Working as a nonprofit professional in the current economic environment can be challenging — and sometimes discouraging. Savvy nonprofits will fulfill their organization's mission by diversifying their income stream. One way they do this is by building mutually beneficial relationships with businesses that are also interested in positively impacting local communities. Such a relationship can be very profitable, both in terms of financial support and social gain. But in crafting successful nonprofit-business relationships, many nonprofit professionals find themselves in murky waters.

So, how can a nonprofit organization best go about building and sustaining those relationships? Moreover, what type of relationships and outcomes do businesses really want from partnering with nonprofit organizations?

Recently, I interviewed the facilitators of "Third Generation: Nonprofit | Business | Relationships | Evolved," a special three-hour workshop hosted by the National Bank of Arizona and organized by the ASU Lodestar Center. These experienced business and nonprofit professionals are committed to evolving the way nonprofit and for-profit organizations work together for good, and they were happy to give me a taste of what to expect from the workshop. Here's a bit of what they had to say:

During a 2007 TED talk, Katherine Fulton discussed the ways philanthropy is evolving — becoming faster, bigger, and more effective — and explained what you can do to keep up. In her discussion, she shares the results of Looking Out for the Future: An Orientation for Twenty-first Century Philanthropists, her report that "shows you how long-term trends are combining to create a new reality for every gift and every giver."

Most of all, Fulton's speech and the results of Looking Out for the Future seem to address two core questions that philanthropic organizations must deal with in the twenty-first century — how can we most effectively use the internet to reach possible givers, volunteers, and collaborators, and how do we deal with social issues in a society that is increasingly consumer driven? Fulton poses five examples of how innovators are working with these issues, trends that give rise to what she calls "the democratization of philanthropy."

Overall, we come away hopeful about what this new connectedness can afford us. Certainly, we must ask ourselves how we can best take advantage of the "new moral hunger that is growing" because of a world that is more self-aware than ever before.

In case you missed her talk when it debuted on the TED website,…

Welcome to Research Friday! As part of a continuing weekly series, each Friday we invite a nonprofit expert from our academic faculty to highlight a research report or study and discuss how it can inform and improve day-to-day nonprofit practice. We welcome your comments and feedback.

Near the end of the past semester, my class discussed one of the chestnuts of the nonprofit sector. Our text, Peter Frumkin's On Being Nonprofit makes some strong statements about the place of earned revenues in nonprofit organizations. "Earned" revenues are those that come from sales and contracts, not from the donated revenues that so many people associate with nonprofits. Some people really hate the idea of earned revenues, believing that commerciality makes nonprofits look and act more like businesses, which can erode their special character. On the other hand, proponents of social enterprise have a lot of good things to say about earned income strategies, especially in lean times when grants and contributions are hard to come by.

However, the particular chestnut we talked about in class isn't whether commerciality is good or bad. The topic was prominent statements about how much commerciality has crept into the sector over the past couple decades. A great recent article by Curtis Child points to statements by Frumkin and others…

So, you're thinking about starting a nonprofit organization. You have a fantastic idea, but are you ready? Do you have everything you need before you begin? Is starting a nonprofit the right path for you?

Before you begin your nonprofit journey, you should ask yourself two very important questions. So, let's dive in, and see if you're ready!

1. "Why do I want to start a nonprofit organization rather than a for-profit organization?"

Both types of organization could be the right choice for you. After all, both are businesses, and both can help you provide the service you want to share. So, what is the difference? There are a number of similarities and differences. Here are few:

• Nonprofit organizations are concerned primarily with social good; for-profits focus on profitability.
• Nonprofit organizations must adhere to a rule of non-distribution whereby profits, or any excess at the end of the fiscal year, must be re-invested in the organization and its programs and may not be distributed to individuals; for-profits exist to distribute profit to owners and shareholders.
• Nonprofit organizations comprise paid staff and volunteers; for-profits typically only have paid staff members.
• Nonprofit organizations are governed by a board of directors; for-profits are governed by the owner(s) and, if a corporation, also a board of directors.
• Nonprofit organizations are…

Welcome to Research Friday! As part of a continuing weekly series, each Friday we invite a nonprofit expert from our academic faculty to highlight a research report or study and discuss how it can inform and improve day-to-day nonprofit practice. We welcome your comments and feedback.

If anyone ever once doubted the energy and organizing force of technology, rest assured they don't anymore. Social media, particularly, have proven to be powerful and exceedingly important, especially as we watch the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt. I will long remember the images of so many people feverishly using their handhelds to discuss the death of Osama bin Laden in social media spaces. Within an hour (and with a huge helping hand from social media), thousands had mobilized and gathered all over the United States to celebrate, remember, and embrace. Clearly, participation is in, and passive observation is out.

Two weeks ago, I introduced readers to La Piana's "Convergence: How Five Trends Will Reshape the Social Sector." In the report, the authors describe five trends that will dramatically alter how the social sector functions. In my previous post, I reviewed the first trend in "Convergence," which is "Demographic Shifts Redefine Participation." This week, I'll discuss the second trend, entitled "Technological Advances Abound.

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