Remaking the Economy: Worker Self-Directed Nonprofits in Practice

What does worker self-management in nonprofits look like—and can it work in practice? In this webinar conversation, a coproduction of NPQ and the Sustainable Economies Law Center, we’re looking at nonprofits that have implemented worker self-management and analyze both the successes and challenges inherent in sharing management authority across the entire staff.

In this webinar, we asked people who have participated in worker self-directed nonprofits to share their experiences. Our expert panelists are:

Sue Bennett is director of operations of Sustainable Economies Law Center, based in Oakland, CA
Yani Burgos is codirector of Movement Sustainability Commons, based in Boston, MA.
Faye Christoforo is a researcher with Nonprofit Democracy Network and codirector of the New England Grassroots Environmental Fund, based in Newmarket, NH.
Jay Monteverde is cofounder and president of Breach Collective, based in Eugene, OR.
Ramiro Murguia is director of events at Post-Landfill Action Network (PLAN) in Philadelphia, PA.

Among the many questions this webinar explores are the following:

What is a worker self-directed nonprofit?
What are the benefits and challenges of a worker governance structure in a nonprofit context?
How do worker self-directed nonprofits help nonprofits advance economic justice?
What design decisions need to be made to make a worker self-directed nonprofit effective? How are course corrections made if the system runs into problems?
How does having a worker self-directed nonprofit affect personnel evaluation and worker access to company information?
How does having a worker self-directed nonprofit affect careers ladders and compensation levels?
How does a worker self-directed nonprofit interact with the Board?
What can other nonprofits learn from worker self-directed nonprofits’ experiences?

Resources:

Rebecca Bauen, “Democratic Management: Lessons from Worker Cooperatives,” NPQ, June 2, 2021.

Faye Christoforo, “Want Democratic Leadership at Your Nonprofit? Here Are Some Dos and Don’ts, May 7, 2024.

Steve Dubb, Nicole Koch, Yarissa Soriano and Anj Talley, “Remaking the Economy: How to Design Democratic Management.” NPQ, April 15, 2022.

Sustainable Economies Law Center, Worker Self-Directed Nonprofits, Oakland, CA: no date.

Nicole Wires, “Making Economic Democracy Work: How to Practice Shared Leadership,” NPQ, November 28, 2023.

Webinar Sponsored by:

About the authors

Steve Dubb

Steve Dubb is senior editor of economic justice at NPQ, where he writes articles (including NPQ’s Economy Remix column), moderates Remaking the Economy webinars, and works to cultivate voices from the field and help them reach a broader audience. Prior to coming to NPQ in 2017, Steve worked with cooperatives and nonprofits for over two decades, including twelve years at The Democracy Collaborative and three years as executive director of NASCO (North American Students of Cooperation). In his work, Steve has authored, co-authored, and edited numerous reports; participated in and facilitated learning cohorts; designed community building strategies; and helped build the field of community wealth building. Steve is the lead author of Building Wealth: The Asset-Based Approach to Solving Social and Economic Problems (Aspen 2005) and coauthor (with Rita Hodges) of The Road Half Traveled: University Engagement at a Crossroads, published by MSU Press in 2012. In 2016, Steve curated and authored Conversations on Community Wealth Building, a collection of interviews of community builders that Steve had conducted over the previous decade.

Sue Bennett

Sue Bennett is director of operations of Sustainable Economies Law Center, based in Oakland, CA

Yani Burgos

Yani Burgos is codirector of Movement Sustainability Commons, based in Boston, MA.

Faye Christoforo

Faye Christoforo (they/she) is a researcher for the Nonprofit Democracy Network and the codirector of the New England Grassroots Environmental Fund. They are a passionate advocate for ethical and empowered nonprofits, and they believe this sector must practice building the world we want to live in.

Jay Monteverde

Jay Monteverde is cofounder and president of Breach Collective, based in Eugene, OR.

Ramiro Murguia

Ramiro Murguia is director of events at Post-Landfill Action Network (PLAN) in Philadelphia, PA.

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