Entries for 'Rosalyn Allison-Jacobs'

Building a pipeline of young leaders who have the capacity — or willingness — to give time, talent, and treasure to nonprofit boards is one of the greatest challenges facing nonprofit organizations. The fact is that these individuals are, by nature, feral in their outlook on life and work. Less structure is more, and commitment is fleeting. So, how might the nonprofit sector adapt to capitalize on the considerable talents of feral board members — of any age? Perhaps it’s time for a new board paradigm….

In 2009, La Piana Consulting began exploring transformational forces in the social sector from multiple perspectives.  With support from the James Irvine Foundation, we first conducted research and interviewed thought leaders to identify five emerging trends, the ways that they will reshape the social sector, and the core competencies of social sector organizations that will thrive in the convergence of those trends. Earlier this year, as an extension of that exploration we partnered with Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy (EPIP) to capture in Doing Good in the 21^st Century the perspectives of young leaders in philanthropy on what social sector organizations will need to succeed in the 21^st Century. Not surprisingly, we found echoes of some of the same themes continuing to reverberate five years after our first study – one of these is sector blur. 

I could be a poster child for the phenomenon known as “growth through resistance.” It is not a pretty process, fraught with needless pain and suffering. Yet the lessons that I have learned by conquering my own resistance have proven to be the indelible ones. My journey from resisting to embracing the power of “smart questions” is paramount among these.

One of the greatest impediments to moving forward after restructuring or adopting a new business strategy is organizational entrenchment in old habits—the source of comfort, familiarity, and certainty that ensures homeostasis and predictability.