In a recent article we published our team members offered their perspective on the most important topics facing nonprofit leadership these days.

​Liz Swanson, a nonprofit professional with over 30 years of experience leading mission-driven organizations, offered a key insight: 

We want to highlight this challenge specifically because it’s one that all organizations are currently facing and will continue to face in the coming years. Our hope is that by highlighting the underlying causes of today’s rise in nonprofit costs and identifying some strategies to combat these challenges, we can equip nonprofit organizations to operate sustainably into the future. 

Nonprofit organizations that are burning through cash typically can’t just ask their donors and partners for more money without first stemming the tide of cash outflows. Funders want to see that an organization is being a good steward of their finances before they are willing to continue (or increase) their contributions. But even aside from the discussion around future funding requests, an organization must shore up their spending to remain viable into the future. 

These are all statements I have made throughout my career, and that I have heard echoed from my peers in nonprofit leadership. And that’s a problem! Each of these statements point to an unspoken issue that should concern a board of directors. Ignoring those unspoken issues now might be setting you up for problems down the road.
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Unfortunately, too often these kinds of statements are welcomed and even encouraged by board members. Boards often find reassurance in knowing that they have someone at the helm that’s dedicated to their mission. Additionally, they like the idea of saving money while doing great work. But they are, in fact, red flags that board members should be concerned about.

As a result, many organizations are beginning to seriously evaluate what kind of measures can reduce turnover among nonprofit executives.  ​

Consider the following nonprofit employment statistics:

• The voluntary turnover rate is 19% for nonprofits (compared to 12% across the entire US labor market).
• Nonprofit leaders are disproportionately experiencing burnout, with 60% of them reporting that they feel “used up” at the end of the day.
• Nonprofit employees across the entire organization are not faring much better, with 30% of them already reporting being burnt out and 20% more in danger of burning out soon.

In light of these sobering statistics, it is especially troubling that according to Forbes, a whopping 80% of nonprofit leaders report that they do not have a talent retention strategy in place.

Let’s take a look at how much this kind of turnover is costing your organization, why employees are deciding to leave, and what you can do to stop it! 

As head of CFO Selections corporate philanthropy initiatives, the question I get most often, especially now at budget time, from other company executives is, “What is the right amount of money to budget for donations?”

Before answering this question, I usually ask, 

​      “What are you hoping to achieve with your corporate philanthropy?”