Love Your Job But Still Struggle?

Echoing what my nonprofit management students and coaching clients describe, two recent studies paint a mixed picture of nonprofit leadership. BIPOC and white leaders alike are passionate about their work to solve important social and environmental issues, but often feel overwhelmed by their jobs. In addition, BIPOC leaders face unique hurdles.

The latest Race to Lead report on the state of nonprofit leadership – released by Building Movement Project (BMP) this spring and based on 2022 research -- found:

• BIPOC leaders report less board support compared to their white counterparts

• Fewer people said they aspire to the top role, especially BIPOC professionals

• Compared to BMP’s prior research, respondents reported more support was available to BIPOC leaders – peer groups, mentors, prof. development & coaching

• Compared to white leaders, fewer BIPOC leaders said they planned to stay in their roles for 3 years

 The Chronicle of Philanthropy recently published findings from a survey of over 350 nonprofit executives. On May 7, 2024, COP’s article “A Really Tough Job: Nonprofit CEOs Work to Make Their Roles More Manageable,” cited the following statistics:

• 97% say the benefits of their jobs outweigh the negatives

• 90% say they feel tremendous pressure to succeed in their roles

• 88% say the demands on nonprofit leaders are never-ending

• ·58% say they struggle with work-life balance due to the demands of their jobs

• 33% say they intend to leave their current organization in the next two years

Respondents to the COP survey mentioned the following leadership challenges:

• The unrelenting scope of the work and its creep into personal time

• The constant need to fundraise

• Struggles to engage uninvolved board members

• The emotional weight of bearing the burden alone

 Strategies to Manage the Challenges

 The COP study is a “huge wake-up call for boards,” said Sara Garlick Lundberg, a nonprofit executive search consultant at DHR Global, that they need to be thinking about their organization’s leadership bench three to five years out.

 Other mitigation strategies mentioned in the COP article are:

·      “Do less, but do it better,” said Jordan Shenker, who has worked for Jewish community centers for over 30 years. Consider narrowing the organization’s scope and focusing on getting excellent results, he advises.

·      “Hire good people and get the hell out of their way,” Shenker adds.

 ·      If you haven’t already, hire an executive assistant to take mundane administrative tasks off your plate, recommended Bob Lenz, CEO of PBLWorks. “Some [executives] don’t think they can afford to have an executive assistant. My feeling is they can’t afford not to.”

·      Show up authentically and share some of your burden. Sara Cole, CEO of the Duluth Area Family YMCA, says, “I want to show up as a whole person…There’s real power in sharing our own experiences. Unfortunately, as leaders we feel pressure to be our LinkedIn selves, as opposed to showing the kind of vulnerability that is comforting [to our staff].”

 ·      When hiring a new leader of color, be sure the board and staff leaders are prepared to address systemic inequities, advises Tara Hoffman, chief program and strategy officer at BoardSource. When a frank discussion of those barriers is absent, it’s unlikely the new leader will succeed.

·      Phil Buchanan, president of the Center for Effective Philanthropy, says, “For both CEOs and boards, the hardest part is recognizing when you have to say no. Be clear about what you can do, given the resources you have. If you’re forever relying on staff to go above and beyond, sooner or later they’re going to walk away.”

What strategies have you found to help you effectively manage the pressure of your nonprofit leadership role? I’d love to hear about them!