 |
February, 2005 -by Peter C.
Brinckerhoff
This Month's topic:
Leadership
TO SUBSCRIBE: If you are not already
receiving the MBM Newsletter, simply send an email to
subscribe@missionbased.com. You
will be added to our mailing list and begin receiving your own copy next month.
Anti-spam promise: Your email address will
not be sold, lent, or passed on to any other person or organization. In
addition, I don't use Microsoft Outlook or Outlook Express for my mail server,
so if a worm ever gets into my computers, it won't steal your
address!
TO UNSUBSCRIBE: If you no longer wish to
receive this newsletter, send an email to
unsubscribe@missionbased.com
and you will be promptly removed from the mailing list.
NOW AVAILABLE:
TRAINING ON NONPROFIT LEADERSHIP
I am
happy to announce a new training session that I am providing on nonprofit
leadership. Based on my new book,
Nonprofit Stewardship: A Better Way to Lead Your Mission-Based
Organization, the training covers the entire range of
nonprofit issues, including staff and board leadership, financial stewardship,
ways that funders can support nonprofit leaders, organizational transparency,
and how to lead in difficult times.
The training is available in half or
full-day lengths. Click to see a
sample
agenda, and click to see other
training information,
including fees, other topics, sample audio and video, and a partial listing of
past clients. |
Blog!
Problem: There is so
much going on in our field that a once-a-month communication doesn't seem
adequate.
Solution: The Mission-Based Management
Blog. I am trying to post every day with something of value to
nonprofit board, staff, volunteers, and funders.
Check it out, see if
you find things that can help you. My postings are in no particular order, just
what's on my mind, or what has crossed my desk or monitor that I think you
should be aware of.
And, like any blog, you can comment right on the blog
for others to see. If you agree, disagree, or have other resources to share,
please do! |
|
| This Month's Topic: Leadership |
Each month, this area provides with a
number of my favorite and most helpful sites regarding the topic of the month.
|
Management
Tip of the Month
Each issue, I start with a discussion
of my management perspective on the month's topic, and give you a few hands-on
ideas to consider. |
|
Recommended Publications
Here, I provide you with my
recommendations on the best printed materials available that can help you
become more mission-capable in the area of leadership. |
Technology
I provide you with some good ideas for
uses of tech to better your organization in the area of
leadership
|
|
Marketing
Tip
So much to say, so little space to say
it....leadership rocks in the marketing area..
|
Next
Issue
In March we'll examine an old issue through
new eyes. How do you go about identifyingcore competencies? And why
should you? I'll show you. |
Websites of the
Month
This section includes websites of interest on this
month's topic, Leadership. There is so much on-line in this area, the
problem was winnowing it down to the best of the best!
Back to
Top
Management Tip of the Month
Leadership. Easy to say, tough to
do...
I could write forever on this subject...in fact my
book on leadership,
Nonprofit
Stewardship is one of only about 1.5 gazillion on the subject. Why?
Because leadership is SO important in all organizations, and particularly in
nonprofits. Over and over in my 30 years of leading and consulting to
nonprofits, I have seen the results of wonderful, and of terrible, leadership
and its impact on mission. It is crucial at ALL levels of the organization, not
just at the top. Study after study has shown that people are most affected
(positively or negatively) not by organizational policy, strategic vision, or
even mission, but by the attitude, character and competence of their
immediate supervisor.
Three quick thoughts for you to chew on:
1. What you say matters. What you do matters
more. Managers (note that I don't say leaders) who say one thing and do
another are not leaders. They are manipulators, and have no respect from the
people that they work with. Leaders need to walk the talk, and be visible doing
so.
2. "People don't care what you know until they
know that you care." This is my absolute favorite maxim from the many John
Maxwell books on leadership. You have to be involved with the people you
supervise and lead. You have to know their strengths and their weaknesses,
their triumphs and their tribulations. How can you expect to pull the best out
of your people, to challenge them and involve them if you don't get some
insights into who they are and what they are capable of?
3. The best leaders are coaches, not
dictators. Coaches realize that they achieve their goals through the
actions of others. Good leaders know this too. They understand that there are
only 24 hours in the day, and accept that they can't do EVERYTHING the best,
and hire others who have supplementary and complementary skills. Dictators
think they are infallible. Coaches know better.
Enough. I've suggested some great reading on
leadership in the book list below and on the websites listed above. Remember
that excellence in leadership, just as in so many other skills, is a
never-ending journey. And, great leaders help develop the other leaders around
them. Remember, you can't do everything. Grow the leadership in your
organization and more mission will get out the door.
If you found this hint helpful, there are
lots more management, marketing, and technology ideas for you in the "Ideas"
section at www.missionbased.com.
Check them out--they're free.
Remember to take a look at the
Mission-Based Management
Blog.
Back to
Top
Print Resources
My recommendations in
Leadershipare shown below. There are about a zillion leadership books
out there, so take a look at these, which I really like, and then go on to
others.
If you want more information on these
recommendations, click on the cover image. You will go the page about the book
on Amazon.com. There, you can look at more info about the book, and read some
reviews before you decide whether or not to purchase or look for this book at
your local library.
Note: If you want more
recommendations on publications in a wide variety of areas, including
leadership, go to the publications section of my website:
http://www.missionbased.com/publications.htm
Again, If you don't find enough choices there, type
"leadership" at Amazon.com and you'll have more choices than you
probably want!
Back to
Top
Technology Ideas .
Technology and Leadership....yes there is
a connection...
One of the key characteristics of a great
leader is the ability to communicate well, to be learning constantly, and to
stay in touch with their many constituencies (the people they supervise, the
people they serve, the people that supervise them, the board of directors, the
community, their funders, just to name a few). Tech can certainly help in this,
but as in so many things, technology is can be a great supplement and
accelerator, but is never a permanent substitute for face-to-face
communication. That having been said, a leader usually has many things
competing for his or her time, and tech can help use that time in more
effective ways.
Let's look at a few things you can use tech for as you
seek to improve your own leadership skills and the skills of those around
you.
1. Use your website to state your vision, your
aspirations, your goals, and to tout your organization's accomplishments.
Visibility is important to leadership.
2. Use your email
efficiently to stay in touch with a broader audience. Develop lists of board,
staff, community leaders, and donors who you can communicate with effectively
and efficiently between the times that you meet with them in person
3.
Use teleconferencing to talk to these groups when face-to-face
meetings aren't possible. Hearing people's voices is better than reading their
emails in terms of keeping in touch. There are lots of inexpensive
teleconferencing firms out there that work well. Don't just use the big telecom
firms: they tend to charge more.
4. Consider starting a blog
about issues of importance to your area of work It's easy, and amazingly
effective. There are lots of good blogging sites on the web. I use
blogger.com
Keep your eyes open
about the uses that tech can have to accelerate the effectiveness of your
leadership. Just don't fall into the trap of hiding behind the technology.
Nothing substitutes for personal contact.
If you found this hint helpful, there are lots more
management, marketing, and technology ideas for you in the "Ideas" section at
www.missionbased.com. Check them
out--they're free.
Back to
Top
Training Schedule for Peter Brinckerhoff
Below you'll see the date, location, and topics
of training I'm scheduled to do in the next few months. For more information on
a particular speaking engagement, get in touch with the contact person listed
in the right hand column, or email
me.
For more information on my availability throughout
the next 12-18 months, available topics, sample agendas, and fees go to
www.missionbased.com/training.htm
| Date |
City |
Topic |
Contact |
| 2/01/05 - 2/27/05 |
Springfield, IL |
Healing |
Still housebound healing my
broken ankle. On Feb 28, I head to..... |
| 3/01/05 |
Silver Spring, MD |
Nonprofit Stewardship |
Maryland Nonprofits
Jill
Stephenson
jstephenson@mdnonprofit.org |
| 3/02/05 |
Mt. Washington, MD |
Managing In Difficult Times |
Maryland Nonprofits
Jill
Stephenson
jstephenson@mdnonprofit.org |
| 3/11/05 |
Quincy, IL |
Mission - Based Management |
Chelona Edgerly
Quincy
University
edgerch@quincy.edu |
| 3/21/05 |
London, U.K. |
Mission-Based Marketing |
Peter Dyer
National Centre
for Voluntary Organisations
peter.dyer@ncvo-vol.org.uk
|
| 3/23/05 |
London, U.K. |
Generation Change and
Charities |
Peter Dyer
National Centre
for Voluntary Organisations
peter.dyer@ncvo-vol.org.uk
|
| 4/17/05 |
Chicago |
Performance Management in
Nonprofits |
Liz Livingston Howard
liz-howard@kellogg.northwestern.edu |
| 4/28/05 |
Fargo, N.D. |
Mission-Based
Management/
Social Entrepreneurship |
Mary Mercer
Minot State
University
mercer@minotstateu.edu |
Marketing Tip
Marketing and Leadership.....they go hand
in hand....
How can leadership be a marketing issue? Or
the reverse, what impact can marketing have on leadership? Quite a lot. First,
let's look at the simple issue of WHAT you will be leading. I hope, if you are
a regular reader, you already believe in the power of things like good
marketing, customer service, life-long learning, etc. Thus, you should LEAD
regarding things like asking customers what they want, listening to customers,
etc. People care what you say, but they care more about what you do. If
marketing is important to you, it will be important to the
organization.
Second, being a good, visible, and growing leader
appeals to your staff, board, and funder markets. Each of these groups wants
you to lead, to innovate, to show your passion for mission.
Third, if you are an effective leader, your
organization can become a leader in your field. If you are not effective, it
will rub off on the organization as a whole. And, organizations that are
leaders get more attention, more respect, more funding, and more scrutiny! But
it all starts with you, and the key managers in the
organization.
If you want to see more about this in detail, take
a look at more about my book
Mission-Based Marketing; Second
Edition
If you found this hint helpful, there are lots more
management, marketing, and technology ideas for you in the "Ideas" section at
www.missionbased.com. Check them
out--they're free.
Back to
Top
Future Topics in 2005
for the Mission-Based Management Newsletter....
| March |
Core
Competencies |
| April |
Expanding to New
Markets |
| May |
Endowments |
| June |
Mission Uses of
Technology |
| July |
Sustainability
(yes Michelle, this means you...) |
| August |
Entrepreneurship |
| September |
Ethical Employee
Benefits |
| Send me
your topic suggestions at peter@missionbased.com |
Back to Top
You asked, so here they are:
Past Single-Topic Issues of the Mission-Based Management Newsletter...
|
| |
|
|
Copyright 2006,
Corporate Alternatives, inc. |
|
