Top Ten Websites for Arts & Cultural Leaders

ArtsInsights
Monthly Newsletter of the Arts Consulting Group
July 2006
 
Bruce D. Thibodeau, President and Alec Dickey, Senior Consultant
 
 
It’s July.  School is out, summer is here, and it’s time for our annual roundup of the top ten websites for board members and nonprofit professionals.  Here are our nominations for the season's best bookmarks to go along with whatever summer reading you have packed in your beach bag.
 
Best of the Best
 
The Complete Toolkit for Boards, sponsored by the Management Assistance Program for Nonprofits, tops our list again this year.  Offering an extensive, well-organized library of online tools covering nearly every aspect of effective nonprofit operations, this vast collection of fact sheets, forms, board manuals and sample policies is clearly organized, comprehensive, and concise.  One-stop shopping at its best, The Complete Toolkit offers nuts-and-bolts information on effective governance and much more.  If we could only suggest one site for your reading list this summer, this would be it: www.managementhelp.org/boards/boards.htm
 
Governance
 
It’s new to our list, but many nonprofit leaders will already be familiar with Board Café, the monthly newsletter of ideas and opinion published by COMPASSPOINT.  If you haven’t discovered this well-edited, often light-hearted but always insightful publication, visit www.supportcenter.org/boardcafe/index.php for an archive of past issues and information on subscribing.  A hearty blend of no-nonsense tone and upbeat attitude make it of one the best sources on the web for ideas on complicated issues ranging from diversity to difficult board members.  Less familiar, is the site’s Nonprofit Genie (www.supportcenter.org/askgenie/index.php), featuring practical advice from leading experts on topics ranging from fundraising and strategic planning to accounting and database management.
 
Advocacy
 
The American Arts Alliance’s newly revamped site continues to provide excellent advocacy tools focused on arts education and charitable giving, as well as up-to-the-minute updates on pending legislation of interest to arts organizations.   Of particular interest: the Take Action section’s zip code search engine which returns profile information on a district’s congressional representatives and state senators, as well as email links for each.  www.americanartsalliance.org
 
The National Governors Association, with support from the National Endowment for the Arts, has produced a series of Issue Briefs that document the value of the arts in public policy. The Arts Strengthen Rural Economies, detailing how states have successfully used arts-based strategies to create jobs, stimulate development and attract tourism is of particular interest to arts advocates.  Other titles include The Role of Arts In Economic Development and Arts Education Improves Workforce Development and Student Success.  Each pdf file includes useful citations and examples of successful programs.  www.nasaa-arts.org/nasaanews/nga.shtml
 
Fundraising and Finance
 
Don’t miss the opportunity to present your organization to thousands of potential donors.  Last year, 5 million (yes, million) people visited www.guidestar.org  to access its comprehensive database of non-profit organizations.   If you haven’t visited Guidestar to review the information (drawn from IRS 990 forms) posted on your organization, don’t delay.  Guidestar encourages non-profit organizations to supplement the data they present with in-depth profiles provided by the organization itself.  This takes some time and thought, but presenting this information clearly will make your organization far more visible to the funders who want to find you.  (Guidestar requires registration for all users, even the casual browser, but the process is quick and simple.)  This site made our top ten list last year, but you’ll find lots of new features this summer, including a well-organized guide to preparing 990 forms.
 
Volunteer Management
 
Post your organization’s volunteer opportunities while increasing its visibility at VolunteerMatch (www.volunteermatch.org), the web’s most-accessed source for teaming volunteers with nonprofit organizations.  In addition to providing volunteers, the site (which received over 3.4 million visitors and delivered 475,000 volunteer referrals last year) is packed with helpful advice for volunteer managers, including tools for tracking volunteer hours and a new monthly newsletter.  Registration is quick and simple. Some services not mentioned here require a fee. 

 
Another wonderful resource for volunteer managers is provided by EnergizeInc’s volunteer management library at www.energizeinc.com/art.html.  Here you’ll find lots of time-tested advice, including helpful guides to the dollar value of volunteer time and the importance of having risk management policies in place for those who generously donate their time and talent to your organization.
Ethics
 
Codifying standards of responsible stewardship is an important step toward reassuring your supporters that the trust they place in your organization is well-earned.  Independent Sector, has updated its online library of examples of ethical policies drawn from more than sixty nonprofits.  Efficiently organized by field, this compendium is an excellent resource for any group reviewing its fiscal systems and policies.  Visit www.independentsector.org/issues/accountability/standards2.html  for objective guidance on ethical issues pertaining to governance, fiscal oversight, financial reporting, and fundraising practices. 
 
Arts Education
 
The creative team at www.supportmusic.com does an excellent job at assisting visitors to make the case for music education in schools.  The site tracks current debate, provides tools for organizing local efforts, offers information in Spanish, and presents several engaging sections including a “Grade Your School” assessment, a well-designed downloadable pamphlet, and a podcast.
 
An extensive library of resources on the importance of arts education is also available through Americans For The Arts.  Visit their Public Awareness Campaign page at www.americansforthearts.org/public_awareness/ for tools, testimonials, and tip-sheets.
 
Additional Resources
 
No review of tools available to board members on the web would be complete without mentioning BoardSource (www.boardsource.org), hosted by the National Center for Nonprofit Boards.  One of the most reliable sources of nonprofit information on the web, it no longer qualifies for our top ten list because it now requires visitors to pay a fee for most resources.  Still, if you aren’t familiar with the site, it’s well-presented and well worth a visit.  One of its most helpful features, a compilation of the answers to 150 questions asked of its staff over the years (now searchable by topic), requires no registration.  www.boardsource.org/Knowledge.asp?ID=3
 
For reasons of objectivity, our own archive of articles of interest to leaders in arts management (researched and written by Arts Consulting Group consultants) is exempt from inclusion on the list.  We hope you find it useful and will bookmark it, nonetheless.  www.artsconsulting.com/artsinsights/
 

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