Non-profit organizational turnaround — Pacific Northwest
They Knew the Story. They Had Forgotten What It Meant.
A colleague had been asked to build a fundraising plan for a non-profit. Feeling there was a deeper issue, he asked me to join the next meeting. The organization had been founded in the late 1950s by a group of parents whose children with disabilities were turned away by the local school district. The founder opened her own school to prove the kids could be educated and were worth the investment. When the district admitted the kids a few years later, she looked for the next gap and kept serving this population of kids.
When I walked in the door, the organization appeared rudderless. Bank balances were critically low, next steps were unclear, and the board had considered closing its doors the year before.
The fundraising plan wasn't the problem. The organization had lost its moxy, its fight.
I found a partner in the incoming executive director who shared my belief in the power of the founding story and untapped potential of the existing staff. Together we advocated with the board for a 3 year budget that prioritized staff raises over financial safety in year one. We asked the board to bet that investment would unlock performance and drive earned income. While the budget was “sprinkled with optimism," it passed. On a $1.1M budget, revenue exceeded expenses in year one. By year 3, the organization was running a three month surplus on a $2.4M budget.
It all started with that single bet. A belief in possibilities rather scarcity slowly enveloped the organization. Pride in never turning a client away started to be stated openly. The organization rebranded to “Believing in Abilities,” rather than leading with what they could not.
This wasn't a non-profit problem. The same dynamic shows up in companies that have grown past the instincts that built them. The original fight is still there. It's been buried under the weight of getting through the week. When I walk into an organization where leadership has stopped expecting much from IT, from their teams, from themselves, I'm usually looking at the same thing. The answer is usually right in front of us.
That's the work.