The members of the committee who disperse our Christmas packages for needy families refuse to tell our board who the recipients are, saying the families might be ashamed. I think some of the packages go to relatives of other board...
A company in my community has asked our organization to participate in a stakeholder consultation. Except for small donations, this company has done nothing for charities and nonprofits. It produces noise, smells, waste and traffic problems. Would it be ethical...
I sit on a charity board where some of the staff are very worried about some potential legislation harmful to our cause, and want to lobby against it. Is this ethical for a charity? Is it legal? It is quite...
My nonprofit needs expert help from time to time. How do I learn which consultants serving the nonprofit sector are ethical? An excellent question! Because consultants serving the nonprofit sector usually earn less than they could earn serving the for-profit...
My nonprofit routinely hires the children of staff as summer students. Do you think this is ethical? Like any good ethics advisor, I often give answers of "it depends" because details matter, and I rarely have all the information. I...
The treasurer of my theatre company is a very close friend of the artistic director, and has used the finance committee to give the artistic director a huge raise. The executive director, who also reports to the board, will receive...
My newspaper frequently covers scandals where charities have misused donations or staff have absconded with funds. Every story like that reduces my ability to raise funds for my charity even though we are not part of this wrongdoing. I think...
Despite the oft-maligned paradigm of governments entering into contract with private firms to provide services and/or build infrastructure for the public good, public-private partnerships, or P3s, continue to gain steam in Canada. Skeptics say the fact that governments can borrow...
I think my membership organization needs change at the board, but there are no term limits so there are never any elections; people are comfortable and stay forever. At the last Annual General Meeting (AGM), I proposed a carefully worded...
When it is ethical to have 'in camera' sessions of the board, and what are the guidelines around tracking and communicating decisions made at them? First, just so everyone understands, 'in camera' and 'executive session' appear to be interchangeable terms...
