Episodes
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I use the term "mission driven organization" a lot. And when asked, I'm always happy to define what I mean by that. But... I've learned through the years that my definition is not the one that matters.
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Missing episodes?
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All leaders want to be proactive, not reactive. But here's the thing: Just because you want to be proactive, be considered by others to be proactive, and do proactive seeming things, that does not mean that it’s true. In this week's episode, I point out a simple way to frame up a discussion that can help leaders make sure that everyone is on the same page for critical organizational decision making.
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Optimism is a good thing, right? Absolutely! But... and this starts innocently enough... a sincere desire to be (and seem) optimistic can, over time, give way to something that is... not so good.
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You have blind spots. I have blind spots. And they can impact our approach and our success. Remember, blind spots are only problematic when we ignore them.
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I've seen it happen and often to tragic effect. Boards will hire a leader to bring about substantive change... only to find out later that the process of creating that change caused more friction and tension than anticipated. This week's brief episode is a reflection on how best to prevent this sort of unpleasant surprise from happening. Thanks for listening.
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Some of us kittens look into a mirror and see a mighty lion staring back at us. Some of us lions see little kittens. Honest and clear-headed self evaluation is important... but alas this is a podcast about leading mission driven organizations and I'm no pop psychologist. Nevertheless, I believe that the parallels to leadership are worth thinking about. In this week's episode, I describe how gaining external feedback can be helpful.
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In my book, Saving Organizations That Matter, I describe the importance of "storytelling the mission", that is, describing the work of an organization and its mission in a compelling and even emotionally stirring manner. In this week's episode, I describe three quick tips for improving your ability to storytell the mission.
Thanks for listening. And please consider leaving a review on your podcast platform of choice. It helps others find us here. Thanks! -
For-profits... non-profits... what's the difference?
In this episode, I provide six reasons that the movement toward for-profit health care has had some negative impacts on all of us.
I suspect this is going to be a bit controversial but... I've seen what I've seen. -
For many nonprofit organizations, merger and acquisition strategies are viewed as desperation moves, as a proverbial Hail Mary scenario. This is... quite different... from their for profit counterparts who see M&A options as a way of cashing out of the business or as a means to grow and increase shareholder value. In this week's episode, I argue that many nonprofit mergers fail because they were set up to do just that from the start.
Thanks for listening!
And please consider telling your friends and colleagues about this podcast. Also, positive reviews on your podcast platform help a lot. Thanks. -
You're preparing your strategic plan and hoping to reflect your organization's top tier priority around DEI and anti-racism... so, you make it one of your named top tier priorities or "strategic pillars". Hm... not so fast. This week's episode offers an alternate approach and, as I state, I have come to believe that this is a best practice.
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If you are the leader of an organization, what do you see when you "look in the mirror"? In this episode, I discuss that awkward situation when you realize that everyone else sees something different.
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We all have differing levels of tolerance for uncertainty. Organizations are the same. Unfortunately, however, some leadership teams and boards of directors are SO uncomfortable with uncertainty that they will make rash and unhelpful decisions. I discuss this topic today and offer three potential remedies.
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Strategic planning is important and I've certainly spent a lot of time talking, writing, and podcasting about that. Today, I address the topic of strategic DOING.
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I recently saw that a former colleague from a company I once led posted on social media that he had fallen victim to an affiliation that was not accurately described to him as it was taking shape. Since I was the one responsible for messaging that affiliation, I took his comment as a blow. And that stung.
But... some further reflection has led me to a few conclusions. -
Vision. Every organization should have one and every leader need to be able to articulate his or hers. But not all "visions" are the same.
According to Jonathan Swift, “Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others.”
So, do you help others see the invisible? -
When I was starting out as a young and relatively low-in-the-chain-of-command employee, I was highly focused on the task at hand. I was clear about my responsibilities and how to be successful and I didn’t worry about a great deal more than that. If someone back then had asked me how the company I was working for was doing financially or what its main threats were in the external environment, I don’t think I could have answered. More importantly, I would have thought that those were strange questions for someone at my level to be concerned about.
Things change. -
"Conflict avoided is conflict multiplied." Most people don't relish having to make tough decisions but sometimes putting this off can cause more harm downstream. Organizational culture flows from the personality of the key leaders of the organizations, most notably the CEO's. If that CEO is conflict avoidant... then that may prove to be the biggest problem of all.
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