Category: Leadership
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Have you sharpened your axe lately?
A friend was recently describing to me a challenge he faced as a new board member of a relatively healthy organization, but one that seemed to have a frenetic culture.…
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Invest in professional development
A recent Huffington Post blog article focused on the importance of the nonprofit sector investing in professional development. As a whole, the sector has a poor track record in training…
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Outcomes Schmoutcomes
I am a big believer in nonprofit organizations measuring the outcomes they achieve. It’s an essential tool for any staff/board to know they’re having the impact desired over time. And…
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“I was waiting for . . .” is not a valid excuse
Pet peeve of mine: Using “I was waiting for” as an excuse. Too often somebody who’s not meeting a deadline responds that they’re failing because: “I was waiting for John…
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Hire for things other than just existing skills
One of my pet peeves when talking to those doing hiring for nonprofit organizations is an overemphasis on finding people with the right existing skills. A recent article suggests the…
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A fascinating video about motivation
The question I keep asking myself after repeatedly re-watching this video is: what are the implications for nonprofit organizations? Some implications are fairly straightforward: For example, with very few exceptions,…
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The Five Dysfunctions of a Team
I recently reviewed The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, by Patrick Lencioni. The book is part fable and part logical argument about a series of dysfunctions that Lencioni believes lay…
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Get it done
I sometimes feel like there’s two types of people, those who talk about doing things and those that do them. Talkers tend to talk a good game at first, but…
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Nonprofit leadership traits
In doing their hiring processes, most boards focus on what skills they want their Executive Director to have. In my experience, it’s equally if not more important to identify the…
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Some opening thoughts on leadership
I expect this to be the first of many blog entries on leadership. I’ve been thinking about leadership as I’ve surveyed the landscape of organizations with whom I’ve worked or…