Executive Issues

The first step in recruiting leadership council members is to clearly define what it is you are expecting of them, both in terms of time commitment and ultimate goals. Remember that anyone you approach is going to be, in all likelihood, a busy person, and people have their own time obligations...

Just as there are different types of leadership councils, there are key moments in your growth when a leadership council can help your nonprofit. Consider these four big moments...

Finding a powerful name and defining the purpose should be top on your list of tasks as you start and develop your leadership council. Here’s three reasons why: you want the members and the public to take notice; you want to convey energy and vision; and you want to differentiate it from the board of directors...

A leadership council is a group of individuals outside of your board who fulfill a number of special functions for your agency. Unlike your board members who assume a governance responsibility, the council is a non-governance group...

In this webinar, Nathan Safran and Tim Sarrantonio will share and discuss key findings from the 2019 Nonprofit Leadership Impact Study.

A successful nonprofit merger looks a lot like a successful marriage. Stick with me for a minute here. In both instances, there is an initial "getting-to-know-you" period. You’re both trying to determine if you’re a good fit. After you both agree there’s mutual chemistry, you move into the dating phase, sharing more information and growing in understanding of each other...

Years ago, when we were crafting our firm’s mission statement, there was a lot of discussion over one word: respect. Our mission statement says that we “partner with respected nonprofit organizations.” Unfortunately, organizations sometimes stray, and honesty and integrity are compromised...

In the nonprofit world, every organization needs one thing in order to survive: a strong nonprofit leadership team. The sector is becoming more and more competitive by the day—just look at the numbers. We push out this statistic a lot, and that’s because we want to educate the sector on what they’re up against...

Earlier this year, we released our very first research study focused on nonprofit leadership, the “2018 Nonprofit Leadership Impact Study.” In it, we looked into the challenges facing nonprofit leadership teams and how they can address those challenges...

The average chief development officer moves on after 12 to 18 months in the role. This nonprofit leadership “churn” can be enormously detrimental to a nonprofit’s ability to raise funds and achieve its mission. Nonprofits need continuity and consistency in order to keep staff motivated, engage stakeholders and represent the organization to their key constituencies...