experience and type of service that SHP provides. We started out with BOD members that had a strong passion for the mission and availability. This is still a high priority, but with more specific skill sets. I would say the most important person on the BOD would be someone with a finance background and organizational skills. Your Chairman should know how to manage people confidently and understand the differences between what the BOD does and what the Executive Team or Executive Director does. That is probably the most important relationship in the organization. BODs are meant to govern the organization while the Executive Team runs the organization. Much like a coloring book. The BOD draws the lines where the ET fills in the lines with whatever color is needed to achieve the mission. Both the BOD and the ET should make every decision with one single goal in mind…how does this fulfill the Mission. Mission creep will kill a nonprofit almost faster than corruption. Although BOD members are not paid for their efforts on the BOD, they should be willing to donate time and money personally while pushing for others to volunteer and support the mission.
QUESTION 6: Most nonprofits benefit greatly from the contributions of volunteers. Approximately how many volunteers do you have? Approximately how many paid staff do you have? Have you experienced any problems recruiting volunteers? If so, please share your experience. What suggestions do you have for recruiting volunteers?
RESPONSE: Volunteer recruitment can be difficult, but most important. In the SHP experience, we learned that the happiest volunteer is the sweatiest and the dustiest. This means, people want to volunteer their time when they feel like they are personally making a difference. If you make their experience less than valuable to the mission or organization, such as they just push a button or sweep a floor, than they will not fill as fulfilled as they could and probably not come back. Long term volunteers are tricky too, but I have found that by keeping them focused on the mission and keeping it simple, it keeps them involved. It is equally important to make sure they have a clear understanding of what they need to do and that they feel valued. We make sure that the Chapter Presidents have a lot of personal decision making capabilities so they can put a little of their own touches on the mission, while keeping it uniform. Hard to do, but effective at keeping key volunteers engaged. It is also important to plan for a succession plan for leadership positions. Even from the day they first start. Burnout is a very real thing and successful charities understand that and plan for it. SHP has 10 fulltime and 14 part time or
stipend staff members.