“Own Your Brand” — best pitch of the year

I actually enjoy reading the solicitation letters that flood in from nonprofits in December. The reads are often good, sometimes dreadful. Very occasionally, they are just plain awesome. One solicitation really stood out this year. The mailing came from City Blossoms, a small nonprofit in DC that focuses on growing community gardens to build strong neighborhoods. […]

Nonprofits and the word “brand”

Itchy. Twitching. More than slightly uneasy. That seems to be how leaders and their teams at some nonprofits still react to the word “brand.” Reacting to the questions “are we really aligned internally and externally?” or  “what do our members think about our brand?” For some, the default is to think about logos and taglines. These are important […]

Teamwork ≠ being all the same

You know those motivational posters? The ones with the ants carrying a HUGE acorn, or a cute bear cub just hanging on over a rushing stream, or rowers — all in synch, gliding into the sunset? I have spent days on the Potomac River watching whole slews of such rowers. The idea that a team works […]

Worried about succession? Read here

Does it feel like your organization or company has one perfect person at the top…and no one coming up the ranks behind? Or are you getting ready to move out of the hot seat yourself, and there’s no one ready to sit in it? Here’s a good, if longish, read about that leadership gap. This […]