Planes, Trains, Automobiles… and Leadership

I’ve just returned from a short trip to New York and I wanted to share an amazing adventure with you.

Part of my travel required a flight from Philadelphia to Newburgh, NY.  Everything up to Philly was uneventful.  But when I arrived in Philly, I found out they had cancelled my flight to Newburgh and it was going to probably be 9 am the next morning before I could get on another flight.  I needed to be in a meeting with my new business coach at that time, so I said to the woman in line next to me that we should rent a car and drive.  I didn’t know how far it was, but it couldn’t be that far.  Turns out she worked at a college in that area and knew the drive (about 3 hours she said).  After about a half hour of waiting in that line and getting more agitated, we decided to go for it.  Several other passengers decided to jump in with us and our merry band of 5 struck out to find the car rental counter.

Long story short – I made some wonderful new friends including a preacher, an assistant Athletic Director at a college, and 2 pre-med students.  I got to see part of the country I’d never seen before, and I arrived safe and sound at my destination just a couple of hours later than originally planned.

It took a little leadership on my part to suggest the idea and a little leadership on the part of another to rent the car, but we made it happen.  The big lesson I came away with is that sometimes things don’t work out as planned. But if I keep my eyes on my goal and keep my cool, there are always options for reaching the goal.

I’m going to be sharing more about planning over the next couple of weeks and I think this is the perfect time of year for it.  We’re all still thinking about the year in front of us and how we can make the most of it for our fundraising efforts.

So if you need a little help getting your thoughts together for creating a plan, stay tuned!!

My Favorite Leadership Quotes

I’m a big fan of inspirational quotes.  The good ones make me think.   Here are some of my favorite quotes on leadership.

Shift the emphasis from saying the right things to asking the right questions.  Linda Edgecombe

Not every reader is a leader, but every leader must be a reader.  Harry Truman

If you don’t believe in yourself, you make it challenging for others to believe in you.  Doug Smart

Be the change you want to see in the world.  Ghandi

If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader.  John Quincy Adams

What about you?  Got a favorite quote on leadership?  Click on the comment link and share!

Born Leader?

Today’s post was provided by Sheila Moore, Executive Director for the Center for Nonprofits in Chattanooga, TN.

Born Leaders?

As someone who has made my fair share of mistakes (and done a whole lot of learning and growing!) over these many years since I achieved adulthood, as well as someone who has made her living as a trainer and workshop facilitator, I have come to fervently believe that leaders are not necessarily “born”.  Rather, they are made – honed by experience and practice.

“Transformational” leadership is the concept that if you have the desire and willpower to lead…you can learn to do so, and do so effectively.

It doesn’t mean, however, that leadership skills come naturally to many of us, or that any one leader masters all of the elements of effective leadership:  it takes real work, a little humility, a willingness to grow and learn, and a lot of soul searching.  It is a never ending process of self-examination, education, training, and experience that develops leaders.

Managers are usually put in charge by virtue of their job description or position.  Leaders, on the other hand, can come from anywhere within the organization; power and position do not necessarily make one a leader, they simply make one the boss. 

Warren Bennis, in his book “On Becoming a Leader”, writes “There is a profound difference between management and leadership, and both are important.  To manage means to bring about, to accomplish, to have charge or responsibility for, to conduct.  Leading is influencing, guiding in a direction, course or action.  The distinction is crucial.”  

 In one of my very first jobs, I witnessed firsthand the difference between leadership and management.  I worked for a man, who by virtue of his position was our “boss”.  In truth, he had no real desire to lead, only to manage and control – and he didn’t do either of those very well.  The organization was floundering, and as money grew scarcer, he grew more erratic.  There came a time, in one memorable staff meeting, where he became so angry he actually picked up his stapler from his desk, and heaved it across the room, narrowly missing one of my co-workers!

Ah, the stories we can tell.  We can talk for hours about examples of poor leadership skills displayed by those we have known, or worked for, and some of those stories can be downright entertaining!

But ask yourself, who have you known that you would consider a true leader – one that you would work for or follow again?  What traits or skills did they possess that made them an effective leader?   Make a list of those traits.  Then ask yourself – do I model those behaviors?

The “experts” are predicting a “dearth of leadership” in the nonprofit sector over the coming decade. (http://www.meyerfoundation.org/downloads/ready_to_lead/ReadytoLead2008.pdf).    I would argue that the current economic challenges, as well as the rapid changes in our society, create a need for true leadership in our nonprofit organizations now.  There are, and will continue to be opportunities a-plenty for those that are willing to not just manage – but lead.  The question is, however, not if we need leadership, but what are we doing today to develop not only ourselves, but others, as leaders?

I recently spoke with a President of a large nonprofit, who told me that training and development was a luxury they simply could no longer afford.  I would argue that they can’t afford not to invest in their employees.  With a little creativity, training and development costs can be minimized; but the long term cost to the nonprofit community if it fails to develop effective leadership is another matter.

Think Different

This is an old advertisement, but I think it’s appropriate for our series on leadership.

Leadership Through Delegation – A Matter of Performance & Health

Today’s post is provided by Karla Kurtz, nonprofit consultant.

Are you overwhelmed? Phone calls, emails, grants, meetings, budgets…and that’s just for today!

The solution is delegation, but it’s a dirty word and seen almost as a sign of weakness.  Leaders are putting in tons of overtime, sacrificing family and friends, and putting their own health at risk rather than delegating.  If you’re working 50 hours or more a week on a regular basis, you need to delegate and/or hire more staff.

An internet search quickly yields countless studies on work-related stress and health issues.  I’m no doctor, but do suffer from hypertension, weight gain, sleep apnea, and depression all from being a recovering workaholic and Type-A personality.

Why fear delegation?  There is no one-size-fits-all answer, but two of the most common responses I hear and think are often “code” for some unhealthy choices are:

1. It’s easier to just do it myself.  Translation:  I’m the only one who has this information.
2. This is so important it has to be done a certain way.  Translation:  No one can do it like me or to my satisfaction.

It’s hard, but delegation can be learned and it’s a choice.  What are we losing by not delegating?  Sharing information with your staff and allowing them to complete “higher level” tasks is a professional development opportunity which can pay huge short- and long-term dividends in terms of job satisfaction and performance.  What if you’re out sick, go on vacation, move onto a better position, or retire?  Grooming a temporary or permanent replacement allows you to be away from the office without constant interruptions.

Will it be done exactly the way you would do it?  No and that’s ok.  Give a previous or similar document to work from (if possible) and if something has to be changed, explain why and allow them to do it.  Invest in and trust your staff.  There’s only one you, but remember your staff also brings unique perspectives and skills.  Utilize those to your and the organization’s advantage by allowing them to take on more responsibility and ownership.  So shed some weight in 2010 by delegating tasks.

Karla S. Kurtz, MPA, CFRE – Empowerment Consulting kskurtz@nonprofitempowerment.com

What Should Nonprofit Leaders Expect from the Development Officer?

Today’s post is provided by Lynda Lysakowski, ACFRE, President of Capital Venture.

As a consultant to nonprofits, my blood just boils when I am asked by executive directors or board members, “So, we are thinking about hiring a development officer, how long it will take before this person is raising more money than the salary we pay them?” This question indicates that these leaders really do not understand development or the role of a development officer in their organization.

I recently asked a group of fundraising professionals about their biggest challenge. Contrary to what I had expected, it wasn’t raising money in a challenging economic climate, or finding new donors, or even getting donors to give at higher level. It was “getting the rest of my organization (board, CEO and program staff) to understand what development staff people actually do, and getting them to support development efforts.”

This is a huge area of concern for many organizations. But, think about it, what is usually the last position filled in an emerging nonprofit organization? The program people were there first; after all, if you don’t have program, you don’t need a nonprofit. Then, as the organization grows, an executive director is appointed and a finance director hired. Often a PR or marketing person comes next, and then one day the organization grows to maturity and says it itself, we need more money to expand program, move to a larger facility, hire more program people, or whatever. So, let’s hire a fundraising staff person.

The result? Most of the people in the organization have no idea what “development” actually means. Nonprofit leaders must understand that it is called “development” for a very good reason—it often takes years to develop relationships with major donors. These donors can be a tremendous source of support for the organization once they understand its mission and are ready to become investors in its vision. The organization’s leadership must understand that it needs to invest not just time, but money, in its development office. A good software program, professional development opportunities for the development staff, and an investment in things such as research tools and consulting and training help for the development office can reap huge rewards.

Nonprofit leadership must understand the ethics of fundraising and not expect that they can pay a development officer or a consultant on a commission basis. Furthermore, one of the most critical aspects of engaging a development officer is that this person should not be expected to “raise their salary.” Does any nonprofit ask its CFO to “cut the budget by an amount greater than his or her salary,” or tell program directors that they need to “bring in program fees equal to or more than their salary?” I have never hear anyone expect this from anyone else in the organization, and yet, so often they think in these terms when engaging a development officer. They need to, instead, look at the ROI (Return on Investment) that a professional development officer can bring to the organization.

And, finally, leaders must understand that donors will expect the organization’s leadership to be involved in the fundraising efforts, both with their own financial commitment and in the process of identifying, cultivating, and soliciting donors. The development officer is there to coordinate the effort, create the development plan, and prepare the leaders for success, but leaders must get involved in the process themselves if the organization is to succeed in its fundraising program.

A few tips I’ve found helpful for nonprofit leaders:

• Make sure the development person reports directly to the CEO and is part of the management team.
• The development officer needs to have a good working relationship with the CFO and the CFO must understand the role of the development officer.
• The development officer should be given time at departmental staff meetings to talk about the role of development, how it helps the organization fulfill its mission, and how the rest of the staff can help development efforts.
• CEOs and board chairs must support attendance of development staff at board meetings and assure that the chief development person is the liaison to the development committee of the board.
• Boards and organization leadership should seek guidance from an expert if they are not certain of their role in the fundraising program.

For more tips on how the executive director and board can support development efforts, including a Philanthropic Assessment Form to evaluate our organization’s philanthropic profile, visit www.cvfundraising.com.

Linda Lysakowski, ACFRE

Linda is President/CEO of Capital Venture, a full service consulting firm with offices throughout the United States.  Linda is one of fewer than 100 professionals worldwide to hold the Advanced Certified Fund Raising Executive designation. In her seventeen years as a philanthropic consultant, Linda has managed capital campaigns ranging from $250,000 to over $30 million; helped dozens of nonprofit organizations achieve their development goals, and has trained more than 16,000 professionals in all aspects of development.

Linda is also a prolific writer and Wiley Press has published her books, Recruiting and Training Fundraising Volunteers in 2005, The Development Plan in early 2007. Linda is a contributing author to The Fundraising Feasibility Study—It’s Not About the Money, also published by Wiley in early 2007 and her latest book, The Essential Nonprofit Fundraising Handbook, was published in July 2009 by Career Press. Linda’s first eBook, Everything You Wanted to Know about Capital Campaigns is available on her website and she is currently working on several more books.

Seven Secrets to Great Nonprofit Leadership

Thanks to Pamela Grow for today’s blog post.

1. The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers.

 

 

RALPH NADER

In other words, let your leaders lead.

I worked as part of a five-person development team for a large organization for twelve looooong months. During that time period three development directors came and went, not to mention program staff, membership staff, the CFO and more.

The problem? A CEO with a brilliant knack for finding and hiring talent …coupled with an utter inability to let loose of the reins and let her people do their jobs.

2.   You learn far more from negative leadership than from positive leadership. Because you learn how not to do it. And, therefore, you learn how to do it.

NORMAN SCHWARZKOPF

Learn from bad leadership (see above). But don’t forget the lessons learned by observing a genuinely good leader either.

We’ve all heard the horrible board stories, yet how many “good board” stories have you heard?

I worked with one ED who was nothing short of brilliant at putting together a remarkably cohesive board (and this for a tiny nonprofit agency with a yearly budget of $500,000) of remarkably diverse individuals. Every member of that board brought their own unique gifts to the table, whether it was in terms of connections, education, creative thinking or – let’s be blunt here – plenty of money.

3.   Leadership is an active role; ‘lead’ is a verb. But the leader who tries to do it all is headed for burnout, and in a powerful hurry.

BILL OWENS

Learn how to delegate. Given half a chance, people will rise to meet the level of your expectations of them.

4.        Leadership is unlocking people’s potential to become better.

BILL BRADLEY

Allocate for training.

One of my all time favorite employers mandated that every employee take a minimum of two enrichment courses per year. Thanks to her leadership, staff was always up to date on the latest software and business techniques.

By the same token, in nearly every nonprofit position that I have held, I have paid out of pocket for books and training (for shame!). Next to your donors, your employees are your greatest resource.

5.  No man ever listened himself out of a job.

CALVIN COOLIDGE

Listening involves more than sitting down with your board members and staff.  Real leaders aren’t stuck in hierarchal notions. Real leaders will do occasional receptionist duties to take stock of the public’s perception of them.

6.  If there is anything that a man can do well, I say let him do it. Give him a chance.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN

Respect creativity and give it a chance. It may work … then again, it may not.

I once proposed setting up an eBay account for a nonprofit organization I was working with. Board members and donors donated items and I photographed, listed them, sold them and shipped them. It netted over $8,000, but was, in the long run, a disappointing venture in terms of the time and effort involved.

7.  You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN

Prepare for the future by acknowledging that, like fine wine, outstanding development takes time.

Pamela Grow is a nonprofit consultant and writes “Pamela’s Grantwriting Blog” (www.pamelasgrantwritingblog.com).

Manager or Leader?

There’s a big difference between being a manager and a leader. You manage stuff. You lead people.  Check out the difference in this short video.

If you can’t see the video, come back to www.getfullyfundedblog.com/manager-or-leader to check it out.

How to Spot a Dysfunctional Leader

Here’s a great post from Steve Tobak at The Corner Office.

Does your boss act out and throw tantrums like a spoiled child? Are you afraid to bring up certain hot-button issues in meetings for fear of being humiliated? Does your company’s strategy change weekly? Daily?

These are all signs of a dysfunctional workplace, but you know what? Workplaces don’t become dysfunctional by themselves. People make them that way. More specifically, management people: CEOs, VPs, middle managers, your boss. Know how to spot them?

20 Ways to Spot a Dysfunctional Leader

1. Rants like a raving lunatic.
2. Tells you to do something you don’t want to do, blames you when it goes south.
3. Freaks out over nothing, but when disaster strikes, becomes eerily calm.
4. Says she wants you to take responsibility, then publicly overrides your decisions.
5. Intimidates with aggressive words and posture, backs down like a wimp when confronted by a bigger bully.
6. Spends more time covering his ass than he does sitting on it.
7. Verbally approves new requisitions, later denies doing it, aka selective memory.
8. Laughs uncomfortably at inappropriate times. 
9. Makes hallway decisions that affect your group … when you’re not there.
10. A single data point sends him off in a completely new direction.
11. Gives in when pushed into a corner, then does what she wants anyway, aka passive aggressive.
12. Swoops into meetings and takes over.
13. Revels in the invention of creative curses for just the right occasion. 
14. Gets way, way too personal.
15. Sticks you right in the middle of feuds with his peers.
16. Rides you mercilessly while pet employees can do no wrong.
17. Fanatically obsessive about minutia.
18. Always right: when confronted with mistakes, blames them on someone else.
19. Fiercely protective of dumb pet projects.
20. At the first sign of trouble throws allies under the bus.

 

Thanks Steve.  None of these behaviors is going to help you be successful or help your nonprofit fulfill it’s mission.  This year, let’s all commit to being the best leaders we can be and ditch these dysfunctional habits.

Got a fire in your belly?

This is a guest post written by my friend and colleague Peggy Jarrett, Senior Trainer for the More to Life program.

I awoke the other morning contemplating the ritual of New Year’s resolutions.  It seems to me that often we come up with resolutions for a variety of reasons.   We ‘should’.   It’s what we do at this time of year.  They really are a ‘good idea’ and these are goals that we need to handle anyway, right?  So, I’ll make x, y and z my New Year’s resolutions.  Done!

Except that I don’t think any of the above is what RESOLVE is really all about.  RESOLVE takes passion, commitment, an unshakeable urge, or what I experience as a ‘fire in my belly’.  If the fire isn’t there, forget it.  It’s likely not going to happen.

As professionals in the non-profit sector, a fire in our bellies is essential – not just a good idea – but essential to create results and ensure the health and success of our organizations.  (A strong fire in the belly also does a lot for one’s personal life

We all need help at times to reignite the embers of our fire. Reigniting, remembering, re-visioning, re-creating…these are all the reasons that Sandy and I are bringing Transformative Leadership to a select few executive directors in January – March of this year.  I urge you not to miss it.

Read more about Transformative Leadership at www.getfullyfunded.com/transformative-leadership-training.

3 Critical Mistakes Made by Executive Directors

Having a strong leader at the helm of a nonprofit organization is critical for its long-term success.  Every Executive Director juggles many things including staff, Board, fundraising, and program oversight.  He or she must be focused and totally committed to the organization to successfully manage these multiple priorities.

Here are three critical mistakes that are often made by nonprofit Executive Directors that can totally derail their success as a leader.

1. Lone Ranger Syndrome.  When an Executive Director has the need to control everything, they can quickly find themselves alone.  Often, their thinking is “I can do this faster (or better) myself” and so they attempt to accomplish everything without help. 

Better idea:  A good leader needs to engage others in the work of the organization.  A huge piece of this is to trust that others will get the job done, realizing that it may not be done they way he or she would do it.  Sometimes an Executive Director must give up control in order to get much-needed help.  It’s usually better to get things done and done good enough, rather than done and done perfectly. 

2. Poor Expectations.  This mistake can cripple a relationship with a Board member, staff person, or volunteer.  In small organizations, it’s common for the Executive Director to expect that Board members will jump in to help with fundraising or will know what their responsibilities are.  The truth is that many well-meaning Board members don’t have a clue what they can do to help or what their responsibilities are.

Better idea:  A good leader is clear with others about what their job is and comes to agreement with others about desired outcomes.  Written job descriptions can be key here!  When everyone is clear about what they are supposed to do, there will be much less frustration and more positive outcomes.

3.  Majoring in the Minors.  Too often, leaders focus on things that are unimportant in the grand scheme of things.  With time being an Executive Director’s most precious resource, cannot afford to spend time on things that don’t move the organization forward.

Better idea:  A good leader focuses on the things only he or she can do and delegates the rest.  Executive Directors need to be thinking about the future, watching the bottom line, and making sure all operational activities fulfill the mission, not picking out office supplies or choosing napkin colors.

The first step in correcting any of these mistakes is to notice them.  Are you making any of these errors?  Want to change that?  Check out my upcoming training called Transformative Leadership.  In this intense, experiential training, you’ll learn how to handle these and many other issues that get in your way and cripple your leadership.  Check it out at www.getfullyfunded.com/transformative-leadership-training.

What makes a successful nonprofit organization?

Have you ever looked around at other nonprofit organizations and wondered what makes them so succesful? 

Maybe they have a great Board or maybe they seem to have the most popular event in town.  Whatever it is that looks good to you, there are reasons why some organizations are more successful than others.  In almost every case, it boils down to leadership.

The leaders of an organization, particularly the Executive Director and the Board, set the tone for the nonprofit.  An Executive Director who has vision, passion, and enthusiasm can rally the troops around common goals.  It’s easy for others to get excited about the work to be done when an energetic leader is showing the way.

Similarly, an Executive Director who is pessimistic, unwilling to try new things, and undervalues people will soon find himself with a host of problems include staff turnover, complacent or dysfunctional Board, and a lack of support in the community.

Leadership problems can also look like this:

• You have good ideas, but you can’t seem to get your Board to help with anything.
• Your staff doesn’t get along and you can’t seem to get them to work as a team.
• You’re fundraising efforts always seem to fall short of your goals and you can’t figure out why.

I believe that effective leadership is key to the growth and sustainability of any nonprofit organization.  Over the next week or so, I’m going to share some lessons in leadership for you.  If your organization isn’t the one that everyone looks up to in the community, maybe there are some leadership qualities you need to work on.