Issues in Nonprofit Culture

I have worked at several nonprofits in senior-level positions and now have my consulting practice. I have seen three main themes from my view of leadership and consultation.

The first theme is employees do not take their jobs seriously. Many employees think a non-profit role is less demanding than a corporate one, so they become less productive and underperform. The problem is many nonprofits don’t utilize the best performance appraisals and don’t hold employees accountable, compounding the mess for HR to deal with.

The second theme is the board, and they either try to micromanage the organization or take the opposite approach. Whether the board is overinvolved or absent, the result is the same, which is the impact of the director’s decisions on culture. Micromanaging can create fear and anxiety in a workplace, and the lack of involvement can cause mission creep or wasteful spending. The resulting culture is one of gluttony and zero accountability.

The final theme is waste. Many nonprofits spend money on things they don’t need or use. Centralizing purchasing and transparent bidding for large jobs or orders will improve cash flow, profitability, and liquidity.