Lessons Learned From Nonprofit Change Projects

"This is just the flavor of the month, it'll change again!" That's what I overheard in the breakroom during the implementation of a new training program. As the newly minted supervisor, I was supposed to lead this change. But in that moment, I questioned whether or not we'd be able to pull this off. Welcome to my earliest large-scale change initiative. We were creating and implementing a new program. As I walked into that first all-hands meeting, the room was filled with uncertainty. Looking around, I realized each person brought their view of change along with them. ------We All Approached Change Differently----- ➡ The Naysayer: "But, it won't work that way." • What I Learned: Behind every "no" is often a wealth of institutional knowledge. ➡The Enthusiastic Supporter: Always first to volunteer. • What I Learned: Enthusiasm can be contagious, but needs direction. ➡The Skeptical Analyst: Required data for everything. • What I Learned: Data isn't just for convincing others; it's a tool for refining the change itself. ➡The Silent Observer: Quiet in meetings, insightful in private. • What I Learned: The loudest voice isn't always the most valuable. ➡The Overwhelmed: Stressed by the mention of change. • What I Learned: Resistance can come from workload concerns, not just disagreement. ➡The Hidden Influencer: The unofficial leader everyone listened to. • What I Learned: Formal authority isn't everything; respect the informal networks. ➡The Compliant Participant: Went along without real commitment. • What I Learned: Silence isn't always agreement; passive resistance can be as challenging as active resistance. The journey was transformative—for the organization and for me as a leader. I learned that change is about people. By recognizing and addressing the human element, we can navigate the complexities of change more effectively. ❓ Which of these 7 characters do you encounter most often in your change initiatives? How has your approach to them evolved over time?

This summer, I officially closed down the nonprofit formerly known as FutureMap. Don’t worry; FutureMap lives on as a small business, even though I'm not involved much in the day-to-day! Changing the structure of FutureMap from a nonprofit to a business was a journey that took myself, Sharon Yang, CFA, and Kristen Vellinger as the board members 2+ years and a lot of legal expenses along the way, even as a very small nonprofit. I mention this somewhat painful experience because in the past year, I have met SO many leaders (with a strong majority being Black women) who started a nonprofit because of the social impact and mission – but who experience major tradeoffs of that decision down the line. A lot of these visionary nonprofit founders are burnt out, realizing they own none of the IP they built up from scratch, and might be tired of having to run every decision by a board of directors, no matter how benevolent.  I spoke to a nonprofit leader who had poured her heart and soul into her nonprofit for two decades, and just wants freedom and autonomy now…but it’s all too legally tangled. Starting fresh doesn’t feel like an option when her body of work and legacy are tied to the nonprofit’s IP, but the status quo isn't serving her any more. Some organizations have the horsepower to think through this strategically, but we were scrappy and limited in budget…so I started with Google. And found basically NO guidance on the big questions. Should I stay a nonprofit or be a for-profit business? What about a hybrid structure? What are the governance and legal requirements of each? What are the tradeoffs, costs, and benefits to each option? What are all the stakeholders’ motivations? How much time was this process going to take? How much admin and compliance does each option actually entail? Social impact founders: Can you relate to the struggles of this nonprofit vs. for-profit choice? How did you wrestle with this decision if at all? If you’re interested in my lessons learned, I’m writing a guide for how social enterprises can think about this question to be released in 2 parts. (And thanks Zaineb Al-Kalby for a timely conversation about this topic!) Subscribe here: https://lnkd.in/gjg-Tp_r

How it started --> How it's going I've been working with a client to develop a preliminary structure for consistent feedback and annual review stepbacks to ensure equitable access to feedback and growth opportunities. We quickly realized given the change management needed that we should operate in two phases in order to balance getting started with bring folks along. The only goals for Phase 1? Everyone gets quality feedback and no one is surprised in the annual review conversations. Simple structures, lots of training and multiple opportunities for feedback helped to achieve those basic goals, and identified MANY opportunities for growth as we moved to Phase 2. We had the opportunity to have the entire team reflect on each component of the process, from the structure of 1:1s to the 360s to the annual review conversation itself, and how well it met the purpose of the process: to define success across teams, create a shared language for how we work and equip each person to succeed. It was an energizing morning filled with ideas, creativity and my personal favorite, chart paper. A few takeaways and reminders: ⭐️ When launching a new initiative be clear on the essential goals while in Phase 1 and don't make things overly clunky ⭐️ People essentially want to be a part of the solution particularly when it impacts them. Craft your questions well, and let them in. ⭐️ Your team is the expert on their experience. Listen then to craft a plan moving forward. One last thing- people hate being asked for feedback that's not implemented. We were clear that we would listen to everything but some feedback might inform the what or how, some might be on hold and some may not be possible for any number of reasons. We did however commit to clearly explaining why any specific piece of feedback fell in each category. How do you involve your team in change initiatives? Also- if you're working to improve feedback and talent management processes, and want to bring your people along, let's talk (Chart paper encouraged but not required)