Lessons from The Best Nonprofit Leaders: How to Lead Well

​What makes the best nonprofit leaders the best? In our line of work that’s something we talk about and strive to define every day. It’s an intensely human question, and at times it can be painfully introspective as well. But like most important questions, it’s one that makes us better for asking.
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So, is greatness something that some people are just born with or is it something forged through experience that anyone can achieve? We believe it’s the latter! Our team of nonprofit leaders has honed their skills over time, learning from their previous roles and consulting engagements and leveraging insights from their professional networks as they have progressed through their careers. They have seen the best and worked hard to join their ranks.

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As seasoned nonprofit leaders with diverse backgrounds we want to do everything we can to equip today’s organizations to make tomorrow’s impact on their communities. In fact, that’s why we created a free leadership assessment tool to give Executive Directors the means to understand how well they’re doing and identify opportunities for improvement. 

Take The Nonprofit Leadership Assessment Today!

We feel that as a society we’re better when we’re working together to create opportunities for others, which is why our team is passionate about sharing advice in areas where we know we can help others. In keeping with that principle, our team has compiled a list of tips that we want to share with upcoming nonprofit leaders to assist in their professional development. In our opinion, the best nonprofit leaders will:

Understand the Role
A nonprofit leader cannot do their best work if they don’t know what’s expected of them. For this reason, the number one element required to equip a leader to lead well is a thorough understanding of their role. The best nonprofit leaders will have a firm grasp on the difference between an Executive Director's role and the Board’s role, as well as staff roles so that they can excel in their sphere and assist the Board and staff in exceling in theirs. As our team explains, 

Broadly speaking, the Board is responsible for strategy and governance while the Executive Director is responsible for implementation and management. However, both should work in partnership to support each other’s roles, building respect and trust to leverage each other’s strengths effectively. There is no hard line where one ends and the other begins, but there are spheres where each tends to operate.

What does that look like? Staff should be trusted to handle this year’s objectives, obstacles, and opportunities as well as tell the Executive Director what is possible for next year’s expectations. An ED can then factor that input into the organization’s development plans and work on building up the resources needed to address those needs. The ED will prepare a 5–7-year plan that focuses on the organization’s vision statement to guide where the organization is headed next. The Board then takes that input and looks for potential opportunities/threats that the staff and ED may not have anticipated and does a gut check on whether the plans and strategies presented are keeping the organization focused on its mission to avoid mission creep in the future.

In a classic example of building others up to achieve a better outcome for everyone involved, having a clear division of duties helps to improve the relationship between the Executive Director, staff, and the Board to equip them to lead better together and strengthen the organization overall.

Mentor Staff
It’s not just the Board that an Executive Director should aim to build up. The best nonprofit leaders will rise to the top by lifting those below them up as well. Mentoring staff at all levels forms the kinds of authentic bonds that make a nonprofit a great place to work, building culture and cultivating mutual respect. When staff members feel like their organization’s leader cares about them and trusts them as an advisor about what is really going on where their mission meets the need, they will inherently do better work, be more committed to the cause, and be willing to go the extra mile for the organization.

Additionally, mentoring staff helps with an individual’s career development and provides an opportunity to upskill them. This then ensures that the organization has a pipeline of talent to draw on as people change roles and leave. For these reasons, the best Executive Directors will not only lead and coach but also mentor those below them to preserve the future of the organization.

Ask Good Questions
Part of connecting with others and leading effectively is the ability to communicate well. Successful Executive Directors know how to ask good questions to help them lead and plan strategically. As our team explains, “[They] help us to understand problems. They allow us to relate to others better. Questions forge solutions. Asking questions helps drive everything from program offerings and fundraising initiatives to the organization’s overall strategic mission.” Therefore, the best leaders will avoid making assumptions, listen more than they talk, foster open dialogue, embrace discomfort when it occurs, and be measured in their response.

Help Fundraise
While nonprofit leaders will certainly drive strategic implementation from the top, they shouldn’t be afraid to roll up their sleeves and get their hands dirty either. The most effective leaders of nonprofits will be intimately involved in fundraising and donor relations and management, crafting innovative fundraising approaches to address the organization’s needs and utilize its resources in response to a changing nonprofit landscape. Top nonprofit leaders will stay abreast of the latest fundraising trends, especially within digital strategies like peer-to-peer fundraising, crowdfunding, giving gamification, and virtual event hosting to ensure that their organization is remaining relevant among their donor base. 

Create a Succession Plan
Many leaders don’t think about leaving when talking about how they can lead better in their existing roles. And yet, succession planning is a key component of not only leaving well but also leading well because it outlines what will need to happen some day when the inevitable occurs. As Hannah Cavendish-Palmer explains in her article Planning a Graceful Exit - How to Master the Art of Leaving Well,

Why should you leave well? The primary purpose of any organization is to deliver on its mission. Enabling that to continue as seamlessly as possible is one reason to leave well. When someone leaves poorly, it can cause unintended consequences such as lower productivity due to decreased morale among remaining staff. Sometimes organizations will overcorrect following a tricky departure, making fast or sweeping reactionary changes that create instability and decrease impact. Simply put, leaving well allows organizations to remain committed to their missions so they can act as a force for good in their communities.

The reality is that no leader will be around forever, and since the goal is to keep the organization going after the existing leader leaves, the Executive Director needs to have a succession plan in place to get everyone around them ready for when that day comes so that the organization can remain strong. Whether the decision is voluntary (leaving to pursue a better opportunity, retiring, etc.) or involuntary (illness, family changes, death, etc.) having a succession plan in place before it’s needed is crucial to ensuring that the people behind the organization will be prepared to keep moving forward regardless of what’s coming next.

A well-created succession plan paves the way for skills growth, professional development, and identifying the right leadership model for the next generation of leadership. However, too often succession planning fails because it’s done too late, drawn up with too small of a scope, or deemed too scary. That’s why it’s so important to do succession planning right by timing it correctly, getting the scope right, normalizing the practice, and taking ownership over the plan!

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​During times of transition nonprofit organizations rely on us to help them change and adapt. As nonprofit consultants we offer interim leadership solutions and board advisory services for organizations as they pivot, reinvent, and reimagine their futures. When your leadership team needs help, please reach out to us to experience the Valtas difference today!