In this episode, Nancy and Sarah explain what “big picture thinking” is, why it matters, and how your organization can expand how you think about your work.
Category: Boards
Episode 63: The Art of Nonprofit Gatherings
Nonprofits host a lot of gatherings: board meetings, fundraising events, volunteer trainings, etc. In this episode, Nancy and Sarah explore how to create transformational gatherings, from board meetings to fundraising events. They draw on the wisdom of gathering expert Priya Parker to expand how we think about events and simple steps we can do to make them more meaningful. They consider how to give each event a purpose, ways to create magical spaces that are different from people's everyday world, and how to begin a gathering. You will walk away with tips on how you can create transformational gatherings.
Episode 62: Nonprofit Sleuthing: Something is wrong, but what?
Nancy and Sarah regularly get asked nonprofit questions. Often they are in the form of “This is happening in our nonprofit. Is that normal?” In this episode, Nancy and Sarah talk about common questions and how they would approach them. You will learn strategies to get to the bottom of what your nonprofit’s challenge really might be. Grab your magnifying glass to practice how you might sleuth out what’s at the core of keeping you from meeting your mission.
Episode 57: My board members won’t….
"My board members won't...." fill in the blank: attend meetings, raise money, get more deeply involved in the issues we are facing, etc. In this episode, Nancy and Sarah talk about why board members won't and what Executive Directors, board chairs, and others can do about it. They unpack what might be behind the "won't" and how we can change how we exchange board members to turn a "won't" to a "will."
Episode 56: What to do about inflation
Nonprofits are facing all of the same inflationary pressures as others across our communities. In this episode, Nancy and Sarah talk about how a nonprofit can respond to inflation, particularly related to finance and fundraising. They share some ideas for thinking about salary adjustments, communicating with donors and supporters, and engaging board members in scenario planning. They highlight the importance of true cost accounting and advocacy as ways to expand the amount of money you have to work with. You got this.
Episode 52: Well-functioning boards: Ideas for staff members
How do we make sure our boards are fully functioning in a joyful, productive way? In this episode, Nancy and Sarah talk to nonprofit staff members about what they can do to support their board as they build a movement for their mission. They talk about three ways staff members can help boards today: time, job roles, and communication.
Episode 51: Well-functioning boards: Ideas for board members
How do we make sure our boards are fully functioning in a joyful, productive way? In this episode, Nancy and Sarah talk about why nonprofits have a board and what boards need to focus on to build a movement for their mission. They talk about what governance means in every day language, and how a board is accountable to their community, their purpose, and the organization. This is the first in a two-part series on boards. Nancy and Sarah will share tips for staff members working with boards in the next episode.
Episode 43: Refreshing the board matrix to build a diverse board
In this episode, Nancy and Sarah reflect on the purpose of a board matrix and how we can update this tool to better capture a fuller diversity of the humans tasked with moving forward our mission and movement.
Episode 36: Nonprofit Radio Show LIVE @ Idaho Nonprofit Center conference
In this episode, Nancy and Sarah answer questions from Idaho nonprofit leaders.
Episode 30: Reclaiming your nonprofit power
In this episode, Nancy and Sarah talk about how to know who is in your community and how best to engage them.