Researchers have uncovered a key component of organizational agility, and it's not what you might expect. A study by Elaine Pulakos and Rob Kaiser published in Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research (2019) reveals stability as an essential part of agility. This finding seems counterintuitive—isn't agility all about change? Yes, [...]
The nonprofit executive director's time and energy are precious commodities, particularly in small organizations where a single individual is often the director of HR, IT, finance, and, well...everything. It's easy to see how performance evaluations (not to speak of nonprofit performance management) can feel like another large spoonful on an [...]
Teamwork is all the rage right now. It's often touted as an organizational value, a key to productivity, and a criterion used to hire, reward, and promote. But there's an unpleasant and unproductive flipside to collaboration that deserves discussion. In short, too much teamwork might be burning out your best [...]
Organizational agility has been a hot success topic for a few years, and it’s more relevant now than ever. As we face COVID-19, a raging global pandemic, many organizations have had to figure out how to pivot to sustain and thrive while business is not as usual. Agility is an [...]
Starting a nonprofit is very similar to starting a small business. It requires you to accurately and specifically define your mission, obtain startup fees, and jump headfirst into a brand new industry. Now that you’ve gotten your start, you’re probably wondering what the next step is. How can you really [...]
Are you trapped on the small-dollar spin-cycle, spending all your time on fundraising activities that can’t fully-fund your organization and help you grow? If you’re going to get out of it, you need to prioritize the fundraising activities that give you the highest ROI. That’s right, I’m talking about major [...]
Join Dr. Adrian Sargeant, Director of the Institute for Sustainable Philanthropy, and Barbara O’Reilly, CFRE, Principal of Windmill Hill Consulting, as they talk about a global research study the Institute recently completed that is the first of its kind to look at how development planning contributes to fundraising results. Full [...]
Heather Burright will discuss the unique benefits and challenges of a remote workforce and discuss how we as employers can continue to develop their capabilities. Full Transcript: Steven: All right. Heather, I got 1:00 Eastern. Is it okay if I go ahead and get this party started? Heather: Yeah, let's [...]
In a recent article about ‘how to juggle too many nonprofits balls’ and still keep your donors close, I talked about the need to lead with intention. I think it’s always good to be intentional. About everything. It sounds easy enough. But, in practice, it’s not so simple. It takes [...]
Times are tough. Full stop. There’s something about nonprofits and crisis, right? But right now it’s more, more, more. It’s exhausting. So… what to do? I happened to listen to a ‘Tough Times, Tougher Nonprofits’ webinar with nonprofit leadership guru Joan Garry last week, and was inspired to write this [...]
If you've been lucky enough to work with a strong leader during times of crisis, you know the power they have to show you how to conquer the havoc that crisis is creating. These nonprofit leaders show you possibilities, outline roadmaps on how to progress, and give you hope. Recently, Gail [...]
One of the best fundraisers I have ever met was let go after 10 years of loyal service and blockbuster success doubling fundraising. (And yes, she is available if you want to see her bio or email her.) This fundraiser is so talented, successful, and brilliant she is written about [...]