60 Straight-Talking Insights About Nonprofits (16-30)

As I lead up to a rather significant birthday, I wanted to share some of the honest, frank, even blunt insights I’ve gained in all my years as a volunteer, staff and board member in a countless number of nonprofits. Posts, stories, perspectives and especially partnerships are all welcome. The second of four installments:

16.   Regardless of how friendly or acrimonious it may be, the loss of a chief executive is traumatic for everyone involved, including board, donors, and especially staff.

17.   I have never worked at a nonprofit that has had a transition plan in place. Not one.

18.   I have, however, worked at nonprofits where transitions are panicked and tension packed, staff are in tears, supporters are incredulous and missions are kept at standstill.

19.   No one wants to believe they will lose their Executive Director without a great deal of notice. I stand as a witness people are wrong. 

20. HAVING A TRANSITION PLAN IN PLACE IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF EVERY NONPROFIT. FAILING TO HAVE ONE CAN BE CATASTROPHIC.
                 

21.   `“The Buck Stops Here.” Harry Truman dropped two nuclear bombs and never ran a nonprofit.

22.   Nonprofits where everyone reports to a single person and all decisions are made by that individual are rife with disempowerment, bottlenecking, inefficiency and ego. Personality slowly but surely trumps mission.

23.   The #1 responsibility of a chief executive is to empower their staff to become the future leaders of tomorrow. Give your staff the chance to learn, the chance to fail, and the chance to shine.

24.   Acknowledgement is All.

25. A THRIVING NONPROFIT HAS ONE CHIEF EXECUTIVE AND MANY LEADERS

26.  The single most challenging relationship in a nonprofit is the one between the Executive Director and Board President. At its best it is transparent and mutually-supportive, at its worst it is toxic for any organization.  

27.   Boards of Directors often represent the stage of a nonprofit’s lifespan – grassroots boards, governance boards, policy boards, fundraising boards. All bring enormous value to a nonprofit, so long as there is mutual understanding among board and staff what roles the board does and does not play.

28.   “Duty of care,” “Duty of loyalty” and “Duty of obedience” read well, but I’ve yet to meet a board that perceives any of these as their primary responsibilities. Boards have been around since the 1600’s, long before there were thousands of federal, state and local laws regulating nonprofits. As such, boards are in a state of constant flux, reexamination and transformation.

29.   Gray is the enemy of the relationship between boards and staff. If it isn’t clear, it’s a free for all.

30. ANNUAL BOARD PLANNING THAT INCLUDES THE CEO AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS IS A MUST FOR THE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF ANY NONPROFIT. (As Are Term Limits, But More on that Later)

Contact Andrew Stern at astern@inheritance-consulting.com and let’s begin!