A new cadre of specialty for-profit companies, with services specifically tailored to charitable operations, has arisen to help manage the day-to-day tasks of thousands of nonprofit organizations.
Called Association Management Companies, these firms offer training to time-starved, and sometimes inexperienced, volunteer executives and can supply supplemental staff to complete special projects. They may take on some work, like bookkeeping, and coordinate cost-sharing with other nonprofits to keep overhead for such tasks low.
“While 9 out of 10 people are involved in some kind of association or nonprofit, most do not have the time to dedicate to help run it, making these groups less effective and efficient,” said Sue Pine, spokeswoman for the International Association of Association Management Companies.
An arrangement with an AMC not only helps volunteers focus on the big picture, but also improves their chances for success, experts told The Examiner.
AMCs offer legal, financial, meeting planning skills and other components of day-to-day operations, Pine said.
Since AMCs manage a series of related nonprofits all at the same time and often in the same space, they can pool talent and resources and even build outside relationships necessary to run the organization as effectively as possible.
According to the IAAMC Institute, more than 4,600 U.S. associations, encompassing 5 million members, are now managed by an AMC. Many are based in the D.C. area.
“I like the ability [of AMCs] to share talent and skills with each other,” said Erin Fuller, executive director of the National Association of Women Business Owners, which is managed by the Association Management Bureau in McLean.
Fuller said she can walk down the hall, or make a call, and learn how other executives make decisions, or share ideas among themselves.
“It helps get [access to] a higher caliber of talent,” she said.
“An association management company brings to a small nonprofit a level of expertise in all aspects of nonprofit management,” said John Ganoe, executive director of the Association of Fundraising Professionals/Metro DC Chapter.
Ganoe told The Examiner that association management organizations like to colocate small nonprofits together, often in the same building, to reduce overhead expenses, such as IT resources, or support staff.
“This cost-sharing is something that you couldn’t get as a stand-alone, small nonprofit,” he said.
Have information about area nonprofits? Contact Frank Sietzen at [email protected].
