“The coming together of citizens in organizations, movements, associations, and unions is a necessary condition for the functioning of any well-structured, civilized society.”

 

These words by Václav Havel invite us to consider that, beyond the need for a network of associations and its creation, such associations must actually function. And by “function,” we mean “it works, it’s useful, and everyone benefits from it.”

 

Easy to say, but less easy to achieve on an ongoing basis. We must therefore manage a range of destabilizing factors  : making them reliable, structuring them, and ensuring their evolution and sustainability.

 

Difficulties related to access to resources feature prominently among the   problems identified, but the main challenges are:

➢ Renewal of leadership structures

➢ Renewal of volunteers, whether unpaid or paid

➢ Cash flow

➢ Organizational and internal management

➢ Motivation

… which rank among the top causes of sleepless nights.

 

Declining public subsidies and challenges related to the institutional environment (burden of oversight, institutional and legislative changes) do not rank at the top of the list, but they are among the challenges that organizations have reported have worsened significantly in recent times.

 

Disagreements within the board, difficulties in fostering cohesion among the association’s various components, the need to rewrite the association’s mission statement, and strained relationships between staff and volunteers… these are issues that deserve our attention.

 

Let’s take a closer look at these points!

 

I) “People aren’t as committed as they used to be; we’re having a hard time finding volunteer leaders and executives!”

Challenges related to democratic governance remain a major concern for organizations. Many report difficulties in renewing their leadership bodies. Yet volunteerism itself is not in crisis; however, leadership roles are struggling to attract participants, particularly in sports, socio-cultural, and rights advocacy organizations.

 

While organizations are going through a financially turbulent period, citizens’ desire to take action seems to remain intact. It is the ways in which people get involved that are changing. Indeed, while we can welcome the steady increase in the number of organizations and volunteer participation,   the average time devoted to each organization is decreasing. The reason small and medium-sized organizations are the first to report these difficulties,   is that volunteer work there is very time-consuming.

 

II) “We can’t keep up with the administrative burdens; we spend more time on financial management than on the association’s original mission.”

Administrative complexities and the burden of management are among the main causes of the disappearance of medium-sized associations… and the likely cutbacks resulting from the country’s staggering debt are not going to make things any better.

 

III) “The role of employer is a challenge, whether dealing with salaried employees or volunteers.”

The role of employer remains a recurring challenge for small and medium-sized associations. 29% of associations that employ staff face difficulties finding or retaining employees with the necessary qualifications; for 22% of them, these difficulties stem from the associations’ inability to offer a decent salary.

 

Volunteers fulfill their roles:

➢ Until the workload exceeds the time they wish to devote to it

➢ Until their motivation wanes due to a lack of recognition and acknowledgment of their work

 

This creates a recurring phenomenon of “turnover” that makes it difficult to maintain continuity of operations and places significant demands on management.

IV) Diversifying Financial Resources: Not So Simple

 

After volunteer work—the primary source of funding for the nonprofit sector—nonprofits rely mainly on revenue from their activities, which accounts for an average of 60% of their budget. The share of donations, corporate sponsorship, and funding from foundations remains limited: resources derived from the generosity of individuals and businesses account for only 4% of the nonprofit sector’s budget and are difficult to secure.

 

As a result, nonprofit organizations have recognized for several years now the need to find hybrid sources of funding. While public funding no longer constitutes the majority of their funding, it often remains crucial. It is precisely because they contribute to the implementation of policies in the public interest that nonprofit organizations can receive financial support from the government.

 

To summarize:

 

- Human resources, funding, communication, and management are crucial elements for creating and developing a nonprofit organization. Without ongoing work on these areas, the organization’s viability will quickly be called into question.

- The business model must be planned before launch!

- The amount of work involved must be taken into account from the very beginning.

 

If you feel up to the challenge… go for it—or run away 😉