Nonprofit Finance Fund State Of The Sector 2012: A System Under Pressure

From Alice Korngold at Fast Company:

The Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF) 2012 State of the Sector Survey fourth annual survey of nonprofits nationwide was released on Monday, showing responses from 4,607 nonprofits. Nonprofits have been reporting a steady rise in demand for services over the course of the survey’s four years, with 85% reporting an increase in 2011, compared to 67% of nonprofits in 2009. Financially, however, the picture continues to decline. Only 43% of nonprofits have more than three months of cash reserves, and only 56% broke even at year end.

“The data show that this is a system that is increasingly under pressure, and it will crack,” said Antony Bugg-Levine, who was named President and CEO of the Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF) last fall. “Short term complacency masks structural problems heading towards a longer-term crisis.” NFF is a highly innovative nonprofit organization that has pioneered new funding models to strengthen nonprofits and the sector since NFF was founded by Clara Miller in 1980.

Read the full article.