Nonprofit HR’s Blog

By Lisa Wright Ponce, SPHR

Experts across the globe have weighed in on what leadership is and how strong leaders are made or grown. Often, however, those intellectual ideals and principles are difficult to implement in the day to day operations of organizations. Here, we have laid out 7 daily behaviors and skills that you can put into practice today to achieve success for your organization.

Insure mission sustainability

Develop discipline and rigor around financial management and talent alignment; one without the other will not guarantee sustainability. Understand your mission and align fact-based decision-making with it.

Drive a performance-based culture

Set high expectations and develop compensation, reward and recognition and career development plans to retain employees who rise to the occasion.

Exercise emotional intelligence

Possess the awareness, honesty, and objectivity to keep egos in check and remain sensitive to employee needs. Surround yourself with people who are strong in areas that challenge you.  You need not find every solution.

Promote inclusivity and diversity

Issues and problems in today’s workplace and the nonprofit sector are complex. The solutions must reflect as many perspectives and options as possible in order to find the right and best workable option.

Lead, follow or get out of the way

Recognize that the best leaders know when to lead and when to simply clear the path of obstacles in order for others to succeed.

Listen, listen, listen

Listen more, talk less. Cultivate feedback opportunities and you’ll be amazed at what you learn about the organization’s success and challenges.  You lead more easily when you’re well-informed.

Lead change fearlessly

Inspire others to recognize and take advantage of the opportunities that change presents, as well as accept the inevitability of frequent adaptation in successful organizations. Innovation is requisite for sustainability.

Keep these points in mind as you go about your regular activities. I am certain that you will realize moments where you can lead more effectively. Now take your mission and lead it!