Doing Good Well
What does (and does not) make sense in the nonprofit world

“Book of the month”

Book Review By Fundraising Institute Australia (FIA), Oct 2008

Willie Cheng presents a fresh perspective on nonprofits. For the last four years, Willie Cheng has been sharing his take on the paradigms of “doing good” in various publications. With the international nonprofit scene moving from an era of “Just Doing Good” to one of “Doing Good Well,” he has compiled and adapted these writings into this book.

Doing Good Well covers 20 topics in the areas of nonprofit structure, nonprofit management, giving and social innovation. Cheng challenges you with uncommon thinking on these nonprofit concepts and provides a different twist to what one might regard as straightforward notions such as mission, staff compensation, governance and corporate social responsibility. And it surprises and intrigues even as it seeks to explain charity-specific issues such as charitableness, bridging the rich/poor divide, informed giving and social entrepreneurship.

Doing Good Well is a strategic review of not just the status quo but also the enormous potential in the nonprofit world. The theme of the book is change. Inasmuch as charities are about changing society for the better, the book sets the stage for those inside and outside the nonprofit sector to start asking the questions that will help the sector itself change for the better.

 

About Fundraising Institute Australia (FIA)
The FIA has seven chapters working locally and nationally in Australia to further the potential of fundraising professionals and advocates on their behalf.