Articles by

Olsen Thielen

In times of turmoil, including the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, your board of directors should be your not-for-profit’s rock-solid foundation. But what if your board is understaffed or simply doesn’t provide the leadership your nonprofit requires?
The recent riots around the country have resulted in many storefronts, office buildings and business properties being damaged or destroyed. In the case of stores or other businesses with inventory, some of these businesses lost products after looters ransacked their property.
Every two years, the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) publishes what has become the definitive guide for preventing and detecting workplace fraud.
A quid pro quo contribution occurs when a nonprofit receives a payment that includes a contribution and the nonprofit provides the donor with goods or services valued for less than the total payment.
If cash flow has dried up, your organization may need to do more than trim expenses. Here’s how to assess your financial condition and take appropriate action.
It’s all too easy to let ineffective not-for-profit continue, even as they consume budget resources. To help ensure your resources are being deployed efficiently and effectively, consider using the tradition of spring cleaning to review and, potentially, replace ineffective programs.
A key fiduciary duty of your not-for-profit’s board of directors is to oversee and monitor the organization’s financial health. Some financial warning signs — such as the loss of a major funder — may jump out immediately. But other red flags can be more subtle. Here are some of them.
Many large U.S. companies offer their employees a matching gift program which helps boost the impact of their employees’ charitable gifts. Double the Donation estimates that $2 to $3 billion is donated through matching gift programs every year.
Every nonprofit should have an executive search plan. Even if you aren’t facing an imminent vacancy, your organization is smart to prepare for what can be a long process. Executive searches generally take several months — even if you end up hiring someone already known to your nonprofit.
Have you ever thought about opening your own business?  If so, you will join the group of people who launch small businesses and start out as sole proprietors. Here are nine important tax rules and considerations that sole proprietors need to keep in mind.
Accounting for contributions and grants has often proven complicated for not-for-profits, especially when they come with donor-imposed conditions. But 2018 guidance from the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) provided some much-needed clarification of earlier instructions.
To properly fulfill their fiduciary duties, your nonprofit’s board needs certain information. And it’s up to the executive director and managers to ensure they have it.
State law typically specifies the minimum number of directors a not-for-profit must have on its board. In Minnesota, that minimum is three members. But so long as organizations fulfill that requirement, it’s up to them to determine how many total board members they need.
If your top executive were to step down tomorrow, would your not-for-profit know how to make a smooth leadership transition or would your boat suddenly be rudderless? Fortunately, creating a succession plan isn’t as difficult as you might think.
Olsen Thielen continues to take significant steps toward "Going Green", which includes paperless audit and tax returns.
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