Author: whatifconcepts

Empowering those that inspire so they can excel at the work that matters.

Express Train

Woman sitting next to me on the Hudson River line last night found herself watching her train stop race by as we headed directly into the heart of New York City. As the conductor walked by to check tickets he told her that our train had changed from a local to an express at the last station. She was going to have to ride into the city and then head outbound to get to her destination.

It was a reminder that one of the reasons we to hold public unveilings of our strategic plans is to share with our supports and advocates where the organization has decided to become an express or local. A car full of passengers thinking the train is going to do one thing only to watch it do another can create a lot of distractions. Update your fan base often, keep them aware of your progress and intended destination. Perhaps we can aim to run on-time like the Swiss railroads and standout as remarkable.

I Was Going to Call

Yesterday’s post reminded me of another situation where a promise to follow-up goes unfilled.  Last year I received a series of letters from a university asking me to consider the project that they were implementing and that I should expect a telephone call from a dean at the college the following week.  Two of these letter found me at my home address.  I read them and awaited the call.  Nothing happened.  Finally a third letter came asking for a donation.  I figured that the project was: 

A. Not that important since the dean never called
B. My gift was going to be too small to have an impact
C. This was not the university’s top priority
D. The money had already been secured and therefore they did not need to contact me

 This experience was a firm reminder that your institutional word and promises have a tremendous impact on your organization’s outcomes.  


What organizations have made promises and then exceeded your expectations?  How?  Which causes have you stopped doing business with because they never delivered?  How much effort separates the first group from the second?

Best First Step?

I received a copy of the following letter today:

Thank you for your time in reviewing this letter.  The intent of this communication is to determine if your foundation goal and the special project goals of the ____ (organization) are complimentary.

The letter goes on to list ten funding opportunities.  I felt a bit like a trout sitting on the bottom of a stream watching a fly with the price tag still attached floating on the surface.  If you cannot customize the presentation in any meaningful way then the most likely catches will be the uninitiated or unmotivated.  Direct mail in the social sector is shown to get 2-3% return rate.  Since this letter was addressed to “Foundation Administrator” I project that very few individuals will feel a personal connection.

How could this invitation be improved?  Would a personal salutation help?  Had the letter noted previous grants made by the foundation that aligned with this organization’s funding opportunities would it resonate more?  Would a follow-up call to expand on the communication be compelling?  What would attract your interest?

Headlines from BoardSource Leadership Forum

I arrived home from the BoardSource Leadership Forum last night, by the far the best nonprofit conference I attend each year.  Many new ideas, trends and conversations which I will share in the coming weeks.  Beth Kanter, the social media guru shared a great presentation that reminded all of us that a social media policy is now a leading practice.  Maya Enista from Mobilize.org was a compelling spokesperson for the Millennials.  She reminded us to give full status to our younger board members, “I would not want to be somebody’s boyfriend a quarter of the time so why would I want to serve as a junior board member with limited rights?”  R Todd Johnson from Jones Day is on the leading edge of the movement which is designing new entities.  L3C Corporations, B Corps, Benefit Corporations and a Flexible Benefit Corporation model being implemented in California are all beginning to take form in the space between the social and corporate sectors.  Lastly, BoardSource just released its Governance Index. Highlights of the index show that the average size of a board is 16, 70% of the organization’s surveyed have term limits, and the average tenure of a board member is 7.2 years.  Of course, BoardSource would immediately say, “if you have seen one board, you have seen one board.”

What is the Score

How do you measure your cause’s success?  As an endurance athlete I occasionally enter a race and gain immediate feedback on my level of fitness.  What is the equivalent for the social sector?  Is it dollars raises at a gala?  Number of members? Total program attendees?  Size of your annual budget?  Ratio of funds raised to operational costs?  Your annual report versus another organization?  The number of mentions in the paper or on the internet?  How many people are clambering to join your board?  How many members of the community will recommend your cause?

I am not sure what the appropriate fitness test is but I imagine we all have an idea.

Help Wanted

I am posting a help wanted sign.  Not specifically for a person but a system. In order to further my consulting enterprise’s purpose of empowering causes that inspire, I am seeking a better platform for selecting strategic priorities.  I have been fortunate enough to assemble a team of powerful planning methods but I am still browsing from the buffet of taking inspired talk and capturing the ideas into strategic initiatives.

My help wanted sign reads: Seeking innovative system to consistently transform generative and inspired conversations into strategic initiatives that can form the backbone of a strategic plan.  Must be reliable, energetic, willing to travel, network with other systems, and memorable.

Who should I interview?

Perspective

This morning greeted me with the sound of honking horns and ten minutes of emergency sirens.  I rolled out of bed and went to the fitness center for a workout.  I did not feel the need to look out the window or turn-on the TV for a news update.  In New York City for meetings, I expect the urban background noise and would worry if it were too quiet.  However, had the same racket been produced in my neighborhood in Boise I would have grabbed a phone and perhaps a large stick as I headed for the front door.  Why does the same set of circumstances cause no alarm in one setting and would come closer to panic in another?

Environment sets expectations.  Live near a hospital and you expect sirens, fly on a stormy day you can anticipate turbulence, or engage with a nonprofit and you can expect an unquenchable thirst for resources.  Of course, not all of these conditions are true all the time but the expectations can be set.

It makes me wonder what expectations we are setting as our members of the social sector.  Do we perpetuate the perspective or create a new paradigm?  Are we the best kept secret or the cornerstone of the community?  Are we explaining what value we add to the community or do we express what we need from the community?

The Board’s Role

Star Trek’s Captain Picard use to utter, “make it so” and the command became action.  I often find a parallel in strategic planning.  Boards dream great visions, set lofty goals, and turn to their Executive Director and in either word or action say, “make it so.”  The consequences of vision without resources can be overwhelming and disheartening from the staff’s prospective.  An in-tune board chair must comprehend the bandwidth of the enterprise.  Consider asking the following questions to the board:

  • Do we have the expertise to manage the goal?
  • What resources are required?
  • What role can the staff play?
  • What role does the board need to take to champion the goal?

There is a difference between “make it so” and “let us all commit to the initiative.”  I would suggest that often a strategic initiative is treated like a ‘to do list’ which can be leveraged to another party.  A true strategic priority requires all parties to participate, much like a summit attempt on a high alpine peak.  Without the commitment of the entire party, the rope lines and high camps cannot be established and no individual can be placed high enough to summit the peak.  “Make it so” should be “let’s go.”

Preferred Customer

Three telephone calls tonight that started with some form of the intro, “you are a preferred customer and therefore….”  I listened politely and declined the new limited time offer of additional service (insurance, travel protection, purchase protection).  Each call made me wonder, does being a preferred customer mean more harassment?  I cannot seem to opt-out of the offers from these corporations so now I must decide if doing business at all is worth-while.  


How does your enterprise treat its preferred customers?  Do you know what they wish to be contacted about?  Are you building a relationship on trust or transactions?

Free Space

I walked into a Barnes & Noble and was amazed to see the transformation that has taken place.  Missing were the bookshelves with best sellers that had greeted me upon entering.  New shelves with greeting cards, writing supplies and toys filled one corner of the store.  Lego roams where classic literature once held court.  A couple of tables that appeared similar to an Apple Store displayed a hands-on area to test the Nook e-reader.  A Starbucks in the middle was clearly the busiest portion of the enterprise.  As I departed through the movie and music section, I was wondering how the Redbox across the street was impacting sales.  On one side, Barnes & Noble was embracing the e-reader with a commitment to the online delivery format.  On the other side the company was holding firm to the traditional sales approach to selling CD and DVD.

In the social sector, we have been quick to adopt social media and ‘donate now’ buttons on our homepages.  We have been more reticent to leave some methodologies.  For example, I often hear how labor intensive and exhausting an organization’s last strategic planning process turned out.  I will offer new models and encourage a more inspired and engaging approach.  Many times the initial reaction from the enterprise is to reluctantly suggest they should stick with the tried and true, no matter that it means torture by boredom.

Is it change we resist or is it our loyalty to the known?  What leaps of faith have you made that have reaped great rewards?  What is the least amount of change you could take that would have the greatest impact?