by Sara Lom | Nov 3, 2025
Job Title: Program Coordinator Organization: Joel’s Place for Children Reports To: Board President Location: Cleveland, Ohio About Joel’s Place for Children: Joel’s Place for Children is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing compassionate...
by Sara Lom | Oct 24, 2025
Good board meetings don’t just happen—they’re planned, purposeful, and facilitated. Here’s a practical, listicle-style guide to running meetings that actually deliver results. 1. Clearly Define the Meeting’s Purpose 2. Carefully Prepare Agenda & Tools to...
by Sara Lom | Oct 24, 2025
Board members should not feel like “docile mushrooms—warm and in the dark.” – McFarlan and Epstein’s Nonprofit Boards: A Guide. This phrase is a vivid reminder that strong governance depends on transparency, engagement, and shared leadership. Effective boards...
by Sara Lom | Oct 24, 2025
There’s a meaningful difference between sitting on a board and serving on one. Sitting implies attendance while serving implies stewardship. The most effective board members understand that their role is not ceremonial. Board members are the backbone of nonprofit...
by Sara Lom | Oct 7, 2025
How a BVU Fellow Transformed ZENworks Yoga A Growing Mission Meets Strategic Expertise When a BVU Fellow joined ZENworks Yoga in 2024, they had a growing mission to bring yoga and mindfulness into schools and needed a more robust brand presence and increased online...
by Sara Lom | Sep 5, 2025
A Guide for Nonprofit Boards A strong chief executive can take your mission further, faster—but only if your board is actively supporting, assessing, and guiding their leadership. One of the most important (and often overlooked) responsibilities of a nonprofit board...
by Sara Lom | Sep 5, 2025
How to Gear Up Your Governance Committee If you’ve ever served on a nonprofit board, you know the difference between one that’s just “getting by” and one that’s really leading. Strong boards ask tough questions, hold themselves accountable, and stay focused on what...
by Sara Lom | Sep 5, 2025
Grants Plus and Business Volunteers Unlimited discuss the role of nonprofit boards in fundraising. Fundraising to support missions and communities is a daily reality for all nonprofit organizations and should be a shared responsibility. However, the thought of asking...
by Sara Lom | Sep 3, 2025
Strong nonprofit boards don’t just check boxes. They reflect, learn, and adapt. One of the most effective ways to improve board performance isn’t a new policy or a retreat, but pausing to ask a few simple questions: How are we doing as individual board members? How am...
by Sara Lom | Oct 8, 2024
In BVU’s pulse survey, 76% of nonprofit leaders in Northeast Ohio describe their boards as effective. While 76% is a solid score, it’s average — a “C” grade. Yet many nonprofits still call BVU looking for ways to improve board engagement. Times are...
by Sara Lom | Jul 29, 2024
Nonprofit chief executives are vital to an organization’s success, and there are several key leadership traits and skills that often make a difference in this role. Leadership Traits Mission-driven: A deep commitment to the organization’s mission...
by Sara Lom | May 28, 2024
Elizabeth Voudouris, President & CEO Julie Clark, VP, Nonprofit Engagement The Crucial Role of Strategic Panning: Steering through challenges and seizing opportunities What do most nonprofit leaders have in common? We can juggle. Not the easy tennis ball...
by Sara Lom | May 6, 2024
One key element of a healthy nonprofit organization is a strong board. A strong board: Can clearly identify its work and its role for a particular nonprofit at any point in time. Is comprised of people who bring the relevant skills, expertise, diversity, networks and...
by Sara Lom | Feb 15, 2024
By Toi Comer, Vice President of Development – United Way and Heather Englander Managing Director, Business Engagement – Business Volunteers Unlimited This week, we are delighted to introduce United Way of Greater Cleveland’s Volunteer Portal, powered by BVU. This...
by Sara Lom | Jan 30, 2024
Nonprofits face a unique talent challenge, filling fewer senior roles internally compared to businesses. A recent survey reveals that only 30-40% of nonprofits promote from within, while 64% of businesses do. Yet, according to Nonprofit HR, a substantial turnover is...
by Sara Lom | Jan 9, 2024
Tim Angbrandt, a BVU Fellow, worked with Adoption Network Cleveland on a year-long project to expand their outreach efforts. The Executive Director, Bestie Norris, provides details on Tim’s impact below. How did your fellow help your organization’s bottom...
by Sara Lom | Jan 9, 2024
BVU Fellow Jennifer Goings Smith worked with NuPoint Community Development Corporation (Formerly Union Miles Development Corporation) on a year-long project to structure their Board of Directors. We recently caught up with NuPoint’s Executive Director, Roshawn...
by Sara Lom | Sep 7, 2022
Rob Zaremsky Director, Business & Community Engagement September 7, 2022 “Volunteering should be transformational, not transactional.” This is a phrase that we share on a regular basis during our enhanced volunteering sessions with volunteers from BVU Business...
by Sara Lom | Feb 17, 2022
Why should businesses focus efforts on employee engagement and corporate social responsibility? Community engagement greatly increases employee satisfaction and retention. According to a recent Deloitte Millennial Survey, 75 percent of respondents relayed that...
