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Running a non-profit can be a tremendous challenge. Those who are deep in the planning and execution of campaigns understand the magnitude of their efforts – and the consequences of poor execution.

Day in and day out, organizations are struggling to move the mission forward, encouraging their volunteers to raise donations and bring in more support. It’s an uphill battle, as evidenced by the steady decline in charitable giving since 2015, per the Blackbaud Index.

Growing an organization in our digital age, when contributions are down, is a challenge that requires a more tactical approach than just marketing. It requires a complete audit of operational processes, while also looking at ways to streamline donor outreach.

Because so much of what...

So, you’ve decided that you want to hire a company such as Chop Dawg to help build your future iPhone or Android application. That is exciting! With that said, now comes the vetting process that is so critical to the success of your app.

We’ve covered before extensively on our library about what you need to do to prepare for your first meeting with an agency. Some of the essentials are writing out your app requirements, conducting at least preliminary market research, determining your minimum and maximum budgets that you’re willing to invest, and the type of timeframe you’re willing to work around to bring your idea to life, etc.

We typically ask these types of questions to you, but what are the questions that you should prepare to ask the...

Facebook, Adobe, Autodesk and Planet Labs all have started creative residency programs in the last year, but they are nothing new.

Artist-in-residence programs started over a century ago and ranged from making studio space in offices to placing painters, sculptors, poets and musicians at universities.

Art has always been an important part of innovation. It actually helps Nobel Prize winners (and everyone else) be better at science. And when you combine entrepreneurs and artists you get some fantastic results.

And just like how every entrepreneur-in-residence program is different, artist residencies vary widely and often depend on the organization they are inserted in.

What is the benefit of an artist-in-residence program for you company?

A...

Often when the chips are down and we're not getting paid, racking up debt, and wondering whether our startup has a future at all, it's easy to forget how valuable that freedom is.

So, let's talk about it.

What kind of freedom are we talking about here?

We're talking about the freedom to do whatever the hell we want.

If we want the whole company to work from home in our pajamas — that's what we do. If we want to take the product in a 180-degree different direction, we do. If we want to hire, fire, or promote anyone for any reason, we do.

We created this freedom so that no one could ever tell us what to do. It's amazing, and easy to forget about until we don't have it.

That said, freedom is damn expensive.

How many ways are we paying for ...

Ok, so maybe they’re not. They’re not endangered, they’re not that cute, and they definitely don’t have the time to play mascot to anybody’s cause. The analogy is still tempting, however, because finding a CTO seem to be the current “issue” of the global startup trend: founders need them, accelerators like them, and aspiring startup cities are desperate for them to move in.

A Scarcity of CTOs

There are many specific reasons for the scarcity of CTOs in any of these new startup hubs, and most of them have something to do with regional history, legislature, infrastructure or economic context. However, regardless of particularities, all these reasons stem from a simple issue of supply and demand; there just aren’t that many developers out there...

##What is a general partnership? A general partnership is a business agreement where two or more people (partners) agree to share all of the profits, liabilities, and assets of a business.

General partnerships don’t have any liability protection, so both partners are legally and financially liable for the actions of the other. That means, for example, that if one partner is sued by an upset client, then the other partner’s personal assets — like their home, car, savings, etc. — can be forfeited as payment.

In order to become a general partnership, you need at least two people who agree to take on each other’s liabilities. While oral agreements do count, it’s always a good idea to get everything written down and signed in an articles of pa...

By old school Vermont standards, Dan White — CEO and Co-Founder of the “social impact commerce company” Localvore, based in Burlington, Vermont — is not a local. In fact, neither are his two co-Founders, Michael Nedell (COO) and Meg Randall (VP of Product), even though they all live in town.

That’s because, according to some folks, you’re not technically “local” unless you’re at least the third generation to be born in Vermont — and not one of them has a Vermont birth certificate.

Vermont is unique

But if the real measure of what makes a local is commitment to making your home a better place for the entire community — and, honestly, isn’t that more important than where you happen to be born? — then they have nothing to worry about.

Vermont ...

Millennials enter the workforce with limitless dreams but limited options for high-paying jobs. Their median household income is about 20 percent less than Baby Boomers earned at a similar stage in their lives, and many Millennials wrestle with staggering student loan debt and skyrocketing healthcare costs.

As dispiriting as this situation might sound, Millennials can kick open the doors of professional opportunity thanks to fast-moving technology advancements that have created countless side hustles. About one-third of workers have a side hustle, according to a CareerBuilder survey of 3,200 private sector workers. Millennials are particularly active in the growing trend, with 44 percent of 25- to 34-year olds and 39 percent of 18- to 24-ye...

This moment matters.

Matter has always set out to create a more informed, connected, and empowered society, and that mission has never been more important than today. Media is an integral part of democracy, but it faces unprecedented opposition. Even the core idea of truth itself is under attack.

When Matter launched in 2012, media was already struggling with falling revenues. We were inspired by Clay Shirky’s call — “now is the time for lots and lots of experiments” — and we built a place where those experiments could happen. But today, these existential problems are joined by new ones. Just 32% of Americans say they trust the media — an all-time low. Our media discourse is now dominated by fake news and even direct attacks from the gover...

What is an EIN?

EIN stands for “employee identification number” and it’s the number assigned to your startup for tax purposes. Think of it like your company’s social security number. The EIN is also known as a Federal Tax Identification Number.

The EIN is nine digits in this format: XX-XXXXXXX.

Does my business need an EIN?

Most businesses do need an EIN — they’re necessary for filing taxes and for payroll. EINs are needed by employers, sole proprietors, corporations, partnerships, non-profit associations, trusts, estates of decedents, government agencies, some individuals, and some business entities. Some businesses are exempt from having an EIN, but may choose to get one anyway as having an EIN can make certain government processes simp...