Preparing for the future starts with re-thinking your present model for sustainability. While the prospect may not be staring you in the face, there are likely several interesting partnerships your organization could consider that would enable it to more effectively meet its mission – perhaps in ways you have not yet imagined.
Archive for the ‘NonprofitNext’ Category
“How diverse are we?” Nonprofit Diversity and a Call for Context
Tuesday, November 17th, 2009This month, the Urban Institute released its benchmark study of racial and ethnic diversity in California’s nonprofit sector. The overall findings are all too familiar. People of color remain underrepresented in nonprofit leadership, comprising 57% of the state’s population but holding only 25% of the executive director or CEO positions. Most notably, the researchers found that Latinos are the least well represented, holding fewer than 10% of nonprofit leadership positions while making up more than one-third of California’s overall population.
Leadership and innovation needed as we face the future
Saturday, November 7th, 2009As the 2009 Independent Sector/Council of Michigan Foundations annual conference wound down today, I marveled at the thematic unity that emerged about the future of the nonprofit sector: leadership, innovation, and respectful dialogue are critical competencies in supporting what is increasingly understood to be a necessary re-conceptualization of how we approach our work – especially in relation to other organizations and sectors.
Independent Sector conference kicks off with an eye towards the future
Wednesday, November 4th, 2009Independent Sector’s 2009 annual conference – “Challenging Times, New Opportunities” – kicked off today in Detroit, Michigan with a thought-provoking panel discussion examining the key trends and opportunities that will define the social sector for the next ten years. The panel was moderated – quite skillfully, given the scope of the topic and the diversity of voices on the panel – by James Canales, CEO of the James Irvine Foundation, with whom La Piana just published a report on the very same topic.
Welcome from David La Piana
Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009In conjunction with the release of our new report, I am really excited that we are launching a blog where you can participate in discussions about the future of the sector. This tool is part of our yearlong effort to create a dialogue about where the sector is going. NonprofitNext grows out of an initial research grant from Fieldstone Alliance and a later investment by the James Irvine Foundation, which is particularly interested in how these issues play out in California.
The NonprofitNext Initiative
Tuesday, June 30th, 2009Today we are at the threshold of an historic time for the nonprofit sector. Several powerful developments are coming together to make the next few years a time of unusual opportunity for positive change in the way nonprofits are structured, operate, and work with constituents. At the same time, the deep global recession will increase nonprofits’ risk of failure if they do not successfully address this tide of change. La Piana Consulting is currently launching an initiative to explore both key trends and creative, promising responses to them.
