Organizations are at their strongest when the people who power them take the time to invest in themselves. Yet, driven by ambitious missions and the pressure to maximize every precious dollar, leaders of nonprofit organizations too often don’t invest enough in their own professional development. That is why Barr joined five other funders to introduce to the Boston area a program with a strong track record of helping nonprofits develop their leadership teams.
The Bridgespan Group’s Leading for Impact (LFI) program in Boston builds on the success of LFI programs already taking place in Atlanta, Seattle, and Washington, D.C. The program has two main components. The first is a series of workshops focused on building strategic management and leadership skills. The second comprises customized projects, in which leadership teams apply what they’ve learned by tackling priority issues within their organizations, with coaching, feedback, and other resources provided by Bridgespan consultants.
LFI establishes cohorts of participants who share ideas and support each other along the way. That network approach has proven valuable to participants, as president and CEO of Urban Habitat and LFI graduate attests: “Oftentimes you feel isolated in this work…To know that you have others that are feeling the same things, you can share stories, you can share tears, you can share successes, all of those pieces is what really helps.” Nonprofit executives also complete the program with three or more members of their leadership teams—building capacity among a broader set of colleagues.
LFI–Boston is now seeking participants for its first cohort of nonprofit leaders, who will begin the program in January 2017, as well as for future cohorts. According to Bridgespan, the curriculum is best suited for nonprofits eager to tackle pressing issues and to strengthen their capacity to do so as a team. The subsidized cost of the program for each nonprofit is $15,000 over two years. Bridgespan welcomes applications on a rolling basis. We invite you to visit the LFI–Boston webpage to express interest and to learn more, or email leadership[at]bridespan.org, and one of Bridgespan’s program facilitators will reply to arrange a meeting.
Barr supports LFI–Boston through our Cross-Program Initiatives and out of our commitment to invest in leaders. We know that supporting effective, visionary, and collaborative leaders is essential to driving change and we hope this resource encourages nonprofit leaders to focus on impact by investing in themselves and their teams.
