Harry Freedman has an extraordinary 40+ year career of producing and evaluating successful special events. During this time, Freedman was the driving force behind raising an estimated $20 million in the more than 250 big events he produced. There are few people on this planet with as much special event experience and expertise.

Freedman, who is the author of the special events resource guide Black Tie Optional and the founder of Strategic Fundraising Initiatives, shared his insights for creating profitable and fun events.

Our conversation included

•  Tips for small organizations who want to produce a large events
• The three most important considerations for planning an event
• Common mistakes that organizations make with regard to budget, staffing/volunteers, and sponsors/underwriters
• Alternatives to doing a traditional special event.

Links:

• Strategic Fundraising Initiatives: www.therightevent.org
• Black Tie Optional (book by Harry A. Freedman):
• Harry A. Freedman’s Contact Information
  • Email: haf4biz@aol.com
  • Phone: 215-837-3007
• Event Checklist: http://www.therightevent.org/ChronicleEventChecklist-07-16-2015.pdf
• Slide Presentation by Harry A. Freedman, Special Events During These Difficult Times:

Article of the Week Denise Spivak
For profit executive compensation can be controversial, but it’s significantly more controversial in the nonprofit sector. For this reason, we discussed Joan Garry’s article “Is It Okay for Nonprofit Leaders to Make Big Salaries”. We discussed “salary angst”, executive director contracts, compensation, and the “culture of can’t”, as well as ways that small nonprofits can address each of these.

Links:
Is It Okay For Nonprofit Leaders to Make Big Salaries by Joan Garry