Nonprofit Finance Fund Rolls Out “Tough Times” Services and Planning Tools to Help Nonprofits and Foundations Weather Recession

New York, NY, April 15, 2009 — Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF) has expanded its offerings for nonprofit organizations and foundations to help support strategic decision-making and financial management during the economic recession. NFF’s “Tough Times” services and tools include financial workshops, scenario planning, merger management, program profitability analysis, and lending services such as PRI underwriting. Nonprofit Finance Fund has also added expertise in response to increased demand for financial counsel; new members of NFF’s leadership team include Tom McLaughlin, Director of Consulting Services, and Edward Sermier, Director, User Services, and Stacey Zelbow, Manager, Consulting Services.

NFF’s recent survey of the nonprofit sector found that many organizations are in dire financial straits, and are interested in exploring new ways to manage through the crisis and beyond. Of more than 950 respondents representing a broad range of sizes, geographies, and sub-sectors:

· 58% would like to conduct scenario planning,

· 52% want help communicating their financial picture to board and/or funders,

· 34% are interested in program profitability analysis, and

· 13% are interested in exploring merger feasibility.

“Recession brings challenges, but it also provides an opportunity to address fundamental questions about the financial ‘rules’ that govern our sector, and to explore new ways of doing business,” said Leon Wilson, Executive Vice President of Nonprofit Finance Fund. “Based on what we’re seeing in the field, we’ve bolstered our ability to deliver the services and assistance that nonprofits and foundations need now in order to continue delivering on their missions.”

NFF’s rapid-response services are customized to meet the needs of organizations as determined by factors such as size, mission-focus, financial condition, and goals for the future. Some of the “Tough Times” offerings have been created specifically in response to current economic challenges. Others are services that NFF has provided during better times, simply refocused on situations where assumptions have changed or are difficult to predict; downsizing, turnaround or mergers are on the table; and capital financing and restructuring may be desirable options.

NFF Grows Team
The new additions to NFF’s team bring deep expertise and decades of experience helping nonprofits, foundations, and governments navigate mission-critical financial and operational decisions:

· Tom McLaughlin is nationally recognized as an expert in nonprofit financial management and organizational restructuring, and has consulted to nonprofits in over 200 mergers and alliances. McLaughlin has more than 35 years of experience as a nonprofit manager, trade association executive, and management consultant, and most recently served as a nonprofit consulting specialist with national accounting and consulting firm Grant Thornton, LLP.

· Edward Sermier joins NFF from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, where he served as Vice President, Chief Administrative Officer and Director of Program Evaluation. Sermier’s diverse experience with many aspects of nonprofit finance informed his development of NFF’s Program Profitability Model; his career includes leadership roles with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, New York Mayor David Dinkins’ administration, and the New York City Board of Education.

· Stacey Zelbow joins NFF with more than 15 years’ experience in nonprofit management and consulting. Most recently at Grant Thornton, LLP, Zelbow’s expertise includes strategic positioning, organizational assessment and development, and program implementation and evaluation.

Full details on the new and expanded offerings, along with “Tough Times” team leadership bios, can be found at: http://nonprofitfinancefund.org/details.php?autoID=189.

ABOUT NONPROFIT FINANCE FUND
Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF) is a national leader in nonprofit, philanthropic and social enterprise finance. Founded in 1980, NFF (http://www.nonprofitfinancefund.org) provides loans, access to capital and consulting services that build the capacity and the financial health of nonprofits. A leading community development financial institution with over $80 million in assets, NFF has provided over $190 million in loans and access to additional financing via grants, tax credits and capital in support of over $1 billion in projects for thousands of nonprofit clients nationwide. NFF has a staff of more than 75 serving nonprofits nationally from offices in Philadelphia, New York City, Newark, Boston, Detroit, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco.