If what we measure matters, then standard economic measures leave out a whole lot. In response, communities, nations, and international bodies have developed well-being indicators that include community-identified social and environmental metrics. Done well, these indices provide valuable data that highlight nonprofits’ value and help us improve our overall quality of life.
All CEOs, if they claim any interest in organizational sustainability and stewardship of mission, should spend a good part of their time developing a deep bench that will both challenge and support them.
Do you lean heavily on pity and empathy in your fundraising without paying attention to the embedded messages being sent? Maybe you too can win an award for poverty porn!
When asked about the CEO’s salary, which appears to be roughly three times a comparable position brings in, a board member responded that such things were not his concern. The IRS, of course, thinks otherwise.
The Walton and Ford foundations have paired up to invest in diversity for museum leadership.
Corporations have become more activist over the past year, and in this case, they take on the president directly.
Last week, the Supreme Court let stand a Ninth Circuit California federal appellate court decision upholding the rights of American Indian nations to water aquifers under their land. The decision is likely to influence water management throughout western US states.
Founders are the very soul of this sector. They are people who envision a change vividly enough to place so much at risk—relationships, reputation and time—on a personal level to make a thing happen. They gather people of common cause, and attract financing, and risk being laughed out of whatever rooms they are in. But be careful, because all of that leadership is likely to be later diagnosed as “founder’s syndrome,” with the end result of “simplifying, exaggerating and blaming.” This article by Elizabeth Schmidt concedes that though some of the observable traits of founder-led organizations may be real, these same organizations may also have strengths that get overlooked in a mad attempt to replicate a norm.
When is it time to plan for succession? Certainly before a crisis forces your hand. The negotiated equilibrium among artistic directors, managing directors, and boards must be reset. The current lawsuit against the Geffen Playhouse’s artistic director in Los Angeles points to a broader arts sector need to prepare for the next generation.
As the recent tax bill provision for universities with large endowments illustrates, the tax benefits a nonprofit receives can be taken away. Nonprofit hospitals, which have their own challenges, would do well to pay attention.
The Supreme Court ruled to allow President Trump’s travel ban to go into effect while the ban‘s final fate is debated.
Former Washington DC Mayor Anthony Williams suggests one way to have a more socially conscious philanthropy is for elected city officials to take change and strategically guide foundation largesse. Is this a good idea, or an appallingly bad one?