Programs for Senior Nonprofit Managers

Nonprofit organizations are essential to our quality of life and, with uncertain resources and shifting needs, outstanding executive leadership is essential to nonprofits’ success. Our leadership programs guide both new and experienced nonprofit leaders on a learning journey through skill-building, peer networking, and the evolution of a personal leadership style. Our unique approach helps nonprofit leaders to achieve both greater organizational success and deeper personal satisfaction. We know it works: participant surveys, funder satisfaction, and two independent evaluations prove it.

Our Approach

We integrate several approaches to leadership development: personal and professional, practical and intellectual. Our programs are customized to meet the needs of both sponsoring funders and participating leaders, but they usually involve these elements:

• 10-16 days of group meetings, over 7-9 months, with a cohort of 10-15 participants
• A self-assessment process using tools including the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
• Practical resources selected from top leadership and management thinkers
• The Clinic: Participants acting as their own consultants on a current problem
• Skill-building sessions on key leadership topics such as: the role of the executive, building the board, moving from management to leadership, managing strategic issues, strategic restructuring, leading and managing people, communicating the message, setting goals and measuring outcomes, and developing a sustainable, lifelong approach to leadership.

Additional Offerings

In addition to the core Leadership Advanced program, we offer several options to further develop personal and organizational capacity including:

• Board Self-Assessment – Evaluate the current board and how it functions and develop a plan to address the board’s challenges
• 360 Feedback and Coaching – Hear from your colleagues, staff and board members, then explore your leadership style with a personal coach.
• Real-Time Strategic Planning Kick-Off Session – Articulate your organizational identity from elements such as scope, market and competitive advantage.

Partnering with Foundations

Foundations play a critical role in helping the nonprofit sector become stronger and more sustainable.  Foundations provide vital resources to grantees that enable them to build their organizational capacity. We partner with foundations to design programs that develop the internal capacity of their grantees. Foundations can draw on our programs and services to help an individual grantee, or they may choose these services as a program for clusters of grantees.

Past Leadership Advanced Programs

Impact Foundation: Leadership Advanced North Dakota, annual cohorts for executive directors and emerging leaders, 2009 – Present

Noyce Foundation: The Fellows Program, leadership development for executive leaders of science centers worldwide, January 2008 – Present

David and Lucile Packard Foundation: Leadership development for executive directors and program managers of homeless services, June 2007 – Present

Hawaii Community Foundation: Promoting Outstanding Nonprofit Organizations (PONO), leadership development for executive directors, June 2003 – Present

Skoll Foundation: Social Entrepreneur Leadership Development Program, learning community for Entrepreneurship Award winners, June 2004 – December 2006

James Irvine Foundation: Leadership development for Collaborative Regional Initiative leaders, September 2002 – December 2004