Conference Overview
Many of us today are living in a constant state of generalized anxiety, in both our personal and professional lives. Concerns about the state of the economy, the ever-shifting political landscape, and what these forces could mean for the future are creating a heightened sense of apprehension, and those of us in the nonprofit sector often feel especially vulnerable.
How do we transform this unease into a sense of renewed purpose and focus for the future?
Attendees found answers to these questions at Stanford Social Innovation Review’s Nonprofit Management Institute 2019: “Transforming Anxiety into Active Leadership.”
While the challenges we face are real and varied, the goal of this year’s institute is to provide social innovation leaders with the resources and insights they need to set or renew their objectives, expand their resources, and keep moving their organizations forward!
Topics included:
- Effective Communications Strategies and the Upside of Conflict
- Fundraising Approaches for Tougher Times and Changing Giving Patterns
- Maximizing Skilled Volunteer Talent
- The Role of Government Funding
- Partnering with Organizations Outside the Nonprofit Sector for Greater Impact
- The Power of Movements and Grassroots Organizing
- Technologies to Improve Efficiencies
- Collective Action
- Mergers as a Tool for Growth
- The Neuroscience of Anxiety
- Stress Management and Life Design for Nonprofit Leaders
… among others.
Sessions
Pre-Conference Workshop: Leading Non-Anxious Organizations: The Impact of Emotional Differentiation on Organizational Identity, Fundraising, and Program Design
Chronic anxiety shows up in our organizations in the form of reactivity, focusing resources on the most dysfunctional members of our teams, and directing resources toward the crises. Leaders face a constant battle to hold the organization’s identity in place while managing a barrage of external pressures. While all organizations face situational or acute anxiety, some organizations are hemorrhaging from chronic anxiety. In this workshop, led by Dan Reed, Chief Executive Officer, and Hillary Frances, Program Designer at Seed Fundraisers will provide participants with the ability to both identify the indicators of chronic anxiety as well as strategies for applying a non-anxious presence to their organizational identity, fundraising strategies, and program design.
Pre-Conference Workshop: Boards and Uncertainty: Navigating Through Anxious Time
Anxiety around the impact of outside forces–including greater public scrutiny or criticism–isn’t limited to the members of your executive team. Board members can often be on the receiving end of these pressures. What can we do to help our boards succeed in periods of heightened anxiety? In this workshop, two veteran nonprofit leaders, Dave Lawrence, president and CEO of the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County, and Karen Gahl-Mills, visiting clinical associate professor at Indiana University, will facilitate a candid conversation about boards and uncertainty, with the objective of creating a set of tools for both nonprofit executives and board members that can be applied to organizations and boards of all sizes. The pre-conference workshop will explore crucial topics, including the role of an organization’s leader in managing board anxiety, ways to help some of our most dedicated volunteers stay the course when they are faced with unpleasant public scrutiny, and methods we can employ as nonprofit leaders to empower our boards during times of crisis.
Opening Discussion: The Changing Face of American Philanthropy
An ongoing source of anxiety for nonprofit leaders is the concern over charitable giving by donors. Giving USA 2019 (the latest version of the annual report produced by the Giving USA Foundation, which is researched and written by the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy) stated that when adjusted for inflation, charitable giving declined -1.7% over the prior year, with giving by individuals declining -3.4% and giving by bequest declining -2.3% when similarly adjusted. These concerns become further exacerbated in light of changing US demographics, and the persistent misperception that communities of color, new immigrant communities, and women “give” at lower levels than other portions of the American population. In this armchair discussion, Kim Meredith, executive director of the Stanford Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society, and Tyrone Freeman, assistant professor of Philanthropic Studies at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, and coauthor of Race, Gender, and Leadership in Nonprofit Organizations, will dissect some common myths of modern philanthropy, the true history of giving by minority groups in the US, and ideas on how to better connect with broader populations of givers in these anxious times.
Moving Forward: Merger as a Growth Strategy
In uncertain times, successful organizations explore new methods to grow their impact, rather than pull-back and retrench. One such method is merger. Mergers offer a high-leverage strategic alternative to organic growth rates. But the path to a successful merger can provide both new opportunities and potential pitfalls. In this session, David La Piana, managing partner of La Piana Consulting, Rinku Sen, a racial justice activist, author, and strategist, and Bradford Smith, president of Candid – all veterans of mergers – will introduce participants to the upsides and risks of nonprofit mergers.
A Vital Balance: Innovation and Scaling for Impact in the Social Sector
Nonprofits and social enterprises face a delicate balancing act when dealing with the inherent tension between investments that might not pan out (innovations) and expansion based on existing strengths (scaling). Yet it can be argued that these very forces are the engines for a prosperous and inclusive economy. In this session, Christian Seelos, coauthor of the best-selling Innovation and Scaling for Impactand codirector of the Global Innovation for Impact Lab at Stanford PACS, will examine various “innovation pathologies” that can derail organizations by thwarting their efforts to juggle these imperatives, as well as “innovation archetypes” – case study-based models that effectively sidestep these pathologies and blend innovation with scaling – to provide attendees with conceptual models to drive progress in the social sector, and tools for defining the future of their organizations.
Leveraging Talent: The Power of Skills-based Volunteering
In times of high economic and emotional anxiety, skills-based volunteerism can be a powerful resource for resiliency. Skills-based volunteering—in which a team of corporate employees works for an extended period of time to help a nonprofit solve a complex operational problem–can provide a wealth of benefits for both parties; but it can also be tougher to implement than many initially think. Join Danielle Holly, chief executive officer of Common Impact, Cecily Joseph, vice president of Corporate Responsibility (fmr.), Symantec Corporation, and Greg Kimbrough, lead director, executive development at the Boys & Girls Club of America as they discuss how they’ve used skilled volunteerism to engage their teams, scenario plan, and grow stronger amidst transitional, high-anxiety or crisis situations.
Achieving Great Things: The Art and Science of Aspirational Communication
Successful nonprofit communication is both a science and an art. Done well, it can change hearts and minds for good, by connecting causes to their audiences’ aspirations, helping them to become the people that they aspire to be. In this session, Doug Hattaway, president of Hattaway Communications, will help you explore the best ways to use the power of strategy, science, and storytelling to genuinely connect with your audience. You’ll learn practical lessons from the stunning success of two very different movements — marriage equality and youth smoking – that achieved “durable attitude change” among their respective target audiences.
Working Together: How Public Sector and Nonprofit Leaders Can Collaborate to Tackle the Toughest Challenges
In recent years, key strides in policy and practice that have made a profound difference in the everyday lives of residents have radiated out from cities. Both public servants and nonprofits focus their energies on these very solutions. In a time when social and economic issues are so acute, it seems logical that these natural allies – the nonprofit and public sector – can only benefit from effective partnership, as can the communities they serve. In this fireside chat with Oakland Mayor, Libby Schaaf and Stockton Mayor, Michael Tubbs, moderated by Autumn McDonald, Director of New America CA, attendees will learn how local government and nonprofits can work together effectively to address the most pressing challenges, and the best ways to build successful, mutually beneficial partnerships.
Breakfast Session: Story Strategy for Social Good
Story is a technology for triggering empathic identification, and when we understand the mechanics of this process, we can begin to work with story to inspire, activate and enroll audiences–including those who we might not ever expect to come on board. A facility with the craft and structure of story is not the exclusive territory of filmmakers, playwrights and novelists. Neuroscience shows that our brains respond reliably and powerfully to certain story structures, and that this response has the power to change our minds and motivate prosocial action. When we understand how story structure triggers empathy in the brain, we can learn to tell stories that give the audience the immediate emotional experience of our mission—without once having to explain it to them. In this workshop session, Jessica Blank, noted writer, director, actor, lecturer and social innovator will provide us with an understanding of the neuroscience behind our response to story, an introduction to the deep structure that underlies all impactful story, and insights into how to use story’s power to trigger empathic identification in ways that create tangible and predictable emotional impact.
Trust, power, equity: Telling a better story to ourselves and the world
Our sector was founded with a sense of optimism and potential – a sense that we could literally change the world. But today, more people say government or business will lead us to a better future, relegating nonprofits to third place. In his keynote address, Jeffrey Moore, chief strategy officer of Independent Sector, will look at several big trends with the potential for restoring our self-confidence as a sector – and the trust of the public at large.
Weathering the Storm: Lessons on Effectively Managing Through Tough Times
No one can predict the future. But recent indicators suggest that both nationally and globally, we are heading into a time of market volatility and political change. While we can’t be certain how these forces might play out, what is certain is that the need for strong, effective nonprofits will continue to rise. In this session, Maria Orozco, principal of the Bridgespan Group, will explore lessons learned from the last recession via examples and client best-practices, and draw from Bridgespan client work in the years since to highlight how organizations not only survive, but thrive in tough times.
Activating Audiences: Partnering Beyond “The Usual Suspects” to Spotlight Social Issues
The entertainment industry has become an important partner to the nonprofit sector in helping to elevate the discussions around vital social issues such as climate, poverty, human rights, and others, not only through the number of people that media like film, TV, or gaming have the potential to reach, but by bringing a crucial human dimension to these discussions, and drive social action. More and more, artists and producers are working directly with nonprofits to spotlight these crucial stories. How can nonprofit leaders effectively partner with entertainment companies, and what do successful partnerships look like? And how does storytelling actually work to expand and accelerate impact? In this panel discussion, Jessica Blank, noted writer, director, actor, lecturer and social innovator will be joined by Nicole Starr, vice president for social impact at Participant media, Marya Bangee, Executive Director of Harness, and Courtney Cogburn, Associate Professor at Columbia University School of Social Work.
Leading with Purpose: Acceptance, Mindfulness, and Self-Compassion
Finding purpose in life and work is the key to health, happiness, longevity, and productivity, not just for us as individuals, but as organizational leaders. Even nonprofit leaders may not be fully aware of what our purpose is or how to find it. Understanding purpose is at the core of leading with mindfulness and compassion, and without purpose, we often become less resilient, and struggle to find ways to continue moving forward. In this interactive workshop session, Leah Weiss, Ph.D., lecturer behind the popular ‘Leading With Mindfulness and Compassion’ course at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, and the author of How We Work, will lead us through a process to identify our purpose and explore how to lead with acceptance and resilience, using proven self-compassion and mindfulness techniques.
Climate Change: The Power of a Transcendent Issue to Motivate and Effect Real Change
Climate change and its effects are creating many challenges for the social sector, from the impacts of extreme weather and rising sea levels, to an increase in refugee populations and food and water scarcity. Seemingly intractable issues like this can cause increased anxiety among individuals and organizations, furthering a sense of paralysis. But climate change is also an example of an issue where collaborative action is happening, inspiring others to action. Larry Kramer, president of The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Charlotte Pera, president and CEO of ClimateWorks Foundation will engage in a lively discussion about climate change and the social sector. Among the topics they will explore are the impact climate change could have on society and the work that nonprofits do; what organizations are doing now to combat climate change; and how you and your organization can become engaged in this transcendent issue.
