Want a Stronger Nonprofit? Start on the Inside

by Laura Bradley Davis, Winter/Spring 2020

When I meet with nonprofits seeking strategic guidance, I typically hear about two chief concerns: fundraising and visibility. The thinking goes, if we just had more money or got the attention we deserve, all would be right in the world. While there’s no question that great fundraising and PR fuel good work, they’re not drivers of organizational effectiveness, nor are they the root cause of instability.

The key to building a stronger nonprofit lies in asking and answering hard questions about your relevance and impact (aka, your mission), articulating a clear strategy, and ensuring your capacity is aligned with your goals. A good strategic plan is essential. Investing in capacity, however, is rarely seen as a commensurate priority. When nonprofits do think about building capacity, it’s usually in a specialized area, like updating technology, or introducing a new system or process.

I would argue that the most critical aspect of capacity-building is one that’s often overlooked: human capital development.

In the last few years, LBD Consulting has continued to work with mission-driven organizations on strategy, communications, and audience engagement while bringing greater focus to developing every nonprofit’s most critical resource: its people.

With the need to raise funds constantly looming, most nonprofits focus on survival, working heroically to sustain programs, donors, and reputation. This typically means little or no attention goes toward developing the leaders, managers, and staff who keep the place running.

Too often, nonprofits trade upon the passion that initially attracts people to the work and fail to invest in their managerial skills, their ability to work well as part of a team, or their skill engaging with Trustees. Organizations also tend to recruit for a specialized skill or knowledge set and then promote people to managerial roles without providing training or mentorship. The result? Burn-out, disengagement, and high turn-over. While it may come more naturally to some people than others, effective leadership and management are not intuitive; these skills take time and deliberate effort to develop and execute well.

After working with many high-I.Q., high-skill leaders and teams that have chronic difficulty articulating and aligning around a clear, strategic vision or sustaining a healthy culture, I’ve seen firsthand that it’s the “soft skills” that make the biggest difference.

In response, I’ve expanded my work with nonprofit leaders and teams to focus on leadership development and organizational effectiveness—and in the process, I’ve unearthed a true passion. Currently, my work encompasses everything from strategic consulting, leadership development, and management training, to group and individual work focused on enhancing communication, empathy, and trust. I have seen firsthand that investing in people and teams improves their productivity and their ability to lead—whether leading themselves, leading others, or leading projects through to fruition.

It takes time to build a culture that is healthy, connected, and resilient; one where hard conversations are welcomed, people are engaged, and accountability and honest feedback are the norm. Yet the benefits are countless. Rather than managing chronic attrition or battling sagging morale, why not invest in developing your leaders and aligning teams for lasting returns that resonate from the inside out? In my experience, no strategic planning process, branding exercise, or fundraising campaign will overcome internal dysfunction. The greatest reputation building any organization can do is from the inside out.

Contact me to learn more about the services and programs we can design for you.

Timeless Tips for Greater Impact

by Laura Bradley Davis, Spring 2019

1. Before You Plan…Assess
I’m often contacted by nonprofits eager to plan for the future, but unrealistic timelines, board pressures, or other imperatives compromise their willingness to make time for a thoughtful assessment to first understand where their organization is and how they got there. Before jumping into strategic (or communications) planning, it is vital to do research, talk to stakeholders, and test long-held assumptions about efficacy, reputation, staff capacity and morale, and the changing operating environment. This step is critical, not only to build internal understanding and buy-in, but also to identify knowledge or resource gaps and determine strategic priorities. In some cases, a little R&D may show that what’s really needed is an updated staffing plan, a facilities plan, management training or other capacity building before – or in conjunction with – a strategic planning process.

2. Brands Are Made From the Inside Out
My professional first love, and central to all LBD Consulting projects, is strategic communications. I believe everything an organization does—from developing programs, to hiring and managing staff, to fundraising and contacting stakeholders—is a form of communication, and doing it effectively, internally and externally, is vital to success. Woe to the organization that views communications as the purview of the marketing team or sees their brand as the sum of their logo, website or social media campaign. Worse still is the persistent habit of devising content, programs, or strategies among a closed circle of “experts” and later handing it off to marketing and development colleagues to get the word out and the constituents engaged. Integrated planning and effective internal communications on the front end are vital in today’s 24-7, multi-platform, two-way media environment. When a client comes to me thinking they have a “PR issue,” more often than not, what’s required is a closer examination of their processes, programs, and audiences (see the importance of evaluation above).

3. Great Presenters Aren’t Necessarily Born That Way
While some people are naturally gifted orators, great presenters are not necessarily born with it—they can be made. Having worked with dozens of nonprofits, large and small, I am struck by how often organizations fall short when it comes to the professional development of their staff in this regard. Investing in the communication and public speaking skills of your staff—from senior leadership to emerging managers—can be transformative. Whether a staffer is preparing for an important presentation or media interview, or simply in need of some polish to inspire a team or engage with donors, a few hours of one-on-one coaching can be an enormously helpful towards building skills, understanding audiences and ensuring a seamless, high-impact delivery.