Fundraisers talk a lot about donor retention. But, what about employee retention and how it impacts donors? Many nonprofits have a revolving door of development professionals. The average tenure of a fundraiser is less than 2 years. And the donor pays the price.… [Read more…]
In many nonprofits, there is not a clear divide between board and staff responsibilities. Then you add in long-term volunteers, founders, and advisory boards and things get even muddier. Who should have the final say on a decision? And, should you have that… [Read more…]
This past year, 3 associates at Mersky, Jaffe & Associates provided interim Development Professionals placement, as Interim Executive/Fractional Employees, for clients. The impact varied, as did the amount of time each associate spent with the organization, but each helped the nonprofit move forward… [Read more…]
by David A. Mersky Emergency leadership transition management has been on my mind ever since the tragic, untimely death last month of Rabbi Aaron D. Panken, Ph.D., z”l, may his memory be for a blessing, the 12th president of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute… [Read more…]
Quick question: If you are starting a new job and you want to start going to the gym again do you: Wait until you settle in, then figure out how gym time can fit into your schedule Start hitting the gym the first… [Read more…]
I just read an interesting piece in the New York Times, “When Being Unproductive Saves a Career.” It focused on how a sabbatical could revitalize your nonprofit, among the highlights were the twenty years of data to prove: Sabbaticals help retain staff (“One… [Read more…]
This past week I presented at the NATA conference with David A. Mersky and Rachel M. Woda. We knew there were interesting competing sessions, so we were pleasantly surprised with the strong turnout. I’d like to think this was based on the presenters… [Read more…]
Managing relationships among lay leadership and staff. Navigating the relationships between senior staff and lay leadership is critical to mission driven work and seamless operations. We believe this so strongly that we even wrote a book about it. You can get your own copy—either… [Read more…]
Last week I went to a conference where I saw phenomenal speakers. The list included Michelle Obama, Billie Jean King, Selina Tobaccowala, Brit Marling, Issa Rae, Mario Batali and Andy Cohen. The topics ranged from the experience of being the former FLOTUS (or… [Read more…]
The fact that Uber CEO, Travis Kalanick, has resigned is a major headline this week. The CEO, has been under fire for what the New York Times reported. “The company has been exposed this year as having a workplace culture that included sexual harassment and… [Read more…]