Managing and Leading Nonprofit Organizations

Practical strategies for ensuring leadership success within nonprofit organizations

In Managing and Leading Nonprofit Organizations: A Framework For Success, veteran senior leader and CEO Paul L. Dann, PhD, draws on over 30 years of developing and advancing nonprofits to walk you through practical strategies that support success as a nonprofit leader. The book is filled with universally applicable examples of how to implement its leadership techniques.

Leaders working in a variety of sectors will benefit from the author’s careful balance of theory and practice. In the book, they’ll also find:

• How to choose a leadership style that suits your personality, the people you work with, and your organization
• How to engage in the co-creation of leadership through generative leadership practice, including the development of an organizational philosophy, practice, and structure
• How to manage employee performance and engagement and how to choose successful management systems to leverage success

Ideal for practicing and aspiring nonprofit organization managers, board members, and directors, Managing and Leading Nonprofit Organizations: A Framework For Success is an indispensable, one-stop resource for the development and deployment of leadership skills in challenging as well as complex nonprofit environments.

Chapter 1 Introduction and Purpose of This Book 1

Chapter 2 Leadership as Practice 9

First Practice Perspective: Being Antigravitational 11

Second Practice Perspective: The Long View 12

Third Practice Perspective: It’s the Journey, Not the Destination 13

Fourth Practice Perspective: Leverage Serendipity 14

Fifth Practice Perspective: Use a Compass, Not a Road Map 15

Sixth Practice Perspective: Awareness 16

Seventh Practice Perspective: Address Inner Pressures 18

Eighth Practice Perspective: Hero Leadership versus Leading Heroes 19

Strategies for Developing Leadership Practice 20
Opportunity and Engagement 21
Become an Advocate for Leadership Development Practice 23
Find a Mentor 25
Sharpen Your Saw 26

Chapter 3 Choosing a Leadership Style 29

Transactional Leadership 30

Transformational Leadership 31

Charismatic Leadership 32

Quiet Leadership 32

Situational Leadership 33

Servant Leadership 34
Listening 34
Empathy 35
Healing 36
Awareness 37
Persuasion 38
Conceptualization 39
Foresight 39
Stewardship 40
Commitment to Growth 40
Commitment to Building Strong Community 41

Emergent Thought in Leadership Practice 43

A Classic Frame 45

Chapter 4 Creating Positive Organizational Culture 53

A Well- Kept Secret 53

Understanding Organizational Culture 56

The Role of Mission, Values, and Vision 59
The Power of Norms 63

Chapter 5 Leadership Development in Action: The Generative Leadership Advantage 79

Core Elements of Generative Leadership Practice 82
Expectations 83
Communication and Feedback 84
Leadership Attributes 85
Trust 86
Risk-Taking 88
Opportunity 89
Related Subthemes 90
Having a Voice 91
Commitment 92
Perceived Need to Act 92
Organizational Philosophy and Practice 93
Role Modeling 93
Shared Beliefs and Values 94
Structure 94

Chapter 6 Performance Management and Employee Engagement 101

Employee Engagement 102

Performance Management 105

Supervision 108

Summing It All Up 110

Chapter 7 Synergy and Management Systems 113

Core Principles for Effective Systems 115
Mission Centered 115
Aligned with the Vision of the Organization 115
Support the Key Values and Beliefs 116
Maintaining Both Efficacy and Efficiency 117
Building the “We” 118
Meaning Making 119

Specific Systems 121
System 1: Communication Practices 122
System 2: Meetings 126
System 3: Continuous Quality Improvement Practices 129
System 4: Professional Development 132
System 5: Retreats and Events 134
System 6: Financial Management Practices 136

Chapter 8 Effective Change Management 141

Types of Change 142

Five Core Elements Impacting Change 145
Models for Pursuing Organizational Change 146
Resistance to Change 149

Strategic Planning 153
Step 1: The Gathering 154
Step 2: Refining 156
Step 3: The Plan 157
Step 4: Integrating 158

Chapter 9 Effectively Managing Conflict 161

Communication and Conflict 163

Core Values, Culture, and Conflict 164

Leadership and Conflict 166

Chapter 10 Leadership Strategies for Effective Teams 171

Self-Reflection: Your Supervisory Style 172

Building Awareness at the Team and Individual Levels 174

Understand Parallel Process 178

Get the Right People in the Right Place 179

Allow for Ownership 180

Support in the Right Amount at the Right Time 181

The Right Tools and Training 182

Build the Team’s Culture 184

Celebrate and Recognize the Right People 188

Chapter 11 Strategic Alliances 191

Types of Strategic Alliances 192
Associations 192
Interagency Collaboration 194
Networks 196
Mergers 197
Acquisitions 198

Key Points 199
Mission and Vision Alignment 199
Avoiding Mission Drift 200
Culture 201
Short-Term Gain, Long-Term Pain 202
Staying Ahead of the Curve 202

Chapter 12 From Theory to Practice: Bringing It All Together 205
References 219
Appendix: Tools to Help Build Leadership Practice 225

Mindfulness Exercises 225
Mindful Breathing 225
Mindful Observation 226
Mindful Awareness 226
Mindful Listening 226
Mindful Appreciation 227

Leadership Practice Perspective Assessment Tool 228

Servant Leadership Assessment Tool 230

Generative Leadership® Questionnaire 232

Generative Leadership Questionnaire Scoring Sheet 238
Score Interpretation 238

Performance Management Assessment 242

System Assessment Tool 244

Conflict Management Strategies Tool 245

Johari Window Team Assessment Tool 248
About the Author 251
Index 253

Paul L. Dann, PhD, is Executive Director of NFI North, a nonprofit mental health and human services agency providing care to children, youth, families, and adults throughout New Hampshire and Maine. He is a faculty member in the Carsey School of Public Policy at the University of New Hampshire.

Filled with practical, applicable strategies for successfully leading nonprofit organizations, Managing and Leading Nonprofit Organizations: A Framework For Success is a one-stop resource for nonprofit board members, managers, founders, employees, and other leaders seeking to take their nonprofit to the next level.

The book reveals the power of thoughtfully articulated leadership practice at the individual, team, and organizational level. It allows the reader to develop and refine their ability to lead others in the nonprofit and public context, using practical strategies, universally applicable examples, and useful leadership tools. It perfectly balances simple and straightforward techniques that can be immediately applied to any organizational environment with more complex and nuanced material for more experienced practitioners.

Managing and Leading Nonprofit Organizations explores a variety of leadership models—including transactional, transformational, charismatic, quiet, situational, and servant leadership—and ways to create and maintain a positive organizational culture. It also includes effective methods for performance management, employee engagement, and supervision.

Sections on change and conflict management are well-suited to leaders in a nonprofit industry that is always rapidly transforming and reinventing itself, and practical strategies for working with a team are useful for practitioners of any leadership style.

The book is written to help nonprofit leaders avoid the most common pitfalls, and engage with the most effective strategies, in nonprofit and public organization leadership. It provides a complete leadership toolbox for both novice and experienced leaders attempting to guide a nonprofit through the 21st century.

Managing and Leading Nonprofit Organizations belongs on the bookshelves of managers, executives, board members, directors, department heads, and other leaders of nonprofit and public organizations everywhere.

A hands-on, how-to guide to nonprofit leadership and management

In Managing and Leading Nonprofit Organizations: A Framework For Success, veteran nonprofit director and educator Dr. Paul Dann delivers a practical roadmap to managing and leading a nonprofit or public organization. It’s packed with concrete strategies and immediately applicable techniques for managers, founders, directors, employees, and other leaders who seek to improve and grow their organizations.

The book explores a variety of leadership styles, including transactional, transformational, charismatic, quiet, situational, and servant leadership, as well as techniques for building and maintaining a positive and ethical organizational culture. Readers will find ways to avoid the most common nonprofit leadership pitfalls and mistakes, as well as tools to help them engage with their teams and produce results.

The author presents effective strategies to manage the performance of team members, reduce employee and colleague conflict, and supervise others. He delivers a balanced combination of straightforward techniques ideal for immediate application by novice leaders and more advanced methods that will be of interest to experienced nonprofit managers.

Managing and Leading Nonprofit Organizations is an invaluable resource for any nonprofit leader looking for a hands-on guide informed by decades of real-world leadership experience.