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This is the first in a series of blogs based on findings and insights from our 2023 ED/CEO Survey.
There’s no denying it: the past few years have felt like riding a rollercoaster without a safety bar. If you were leading an organization in March 2020, you experienced an unpredictable and persistent whiplash that lasted through the first year of the pandemic (and beyond).
This summer, DRG embarked on an effort to deepen our understanding of our sector’s current state of leadership. We conducted a survey and held individual interviews with leaders to uncover what they have learned and how they have grown recently.
Over the course of these interviews and many other conversations with nonprofit CEOs and EDs these past few months, a consistent refrain has emerged: CEOs have not yet debriefed the lessons, the trauma, the growth, and the overall impact the pandemic has had on leadership.
So, let’s debrief—starting with what we heard in DRG’s survey of nonprofit leaders. CEOs and EDs shared their wisdom on some of their biggest lessons from the past few years in our recent survey, and we’ve included their top tips and valuable excerpts below.
We must face and accept the cards we are dealt and find a way to succeed.
- “A transformational leader does not necessarily see things that happen as automatically good or bad, right or wrong.”
- “Change is hard, but necessary/unavoidable…best to embrace it and dig in—and view it as a strength.”
- “Meeting staff members where they are and not where I want them to be.”
Centering on relationships requires two-way vulnerability and more honesty than “niceness.”
- “Effective, healthy relationships are at the core of a thriving organization.”
- “Removing toxic staff persons, especially those in leadership, before morale is diminished/eliminated.”
- “Be open and honest about what I need to be successful.”
- “It’s important to be vulnerable with your team to create space for innovative thinking and creativity.”
Hiring for competencies over experience gives you access to untapped talent and the expansive growth that comes from investing in your people.
- “People can learn the job, but they can’t learn initiative, passion for the mission, and authenticity.”
We are stronger than we think—but it’s dangerous to mistake a marathon for a sprint.
- “Burnout is real and requires intentional programs and activities to mitigate it.”
- “I’ve learned to care but not carry [the weight of others].”
So, what stories are you telling yourself about the last few years? What lessons do you carry with you—and how will they shape your leadership?
