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Board of Directors

Featured Posts

How Board Members Can Stop Nonprofit Leader Burnout

How Board Members Can Stop Nonprofit Leader Burnout

September 9, 2019 By Nell Edgington

This summer, after much convincing, one of my clients (who was close to burnout) reluctantly took a long weekend off. She said it felt amazing. But she also felt guilty. It is insane that three very short days away felt somehow wrong to this beleaguered nonprofit leader. But, her plight, nonprofit leader burnout, is so […]

What Powerful Connections is Your Nonprofit Missing?

What Powerful Connections is Your Nonprofit Missing?

February 12, 2019 By Nell Edgington

When I talk to a nonprofit leader for the first time I will often see opportunities for her to make powerful and transformative connections for her nonprofit — to influencers, social change networks, organizations, trends, advocates, and/or money — which she just doesn’t see. Let me give you an example. I was talking to a […]

Let’s Stop Undervaluing Our Nonprofit Leaders

Let’s Stop Undervaluing Our Nonprofit Leaders

September 12, 2018 By Nell Edgington

There is a fairly ubiquitous notion about the nonprofit sector. We as a society often believe (either consciously or subconsciously) that nonprofit leaders and their work are less valuable. Nonprofit leaders have been told for so long that they must scrape by without the amount of funding, people, or attention that they truly require. But […]

The Danger of the Nonprofit Savior Complex

The Danger of the Nonprofit Savior Complex

February 28, 2018 By Nell Edgington

You know the Nonprofit Savior Complex, I know you do. It’s when a nonprofit leader begins to believe that she (and only she) cares enough, knows enough, or is enough to fix the massive problem she cares so deeply about. The positive side to the Savior Complex is it compels people who see an injustice […]

The Right Questions to Ask A Potential Board Member

The Right Questions to Ask A Potential Board Member

August 24, 2017 By Nell Edgington

Recently, fundraising maven Kay Sprinkel Grace wrote a post on the GuideStar blog outlining four questions to ask potential board members when interviewing them for board positions. While I heartily agree with her that nonprofit leaders should institute and follow a rigorous due diligence process in recruiting new board members (rather than just shoving anyone […]

Nonprofit Leaders Have the Power to Create Capacity Funding

Nonprofit Leaders Have the Power to Create Capacity Funding

October 13, 2016 By Nell Edgington

I was in a meeting with a group of nonprofit leaders the other day, and one of them voiced an often-heard complaint: “There just aren’t many foundations funding nonprofit capacity building.” I was instantly reminded of my mother’s admonishment when I would come home from school with complaints about a classroom rule or a frustrating teacher. She would say, “Well, […]

7 Questions To Guide Your Nonprofit Strategy

7 Questions To Guide Your Nonprofit Strategy

February 11, 2015 By Nell Edgington

I’ve been leading several strategic planning efforts lately, and I am always amazed at the nonprofit sector’s general fear (borderline hatred) of strategic planning. I get it, strategic planning has traditionally been done so badly that many have just given up on the idea altogether. But that’s a mistake. Without a long-term strategy for what your […]

How Effective Is Your Nonprofit Leader?

April 13, 2017 By Nell Edgington Leave a Comment

In an ideal world, one of the things a nonprofit board of directors does is annually evaluate the performance of the executive director. But let’s be honest, how often does that actually happen? I once had an executive director so desperate for feedback about her job performance from a board who refused to evaluate her that she hired me to […]

Nonprofit Leaders Have More Power Than They Think

February 16, 2017 By Nell Edgington 2 Comments

A few weeks ago I wrote a post on a controversial topic, “How to Remove a Troublesome Board Member.” As I wrote in the post, Of the many taboos in the nonprofit sector, the taboo against asking bad board members to resign is one of the most destructive. Instead of encouraging ineffective or meddling board […]

How to Remove a Troublesome Nonprofit Board Member

January 26, 2017 By Nell Edgington 2 Comments

One thing that most nonprofit leaders have in common is that they often have at least one (or more than one) challenging board member. You know — the one who doesn’t show up for board meetings, or doesn’t do what she says she’ll do, or never makes a contribution, or derails meetings with his own agenda. […]

How Open to Change Is Your Nonprofit, Really?

August 23, 2016 By Nell Edgington 1 Comment

Because I talk about change in the nonprofit sector a lot, I sometimes get inquiries from nonprofit leaders who think they want change at their organization, but actually don’t. A nonprofit leader might be excited by the idea of dramatically improved fundraising results, or a board who is engaged and invested in the work, or funders who want to step […]

Nonprofit Leaders, You Are Not Alone

August 18, 2016 By Nell Edgington Leave a Comment

One of my favorite parts of my job is the time I spend working one-on-one to coach nonprofit leaders. One of my clients jokingly refers to our coaching sessions as “nonprofit therapy.” While we certainly don’t delve into psychology when we meet, it is, I think often cathartic for nonprofit leaders to have an impartial third party […]

Is Your Frustrating Board a Symptom of a Larger Problem?

June 7, 2016 By Nell Edgington Leave a Comment

One of the biggest complaints I hear from nonprofit leaders is that their board is not working well enough for them — most often around fundraising. From board members who are largely in name only, to others who refuse to fundraise, to those who meddle or micromanage, to those who don’t understand the organization or its programs, […]

Building Better Nonprofits: A Podcast

April 12, 2016 By Nell Edgington Leave a Comment

Last month I was asked by Ted Bilich, CEO of Risk Alternatives — a Washington, DC firm helping nonprofits manage their organizational and financial risks —  to participate in a podcast. This is part of their ongoing podcast series “About Risk” which talks to thought leaders about risk management and process improvement for nonprofits, small businesses, and […]

5 Benefits of a Nonprofit Theory of Change [Slideshare]

March 1, 2016 By Nell Edgington Leave a Comment

I was speaking to a group of nonprofit leaders last month about creating a nonprofit value proposition — how to articulate the value their nonprofit creates — and it was exciting to see the lightbulb go on around the room. Nonprofit leaders are so passionate about the work they do — it is so obvious to them […]

The Debate: Should Boards Raise 10% of a Nonprofit’s Budget?

January 28, 2016 By Nell Edgington 1 Comment

It seems I raised controversy with my recent post, “Is Your Nonprofit Board Avoiding Their Money Role?”. The hot button issue, not surprisingly, was my assertion that boards should be charged with raising 10% of a nonprofit’s budget. As I put it: I know it’s heresy, but I believe that a board should be charged with raising […]

Is Your Nonprofit Board Avoiding Their Money Role?

January 12, 2016 By Nell Edgington 8 Comments

I was speaking to a group of nonprofit leaders in Pittsburgh last month about how to Move From Fundraising to Financing and there were some parts of the presentation that raised eyebrows and (sometimes) controversy. And it usually happened around the topic of the nonprofit board. I strongly believe that the board of directors is a nonprofit’s most […]

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Recent Posts

A little change image from Matt Artz

Move From Nonprofit Fundraising to Social Change Financing

Children hugging each other

Make Money Your Nonprofit’s New Best Friend

Hand up in the sun

What Does Your Nonprofit Really Want?

Money

How to Move Your Nonprofit From Scarcity to Abundance

Fear is not a nonprofit's friend

Fear is Not Your Nonprofit’s Friend

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My new book“Reinventing Social Change” is coming Feb 2021.

Sign up for book updates, sneak previews, and Download my 5 Step Guide for Moving from Scarcity to Abundance

A little change image from Matt Artz

Move From Nonprofit Fundraising to Social Change Financing

January 14, 2021

Children hugging each other

Make Money Your Nonprofit’s New Best Friend

January 8, 2021

Hand up in the sun

What Does Your Nonprofit Really Want?

December 10, 2020

Money

How to Move Your Nonprofit From Scarcity to Abundance

December 4, 2020

Fear is not a nonprofit's friend

Fear is Not Your Nonprofit’s Friend

November 12, 2020

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