Inauguration Blues

I am not going to add another motivating Inauguration paper on the inspiration of the moment. It was awesome. I was inspired. Done.

One of my lasting memories actually occurred in the morning as I tried to get to the national mall. I woke up in the morning at 4 and was on a bus by 5. The bus took me to the DC Metro and got on at around 5:30, ready to meet my group of friends by 7:30. I had a seat and was on my way. Ding Dong, stated the loud speaker, someone had become ill and we all had to get off the train. I got off to a full platform of people waiting to get on the train. Was told that my group, actual people who were on the train could go across the platform and an empty train would be coming shortly. Ah, what a system. My only worry was hoping that I got a seat on the new train.

It went horribly wrong and a voice inside my head new that it was a bad idea to get off the train in the first place. The announcer stated that those on the platform could board the train and so our old seats now belonged to someone else. Then the train came, except it was not for us, it was going the opposite way. We had to go back over and join the ranks already on the platform to get on already crowded trains. I was on the platform for another hour and the rest was as bad as the photo above.

As it relates to this blog, what rule I was reminded of was that the voice on the loud speaker was regarded as an authority and the authority was horribly wrong. As it relates to management, an even the new president, it is not a bad idea to question the voice on the loud speaker. Management and the loud speaker deserve as much.....

Back from Africa

I am back from my trip to Kenya and one of my tasks was to keep an eye out for signs of capacity building and technical assistance relating to management and leadership. The quick answer is that I saw none, although I really asked around.

The greatest example was when the Ministry of Health was giving me a tour of a facility. They were very adamant about showing me the new printing press that they have received, replacing the old one from 1978, which was discarded. They had a room full of poster paper ready to print and so I asked when all of this was going forward, they stated that the operator was not educated in the new printing press operations and the closest place to be trained on it was in Denmark. They were working out how to get him to the training in the next millennium. The new printing press was an item that was really fancied by a senior manager and purchased at the end of the fiscal year with dollars needing to be used.

They all acknowledged that decisions like this were common and so I asked the obvious question: "Is there management training or coaching for your leaders". The response from a woman in the back was, "No but they are good and coaching and training us." She got an evil eye from a couple of her co-workers.

Some parallels to our work in the USA but it was apparent that in the area where I was, executive leadership needed some coaching and the idea of coaching them was foreign. So was I.

Capacity Building in Africa

Short Post as I head into some travel.....

I am off to Kenya and have a two hour delay in the airport. I think one of the things I will try to pay attention to when I visit a couple of NGO groups is their focus on organizational development and capacity building, outside of fund development. Will keep you posted....

Also, I am stopping by a cafe for social innovators in London. I hope it is everything I envision in my head, with people sitting around and focusing on ideas for bettering the world and drinking drinks entitled, "Leverage Latte"....

Pay Attention to Bill Blass...Not Me

First, I hope that everyone had a great holiday season and that the New Year is finding you favorably. If you are like me, I think the New Year is finding you busier than ever.

I know this has been a constant rant for me but I am sorry, please allow me to start the year on my soap box. As I left for my X-Mas in San Diego I retired to small corner of the house, away from the craziness of wrapping paper and was reading the New York Times. This Sunday edition had two articles that I think are worth mentioning together. The first one, again outlined the need for nonprofits to borrow techniques and ideas from the for-profit community. It was pretty standard jargon of how the business community is all-knowing and the nonprofit community is walking around scraping its knuckles on the ground.

In the same newspaper, in a Business Section filled with stories of bad business decisions, was the story of the demise of Bill Blass clothing line. In a nut shell, it basically folded after the clothing house failed to do proper transition management, going from CEO to CEO until ultimately the organization finds itself past the point of no return. The cae, as written by the Times, shows how Transition Management was inproperly done. I am excited to use this as a case study....

As with the Harvard example written about earlier, I think it is about time for leaders to sit down from each side and discuss management...maybe someone will learn something. Now I have to look for the discount rack for a Bill Blass shirt.

Don't Drink That: How The Habit of Tasting the Bad Milk Hurts Us All

I was on the board of the Loudoun County United Way for a short time when I lived in the Washington D.C. area. It was right after the famous scandal that rocked the United Way in that area. It was a rought time for local nonprofits in the region, even though the local economy was thriving. Groups spent much time and resources on positioning themselves to donors to obtain confidence. What I felt mostly is that at times nonprofits were equal to a glass of spoiled milk.

The article in the WSJ regarding the Bernie Madoff scandal hurts nonprofits, in a similiar way. Nonprofits had nothing to do with the Madoff scandal, yet again there is a bad milk smell that causes donors to hesitate. This is happening in the midst of a the current economic climate.

My assessment on all of this is that nonprofits are unfairly tarnished by some bad apples but also bad media. The stories often look for the opposite sides of the spectrum, either new milk or smelly milk. Madoff is a good case in point. Ponzi scheme for the wealthy that goes terribly wrong. How does that have anything to do with a great human service agency in Harlem. Nothing at all but that Harlem group's bottom line will suffer because of the rush to cover the bad milk.

Tough economic times call for us to watch our bottom line more closely, but I also think it should involve more work at showcasing the fresh milk. There is a lot of it.....

Do Successful Corporate Leaders Equal Successful Nonprofit Leaders

This weekend I read an article in the NY Times (www.nytimes.com/2008/12/13/business/13next.html?scp=7&sq=David%20Gergen&st=cse). The article is about a program at Harvard University that is training former corporate CEOs in a one year fellowship on being nonprofit CEOs. While I am for further education, three thoughts crossed my mind. They are as follows:

1. I feel a little disrespected when people think that a one-year, once a week/month fellowship is enough for someone to be able to come in an run a nonprofit effectively. It makes me think that there is little regard for the sector.
   
2. Why isn't there a similar program for corporate CEOs. I think the corporate sector could really gain from the leadership of a nonprofit CEO.
3. While much has been stated in the nonprofit world about the impending leadership gap regarding the baby boomers retiring and not enough nonprofit leaders able to take over, I do not see this as the only reason to leap over to the help of the corporate sector. I am sorry, but every headline I read in a business periodical relates to an issue that can be directly tied to bad corporate leadership. And this is the pool that the nonprofit sector should be begging for.

Maybe I am over-reacting but I get a little angry when people immediately think that either corporate practice or leadership can swoop in for the lowly nonprofit sector. In my opinion, it should be the other way around. Maybe a bailout would not be needed if the corporate leader spent time on the ground floor of a nonprofit and worked their way up.

Nugget: Free Capacity Building Training from White House

The White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives and the United States Department of Labor Center for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives invites you to participate in a unique, three-part training to improve your organization's ability to measure, manage, and communicate results. Participants who complete the training will also receive free case management and outcomes tracking software.

This valuable Results-Based Management training is free and will be offered in three, 90-minute webinars on December 18, 2008, January 6, 2009, and January 13, 2009, from 2:00-3:30 p.m. (EST). This opportunity is open to faith-based and other community nonprofits engaged in addressing poverty, disease, and other critical human needs.

Results-Based Management training strengthens organizations' information management capabilities and services, spurs strategic thinking, and equips organizations to communicate more effectively about what funders care most about: real impact in the lives of people in need.

The first 90-minute training webinar on December 18, 2008, will teach the fundamentals of creating and applying an outcomes-focused, case management information system. At the conclusion of the first webinar, you will be asked to complete and submit a logic model (evaluation plan) for one program offered by your organization for evaluation by experts.

Prior to the second training webinar, experts will assess your logic model and provide feedback. The second 90-minute training webinar on January 6, 2009, will build on the first by fine tuning your organization's logic model with the help of experts and peers taking part in the webinar.

The third 90-minute training webinar on January 13, 2009, will teach you how to use case management and outcomes tracking software and customize it for your organization's specific program(s). If you or your colleagues participate in and complete all three training webinars, your organization will also receive a free, one-year license to use ResultsOnline2, a web-based case management and outcomes tracking software.

To register for this unique training opportunity, please click here and complete the online registration by Friday, December 12, 2008.