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Ten Things I Learned About Leadership from Women Executives of Color
While executive director of CompassPoint Nonprofit Services, Jan participated in the Women Executive Directors of Color network, conducted a study on nonprofit women executives of color, and experienced life through her lens as a Japanese American woma …
Telecommuting and Flexible Work Arrangements: Do Them Right
Flexible hours and working from home are benefits that many nonprofits want to implement, but are not sure how to do it fairly and in a way that acknowledges the value of having people in the office together. Robin Erickson, Director of Finance a …
Take an Einstein Nap
Albert Einstein is famous for his belief in daily 20-minute naps . . . so take yourself off to the conference room for an Einstein nap and come back smarter. Or try a Salvador Dali nap by holding your keys in your hand above a plate on the floor; when …
Facebook + Employees = Yikes!
Dear Rita in HR: I’m hearing horror stories from other executive directors about employees posting confidential information at Facebook, for instance, and lawsuits against nonprofits that looked at these sites as part of reference checks. I …
What to Do When You Really, Really Disagree with a Board Decision
Most of the time, nonprofit boards work through consensus. But what if you think a serious mistake is being made? Sometimes knowing what to do in advance if such a situation arises can help you understand the situation more clearly as it unfolds: …
Diversity & the Nonprofit Ecosystem: Part 2 in the 3-Part Diversity Series
In the last issue of Blue Avocado, we discussed four key arguments for diversity on nonprofit boards — reasons of mission, business, corporate responsibility and definition. This article — Part 2 of 3 on nonprofit diversity — looks more broadl …
A Fresh Look at Diversity and Boards
Part One in a series of three on nonprofits and diversity: Just last week a new report showed that while 57% of California’s population is comprised of people of color, just 28% of nonprofit board members reflect that demographic reality. Wh …
Amaze Your Friends with these Nonprofit Factoids
When we believe something to be true but don’t have the data to support that idea, what happens when we do find the hard evidence? Two things: either we find out we were wrong after all or . . . we were right and now we have the facts to put into a gra …
Six Ways to Know If It’s Time to Leave
Are you tired, a bit listless? Maybe the demands of the job seem ever more burdensome, or the board seems increasingly dissatisfied, or your retirement clock is ticking. Do you need more than a megavitamin? Even better is this advice from Tim Wolfred, …
Switching Careers at the Worst Possible Time
Edie Boatman left a for-profit career for fundraising just as the economy crashed. With irony and humor her First Person Nonprofit essay reflects on her sense of timing and what she’s learned so far. August of 2008: Just one month before th …
