It would be a gross understatement to say that the past two years have been extremely difficult for everyone. More than 900,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 with millions more infected; staff shortages are everywhere; remote work is transforming the workplace in every sector of the economy; our children’s education has significantly been disrupted; and, the political divide has reached an all-time high.
Amid all of this, the nonprofit sector remains the glue that keeps the nation together. Put another way, the work that you and your organization are doing is more important than ever. This is true whether your organization is national, regional, statewide or local in scope.
What steps can you take to ensure that 2023 is a strong year for your organization? Here are nine recommendations:
* Re-examine your mission. With so many shifts in client needs, the mission that was carefully crafted decades ago might no longer reflect your current reality. Does your current mission accurately express your purpose? Has anything significantly changed? If so, revise and communicate your updated mission statement to all stakeholders.
* Create an inspirational vision. Your vision statement should let the world know what your organization intends to do to ensure a better future. Unfortunately, few vision statements do this very well. Make sure that your vision statement inspires, motivates, sets standards of excellence, encourages commitment and — most important of all — is measurable.
* Become strategically aligned. Are all of your internal stakeholders — staff, board, volunteers and donors — fully aligned to achieve your strategic vision? Or, are they operating in silos, working hard but without shared purpose? It is crucial to align individual goals with your organization’s overarching goal of achieving your vision. Make sure everyone is rowing in the same direction.
* Tout your accomplishments. What is your nonprofit stock price selling for today? Nonprofit organizations might not have an official stock price listing on the New York Stock Exchange, but your work has value. How well are you communicating your organization’s achievements? If you aren’t sure, ask yourself, your executive team and board members the following questions: What is the value we bring to our community? What is the positive impact we are having on those we serve? What is our public image?
* Collaborate. The idea of going it alone to provide everything your clients need has long been outdated. Funders are interested in supporting causes that leverage the power of collaboration to achieve goals. True collaboration requires collective determination to reach an identical objective by sharing knowledge and building organizational consensus. It also requires competent and secure leadership from both sides who can trust and respect each other.
* Board members as partners. During the past two years, board members across the country have stepped up to help navigate their organizations through exceedingly difficult waters. Most nonprofit board members focus on their role as strategic and business advisors, along with their legal and fiduciary responsibilities. To succeed going forward, however, board members need to mature and operate in partnership with the nonprofit’s chief executive officer. When a board develops a true sense of ownership in collaboration with the CEO, the organization takes a step closer to becoming high performing.
* Transformational competencies. With the baby boomer generation retiring at record levels, there is a need to develop and support new emerging leaders who have the transformational leadership competencies required to lead organizations forward. The sector needs leaders who are visionary thinkers, emotionally intelligent, enterprising spirits, brand builders and collaborators. Are you investing in developing these competencies in your leadership team? If not, now is the time.
* Create a culture of philanthropy. Every nonprofit needs additional financial resources. Move toward a culture of philanthropy that values giving to success and not to distress. The more you, board members and staff promote your organizational success and achievements, the more donors and dollars you will receive.
* Assess and retain your leadership talent. Your team’s leadership talent is your organization’s greatest asset. How are you assessing, identifying and retaining your high-potential employees? There is a strategic plan and a financial plan to guide them forward at most organizations, yet few have plans in place to retain staff at all levels.
Create a leadership program to allow future trailblazers to gain experience from your high performing team members. Do this and you’ll have the human resources to promote from within when a new position of leadership opens. Your organization will benefit from home-grown talent, and morale will never be better.
By reviewing these nine recommendations, your organization will not just survive 2023 but will achieve new levels of success, ensuring the sustainability of your mission for decades to come.
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Dennis C. Miller is founder and chairman of DCM Associates, Inc., specializing in executive search and leadership coaching. His email is [email protected]