The Most Important Issues Facing Nonprofit Leadership this Year

​As nonprofit consultants, we often talk internally about the challenges our clients are facing. We will share with each other regarding cause-specific issues, new challenges, and emerging opportunities. Since our team is comprised of experienced nonprofit leaders that work mainly in interim Executive Director roles, we have a unique vantage point that offers us valuable insights into where the nonprofit landscape is headed. We’d like to share that perspective with you to give you a glimpse into what is most important in the world of nonprofit management right now!
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We recently asked our team the question, “What do you think are the most important issues facing nonprofit leadership this year?” These are some of their responses:

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Liz Swanson

“The biggest issue I hear from Executive Directors is the rising cost of doing business.  Specifically, wages continue to rise given the changing Exempt Threshold laws and their exponential growth these next few years.  EDs and their HR teams (if they are lucky to have an HR team) are struggling to find balance between doing right by their staff (and compliance of the law) and doing right by the organization financial sustainability, especially in a time of declining donors.” ​

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Find out more about Liz

Carmen D'Arcangelo

“Through my work with small social sector organizations, established nonprofits, and large government agencies it is clear to me that investing in building leadership skills at all levels of an organization is more critical than ever. Helping people identify their natural competencies, fostering impactful skill development in themselves and their teams, growing comfortable with the language of emotional intelligence in relationships and developing an active skill in navigating discomfort are some of the essential themes.”

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Christine Martin

“​Keeping up to date with current employment laws, practices, and tools has become increasingly complicated for nonprofits, especially those that aren’t large enough to have a full-time HR team on staff. For this reason, Executive Directors/CEOs and Boards can be caught off guard when legal, compliance, and employee relations issues arise. As a result, bringing in the experts proactively to offer advice and support is more crucial now than ever before!”

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Find out more about Christine

Hannah Cavendish-Palmer

“The ongoing pull towards positivity in the nonprofit world threatens to derail organizations that ignore bad news when it arises. When leaders create an environment where everything needs to look good all the time, problems tend to get hidden away, allowing them to fester and multiply. However, when nonprofit leaders lean into and embrace bad news, they receive vital information more quickly, giving their organizations increased resilience in the long run.”

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Jane Billbe

“Rates of unionization are increasing across nonprofit cultural institutions, advocacy groups, and social-service organizations both locally and nationally. Staff across nonprofit sectors that are unionizing are doing so to seek things like job protection, livable wages, stable hours/schedules, and a greater input in the mission they are serving. In many cases, we see that the staff tried to communicate their concerns to organizational leadership before deciding to go down the path of unionizing but perceived that their voice went unheard. Nonprofit leadership looking to avoid staff unionizing should listen to concerns when they are broached by providing a space for employees to give feedback openly and freely.”

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Dave Lenox

​“These days boards are so focused on keeping overhead costs down that they often end up underpaying their Executive Directors in the process. Unfortunately, this can cost the organization top talent, jeopardizing its mission into the future. Instead of trying to scrimp and save, they must consider the replacement cost of finding a new ED. Then, they can take that information into account to be more intentional throughout the budgeting process.”

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Find out more about Dave

​When you need help navigating the ever-changing world of nonprofit management, please reach out to us! Our team is ready to come alongside your organization to help lead it into the future. Find out more about nonprofit consulting and board advisory services today!