What do you benefit most from being a member of NCPC?
During over 45 years in philanthropy, I have constantly expanded my knowledge base by listening to my colleagues and learning from them. I believe the most important benefit of our NCPC membership is developing relationships with my colleagues in our field. It is important for me to continue to learn from others’ good work, observing their best practices and mentoring newer individuals in our field.
NCPC membership also enables us to discover opportunities to share our knowledge and expertise with North County and San Diego nonprofits.
What is your Mission?
The mission of Mirenda & Associates is to empower the philanthropic spirit of nonprofit boards, enabling them to develop visionary, transformational leadership as they build strong, successful nonprofit communities.
What do you offer to our community?
We offer the community a deep passion and wealth of experience and knowledge to transform nonprofit boards from “responsible” boards to “highly functioning” boards. In addition, we advise corporate executives on how to select and properly vet nonprofits they’re interested in supporting or which have invited them to be board members. We believe this body of knowledge strengthens the fabric of our nonprofit community.
During my career, I came to realize many of our clients required extensive counsel in the key areas of board governance and fundraising. I decided we can make a larger systemic impact on an organization if we focus on board development. After combining extensive research and additional training focused on the areas of governance and fundraising with the knowledge I had acquired over more than four decades, I joined a relatively small nationwide cadre of Certified Nonprofit Board Training Consultants.
This is important as it represents a higher, more formal level of board training which enables me to be more effective with my clients. Since then, I have been writing and presenting extensively about board training, articles which are available on my website. I have also done several presentations on various aspects of board enrichment, both in Denver and San Diego.
What is something about your organization/company that might surprise people?
The most memorable project of my career was managing a $180 million campaign to help build the Steven F. Udvar Hazy National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution, located at Dulles International Airport. I was honored to work with many icons in the air and space community who provided significant personal and financial support. That campaign received a $58 million naming gift, the largest gift up until that time, to the entire Smithsonian Institution. That 750,000 sq. ft. facility is a magnificent monument to all those who contributed to the United States’ superiority in flight and space travel.
What was your organization/company’s biggest accomplishment in the past six months – one year?
We are pleased to announce the addition of Andrea M. Mirenda as a Senior Consultant. Andrea brings over 30 years of knowledge, skills, and experience in both the for-profit and nonprofit sectors. A skilled problem solver, Andrea is accomplished at building and implementing systems and structures to ensure long-term success and specializes in fostering empowered communication and building empathetic relationships – critical elements for any successful team, campaign, or collaboration.
Andrea has led organizations through the creation and implementation of diversity policies and practices, from small arts and education nonprofits to USA Dance, a national Recognized Sport Organization of the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee.
Also, we are just closing a year-long engagement with the Mercy Health Foundation of Missouri. We conducted detailed Board Self-Assessment Studies for five of the largest hospital foundations, out of the 15 in their system. We continue to provide them with on-going counsel in implementing the resulting recommendations.
Which event or campaign do you have coming up that you would like to share with our readers?
We are looking forward to sharing our broad experience and knowledge to a variety of nonprofit boards and professional membership organizations that serve individual nonprofits. To that end, we’re pleased to offer a free 30-minute consultation to any organization looking to elevate their board’s effectiveness.
For more information and to learn more about their work, go to www.mirendaassoc.com