Energize Masthead
Energize, Inc. Launches
"Hot Topics To-Go"

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
November 1, 2007
For more information, contact:
Thea Woods, thea@energizeinc.com
Our popular and provocative Volunteer Management Hot Topics are now being podcasted! So whether you are driving in your car, working at your desk, riding a bike, or flying on a plane, you too can have a volunteerism expert accompany you wherever you go.

Energize, Inc. empowers leaders of volunteers worldwide through relevant, innovative resources in volunteer management. One of the most-visited areas of our internationally-recognized Web site, www.energizeinc.com, are the Hot Topic essays our President, Susan J. Ellis, has been writing monthly for over a decade.  Because Energize is noted for demonstrating how technology can assist volunteerism practitioners, we simply had to begin podcasting.

Where can you find these free podcasts produced by Energize, Inc.? You have several simple options -- and you don't even have to own an iPod!

  • Listen on your computer:  You can go to Energize's homepage, click on the "Hot Topics" column on the left, and then click "Hear the audio version." The default audio player on your computer will immediately upload the file for your listening pleasure and play the sound via your system's speakers or a headset. It can't get any simpler than that!

  • For podcast junkies:  You can subscribe to the podcast by searching podcast sites under "volunteer management."  We're already on iTunes.com, podcastalley.com, blubrry.com, podcastdirectory.com and we're adding additional listings as well.  From any of these sites you can download all our available podcasts in one swoop. You will also automatically receive all future podcasts of the Hot Topics at the beginning of each month from that point on.

  • Add our feed to your podcatcher:  For you techno-savvy folks (or not-so-techno-savvy folks as well -- we don't discriminate), feel free to add our RSS feed -- http://energizeinc.com/podcast-hot-topic/energize-hot-topic.rss -- to  your favorite "podcatcher" and instantly download all of the Hot Topics into the format of your choice and keep getting them on the first of every month.

Responses to the Hot Topics are always encouraged.  After listening to the audio, you can add your thoughts by posting them to our Web site or by sending an e-mail to Webmaster@energizeinc.com.

Listen Now to the November 2007 Hot Topic:

"Boards of Directors: Governing at a Distance?"
By carefully separating the nonprofit board's role in "governance" from the paid staff's role in "management," have we distanced volunteer board members from first-hand understanding of the organizations they lead? It's a mystery how anyone can determine the best policies for an agency without ever having seen the work being done. Susan describes some warning signs that board volunteers are becoming isolated, recommends simple ways to remedy the situation, and poses strategic questions to consider -- whether for the board of a large institution, a grassroots organization, or an all-volunteer membership association.