This post is off-the-beaten path of what I usually write about, but I have been curious about this for sometime. Many consider Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane to be the greatest American movie ever made. Premiering in 1941, it follows the first movie, The Horse in Motion, by 63 years and follows the first talkie, The […]

This installment of the Sixty-Second Strategy challenges board and staff to frame a compelling message by transforming how they talk about their organization.    

At the first board meeting I ever attended, the only person who spoke was my boss, the executive director. Driving back to the office, she asked me what I thought of the meeting. I told her the board was not very engaged. She agreed and said, “I just don’t know how to change that.” I […]

In the May 1st online edition of the Chronicle of Philanthropy a headline stated: “Charities Give Boards Little Training in Fund Raising, Study Finds.” I would argue that most board members do not want training in fund raising. They didn’t join our organizations because they wanted to learn how to prospect, cultivate, and make “asks.” […]

Here’s a simple way to find out. In a middle of a board meeting, look at the people around the table and ask yourself: Does the quality of this discussion match the quality of people? Granted, “quality” is fairly subjective. Yet, it is pretty easy to tell if you have a group of individuals who […]