Free · Certificate included
Nonprofit Policies and Procedures
Write the policies that protect your nonprofit and keep operations consistent.
What you’ll learn
- Identify the core policies every nonprofit needs — and which the IRS asks about
- Tell the difference between a policy and a procedure, and write each well
- Run a policy through its full lifecycle: draft, approve, communicate, review, retire
- Enforce policies consistently and fairly across the whole organization
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- 1
Policy vs. procedure: what each one is for
Nonprofit leaders use the phrase "policies and procedures" as one breath, but they are two different tools.
5 min Quiz Interactive - 2
The core policies every nonprofit needs
You do not need a hundred policies. You need a handful of strong ones that cover governance, money, ethics, and safety. The National Council of Nonprofits and…
7 min Quiz Interactive - 3
What the IRS Form 990 actually asks
Most nonprofits that file the full Form 990 answer a short list of governance questions in Part VI.
6 min Quiz Interactive - 4
Conflict of interest & whistleblower up close
Two of the most important policies protect the organization from its own people — not because nonprofit people are bad, but because good governance assumes that…
6 min Quiz Interactive - 5
How to write and approve a policy
A policy that never gets adopted is just an opinion.
6 min Quiz Interactive - 6
The policy lifecycle: keeping policies alive
Policies are not "set and forget." Laws change, programs change, and people forget.
5 min Quiz Interactive - 7
Enforcing policies fairly and consistently
A policy you enforce for some people but not others is worse than no policy — it becomes evidence of unfair treatment.
4 min Quiz Interactive
Sources & further reading
- National Council of Nonprofits — Good Governance Policies for Nonprofits
- Internal Revenue Service — Exempt Organizations Annual Reporting Requirements — Governance (Form 990, Part VI)
- National Council of Nonprofits — Whistleblower Protections for Nonprofits
- BoardSource — Every Board’s Must-Have Documents
- Propel Nonprofits — Financial Policy Guidelines and Example
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