Principles and Practices

for Nonprofit Excellence

Advice for Users

The Principles and Practices for Nonprofit Excellence are meant to educate nonprofit board members, managers, volunteers and staff about the fundamental roles and responsibilities of nonprofit organizations. If broadly adopted, MCN believes they will strengthen both individual nonprofits and the sector as a whole. They are not intended for use by funders or by government to evaluate organizations nor are they intended as a substitute for the wisdom of directors or trustees of individual organizations.

The Minnesota Council of Nonprofits is very sensitive to the large amount of sometimes contradictory advice directed at nonprofits. MCN expects that the Principles and Practices will be useful to virtually every nonprofit organization as they form a set of reference tools that can be adapted to meet particular needs and circumstances.

The creativity and diversity of the nonprofit sector and the significant variations in local conditions means that some of the practices may not easily fit every organization and will necessarily vary in application. In adapting and adopting the Principles and Practices, each organization will face dozens of specific choices about how to accomplish its mission and structure its work, requiring extensive modification of the basic nonprofit structure by board members and managers. Nevertheless, the nature of nonprofit activity requires that organizations fully commit to public accountability and devote the time and attention necessary to be transparent and responsive to the community.

MCN welcomes your feedback. Please let us know how you applied the Principles and Practices for Nonprofit Excellence in your organization. E-mail MCN at info@mncn.org. 

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Principles and Practices

Click on the links below to jump to the different sections of The Principles and Practices for Nonprofit Excellence.

• Introduction
• The Principles
• Role in Society

• Governance

• Planning

• Transparency and Accountability

• Fundraising

• Financial Management

• Human Resources

• Civic Engagement and Public Policy

• Strategic Alliances
• Evaluation
• Advice for Users
• The Origins of the Principles and Practices

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Principles and Practices for Nonprofit Excellence