Nonprofit Consulting Services

𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 New CEOs rarely arrive with new boards. More often than not, the board is already in place with set priorities and governance traditions. Unlike Executive teams which CEO’s can gradually shape through appointments and rotations, boards tend to have longer tenures, which means that the CEO is likely to work with the same board for the entirety of their service.   In the early days, while it might be tempting to reimagine the board and wish for one more aligned to your ideals, it is more prudent to seek clarity and alignment.  Drawing from both books and my own experience, a few key lessons stand out about aligning with an existing board while charting a new course: 𝗟𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱 Every board has its own rhythm, history, and unwritten codes. In early meetings, asking more questions than you answer and observing how directors deliberate and where influence lies builds trust more effectively than asserting authority. 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗲𝘀 The board governs, while the CEO executes. Preserving that distinction is crucial. When boundaries blur, both roles suffer. Clear communication and strategic focus build mutual confidence. 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 Boards respond best to transparent strategy and clear framing of risk and opportunity. Distilling complex issues into focused priorities, supported by data and timelines, accelerates alignment and enables faster decisions. 𝗨𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽𝘀 Boards often carry history, be it from past transitions, refined strategies, or external shocks. A CEO who acknowledges that history without being defined by it shows emotional intelligence and strategic maturity. One-on-one conversations with directors can help you quickly unearth insights that will be instrumental in your future engagements with the Board.   Manage expectations early Boards carry both hopes and pressures. Without clear expectation setting, a CEO may be measured against unspoken assumptions. Clarifying what is realistic in the short, medium, and long term fosters shared understanding and prevents avoidable frustration. 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝗮𝗹 Alignment is not about unanimous agreement. It is about building conviction around shared purpose and direction. Dissent, when used to test assumptions, can lead to stronger, more resilient decisions. The Chair–CEO relationship is central to this. Investing in it sets the tone for the entire board. The CEO–Board relationship should never be an afterthought. It is a cornerstone of resilience and a catalyst for long-term growth. • How are you building trust with the board you have today? • What principles have helped you align with a board you did not choose? • And perhaps most importantly, how are you unlocking the potential of the one you inherited?

If your nonprofit can’t explain its Theory of Change in one breath… you probably don’t have one. Let me say this louder for the good people at the back: Theory of Change is not just a donor requirement. It’s your organisation’s compass. Your “why → what → how → impact” map. And without it? You’re basically throwing programs at a problem and hoping something sticks. Let’s break it down with a simple, practical example: Problem: Girls in rural communities drop out of school by age 13. Goal: Keep them in school through secondary education. Here’s a basic Theory of Change: - If we provide scholarships - And train local mentors - And run community awareness campaigns - Then parents will be more supportive, girls will stay in school, and completion rates will improve. Theory of Change isn’t just what you’re doing- it’s the logic behind your work. Why does it matter? Because: - It helps your team stay focused (no more random activities “just because”) - It makes it easier to evaluate what’s working - It gives funders confidence that you’re not just passionate, you’re also strategic - It helps onboard staff faster - It shows your beneficiaries that you’re not guessing If your organisation is growing, struggling with clarity, or applying for funding, you need a Theory of Change that makes sense to humans, not just M&E consultants. I help nonprofits clarify this (without the jargon or the headache). Let me know if your team is due for a Theory of Change reset or if you want to build one that doesn’t collect dust after the proposal is approved. Laura Temituoyo Ede Making strategy make sense – One logic model at a time

Nonprofits, if I had to build corporate partnerships from scratch today, here’s the real playbook: 1. Stop begging. Start collaborating. Your opening line to a company should never be: “We’re looking for sponsors.” Instead, it should be: “We’re building a movement around [cause]. Want to co-author the story?” Shift your posture from “needing help” to “offering opportunity.” 2. Ditch the gold-silver-bronze garbage. Create partnership experiences that feel custom-built: Fund an innovation lab Co-host a thought leadership series Launch a branded scholarship program Make them the hero of a tangible impact, not a logo on a step-and-repeat. 3. Play offense on LinkedIn If you’re waiting for CSR managers to stumble onto your website, you’ve already lost. Connect with CSR, ESG, HR, and Marketing leads at 50 dream companies. Post 3–4 times a week showing WHY your mission matters to their brand narrative. Share wins with attribution: “Thanks to partners like [Company], we [result].” Visibility builds familiarity. Familiarity builds trust. Trust builds checks. 4. Build a Corporate Advisory Council. Invite 5–10 execs from different companies to join a “founding circle.” No donation required upfront. What you’re asking for: • Their insights • Their network • Their pride of ownership Once they feel bought in, the dollars will follow. 5. Make it ridiculously easy to say yes. No 17-page decks. No committee calls. No 90-day “we’ll get back to you” limbo. Your ask should be crystal clear: “We have a $25,000 project funding gap.” “Here’s what you’ll get in return.” “Here’s how your brand will be celebrated.” Simplicity wins deals. Period. 6. Follow up like a human, not a robot. No “just circling back” emails. No “checking in on my proposal” DMs. Send them micro-wins: “Just wanted to share, we hit 100 youth served this month!” “This story made me think of your team’s values.” Stay top of mind without being top of inbox spam. In 2025, partnerships are won by building narratives, not asking for charity. You’re not selling sponsorships. You’re offering legacy. Act accordingly. Want to learn how we’re helping nonprofits land $25K–$250K partnerships without begging? Comment “Build” or DM me. We’re opening a private training soon.

Every few weeks, I get emails from younger people asking: “I want to start my own nonprofit. Any advice?” Here’s what I’ve learned after investing blood and sweat building Chintan (Environmental Research and Action Group) : 1. Let your work create livelihoods for others—not lifestyles for yourself. This is not a for-profit hoping to become a unicorn. It’s not about scaling fast or optimizing margins. It’s about showing up for real people with real stakes. 2. Don't use the word ‘beneficiary.’ It assumes a hierarchy. But if you’re earning a living, setting the agenda, speaking on panels, and being quoted—let’s be honest: you are a prime beneficiary too. That clarity changes everything. It grounds your intent. And helps you build with accountability, not abstraction. It also adds ‘collaborators’ to your everyday vocabulary. 3. Map the invisible and involve them early. Every sector has those it forgets: differently abled communities, elderly workers, and caste-oppressed women. They may not be your immediate collaborators. But their perspectives will deepen your design and sharpen your ethics. 4. Don’t chase urgency. Sit with root causes. Fast action often feels good, but impact needs painstakingly gleaned evidence, social infrastructure and amplified voice. If you're working on the green economy, gender, or climate, invest in the hard questions. Build the ecosystem, not just your brand. 5. Seek Co-founders : Embrace people who do what you don’t.  Every organization needs these three:  → Someone who knows the issue  → Someone who handles ops  → Someone obsessed with compliance (pay them best) If you’re building something that hopes to last, let it be built on honesty. And let that honesty begin with the question: Whose voice is leading this, and whose life is it changing? #BharatiWrites #Chintan #NonprofitLeadership #EthicsInDevelopment #SouthAsia #SocialImpact #LanguageMatters

I was on a call recently with someone who doesn’t usually work in the non-profit space. Smart guy. Asked good questions. At one point, he said what he found hardest was not defaulting to jargon. Then he gave examples of the words he was trying to avoid. “Impact.” "Empower." “Strategic opportunity.” I laughed. Because… Welcome to the world of nonprofit communications. So I shared a small cheat I use all the time (one anyone can use, not just comms people). If you’re about to say something like: “We’re here to make impact for children” Stop. And replace the jargon word with what you actually do. So instead of “impact”, you say: “We help children eat three meals a day.” That’s it. Take the abstract word out. Put the real action in. Plain language isn’t dumbing things down. It’s respecting your audience enough to be clear. And clarity is what helps people understand, remember and act. I’ve added a small carousel with examples you can steal, showing how to replace common non-profit jargon with plain, human language. Save it. Screenshot it. Use it in your next proposal or website rewrite.

This is a friendly reminder that diversity without equity simply doesn't happen. SHRM, an organization that trains and equips HR professionals, recently made waves by adopting the acronym I&D instead of IE&D. The goal is to focus on inclusion first in an attempt to address DEI's shortcomings while weathering the backlash against it. There's just one problem: Without equity, you do not have diversity because marginalized populations won't stay long enough in your company, they won't move up, or they may not even enter the organization altogether. So many companies try to manage diversity without considering equity. And in the process, diversity isn't maintained, but lost. At a former job, I listened to an online training that did just this. Coming from someone who does DEI work, it was painful. Here's why: For all the talk about embracing differences based on race, gender, sexuality, and religion, we never discussed the ways people continue to be marginalized BECAUSE of said identities. It does no good to lecture about welcoming Muslims if your audience doesn't know that inviting them to social functions that serve alcohol can be off-putting. It does no good to discuss welcoming Black and other racially marginalized folks if your audience doesn't understand how they are routinely underpaid, over-penalized for mistakes, and are often the first to be laid-off. It does no good to say you value persons with disabilities if your spaces are inaccessible. Or if leadership doesn't understand that not all disabilities are visible. Without equity, there is no lasting diversity because specific needs aren't being met. Without justice, there is no diversity because marginalized folks won't feel safe. And there will be no sense of inclusion because marginalized folks won't feel valued. Instead of focusing on diversity at the expense of everything else, view it as the outcome of your institution being equity oriented. Diversity is sustained when people are seen, understood, valued, and have the barriers to their success removed. #DiversityAndInclusion #Diversity #Equality #AntiRacism #RacialEquity Image source: Diversity Recruitment Image description: A multi-layered pyramid with equity as the base and moving towards diversity at the top. In between are other layers (equality, inclusion, and belonging) that are achieved once equity has taken place and that lead to the creation of diversity.

A few weeks back, I watched Maggie Hott, GTM leader at OpenAI, confidently navigate her first board meeting at Unify. Having worked with her through Emergence Capital's Operator in Residence (OIR) program, seeing her immediately contribute valuable insights made me think about how most board members receive virtually no training for this critical role. At Emergence, we've built our firm around developing board excellence. We grow all our partners from within and have established a culture of mentorship focused on board service. Junior investors aren't thrown into the deep end—we pair them with senior GPs to observe effective board dynamics firsthand. My initial experience was at DroneDeploy alongside my partner Kevin Spain, where I got great mentorship before taking on independent board responsibilities. We extend this methodology to our OIR program, where operators learn how to be effective board members. Based on my experience mentoring directors, here are the fundamental principles I share with first-timers for how board members can best support founders: 1. Reframe the purpose: Problem-solving, not reporting If your board meeting is primarily reporting, you're wasting your management team's time. Information sharing should happen asynchronously, with board members engaging with materials before the meeting. This enables the live session to leverage collective intelligence on critical challenges. This rarely happens because many directors overextend themselves across too many boards—another reason we maintain a disciplined investment pace. 2. Master the Socratic approach The most valuable contribution often comes through thoughtful questions rather than declarative statements. Your objective is to enhance the decision-making capability of management. I enter each meeting with 1-3 specific areas where I know I can add value, focusing questions on these topics. 3. Follow-through separates professionals from amateurs Diligently document your commitments, establish clear action items, and execute them. It's crazy how just doing this proactively makes a board member stand out. 4. Understand your unique contribution to the board ecosystem A high-functioning board resembles a great basketball team—you need complementary skills, not redundant ones. In every meeting, I stay conscious of my distinct value relative to others in the room, whether that's SaaS expertise, AI knowledge, or a particular relationship dynamic with the CEO. I calibrate my role based on needs—sometimes assertively addressing areas where others have less experience, other times asking probing questions where fellow members have deeper expertise. -- To my knowledge, Emergence is the only VC firm with a formalized program dedicated to board excellence. It's an investment that yields returns where they matter most—in bending the odds of success for our founders. Founders, I'm curious: What board member behaviors have you found most valuable?

In many nonprofits, innovation often mirrors privilege. Who gets to dream up solutions? Whose ideas are embraced as “bold” or “innovative”? Too often, decision-making is concentrated in leadership or external consultants, leaving grassroots, community-driven insights underutilized. This perpetuates inequity and stifles transformative potential within our own organizations. Here’s the truth: Privilege shapes perceptions of innovation: Ideas from leadership or external experts are often prioritized, while community-driven ideas are dismissed as “too risky” or “impractical.” Communities with lived experience are sidelined: Those who deeply understand systemic challenges are excluded from shaping the solutions meant to address them. The result? Nonprofits risk replicating the same inequities they aim to dismantle by ignoring the imaginative potential of those closest to the issues. When imagination is confined to decision-makers in positions of power, we limit our ability to create truly transformative solutions. As nonprofit practitioners, we can start shifting this dynamic by fostering equity within our organizations: * Redistribute decision-making power: Engage community members and frontline staff in brainstorming and strategic discussions. Elevate their voices in decision-making processes. * Value lived experience as expertise: Treat the insights of those who experience systemic challenges as central to innovation, not secondary. * Create space for experimentation: Advocate for internal processes that allow for piloting bold, community-driven ideas, even if they challenge traditional approaches. * Focus on capacity-mobilisation: Invest in staff and community partners through training, mentorship, and resources that empower them to lead imaginative projects. * Rethink impact metrics: Develop evaluation systems that prioritize community-defined success over traditional donor-centric metrics. What practices has your organization used to centre community-driven ideas? Share your insights—I’d love to learn from you! Want to hear more: https://lnkd.in/gXp76ssF

I’m pleased to share this Practical Guide to Programme and Project Proposal Writing, a valuable resource for NGOs, development practitioners, and project teams working in the humanitarian and development sector. This guide provides step-by-step insights into proposal development — from understanding donor priorities and defining problems, to structuring proposals, budgeting, monitoring & evaluation, and ensuring sustainability. It is especially useful for those looking to strengthen their organizational capacity and improve the quality of funding proposals. I hope this resource supports practitioners in developing clear, compelling, and fundable proposals. #ProposalWriting #GrantWriting #NGOCapacityBuilding #DevelopmentProfessionals #ProjectPlanning #NonprofitResources #FundingProposals

🙋♀️Imagine a company proudly announcing that 40% of its new hires are women. On the surface, it seems like a triumph for diversity. But as you dig deeper, you see those women concentrated in HR and marketing, while engineering and leadership roles remain largely male. This is what I call the Inclusion Illusion, where diversity metrics look good on paper, but the deeper work of equity is missing. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 Diversity brings people into the room, but equity is what ensures they can thrive once they’re there. True inclusion isn’t about representation alone; it’s about ensuring everyone can contribute, be heard and grow. Without equity, diversity efforts can feel hollow and superficial. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗳𝘁 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝘁𝘆 Recently, SHRM decided to drop "equity" from its diversity framework. While this might seem like an easier approach, it risks sidestepping the critical work equity requires. SHRM's decision, to me, reflects the discomfort many organisations face when it comes to grappling with equity. 𝗘𝗾𝘂𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 In my experience, I’ve seen how diversity initiatives can fall flat without a commitment to equity. Numbers alone don’t create change, systems do. True equity requires addressing the structural barriers that keep people from advancing and it goes beyond simply counting who’s in the room. Here’s how I believe leaders can move beyond diversity numbers and create meaningful change: • 𝙴̲𝚡̲𝚊̲𝚖̲𝚒̲𝚗̲𝚎̲ ̲𝚜̲𝚢̲𝚜̲𝚝̲𝚎̲𝚖̲𝚜̲ ̲𝚏̲𝚘̲𝚛̲ ̲𝚋̲𝚒̲𝚊̲𝚜̲:̲ I’ve seen how subtle biases can influence decisions around hiring, promotions, and leadership opportunities. Leaders need to actively review their processes to uncover and address these hidden biases. • 𝙰̲𝚖̲𝚙̲𝚕̲𝚒̲𝚏̲𝚢̲ ̲𝚖̲𝚊̲𝚛̲𝚐̲𝚒̲𝚗̲𝚊̲𝚕̲𝚒̲𝚜̲𝚎̲𝚍̲ ̲𝚟̲𝚘̲𝚒̲𝚌̲𝚎̲𝚜̲: It’s not enough to have diverse people at the table, they need to be heard. When we ensure that everyone’s ideas are valued, innovation and creativity thrive. • ̲𝚁̲𝚎̲𝚍̲𝚒̲𝚜̲𝚝̲𝚛̲𝚒̲𝚋̲𝚞̲𝚝̲𝚎̲ ̲𝚙̲𝚘̲𝚠̲𝚎̲𝚛̲:̲ Equity means sharing leadership. Underrepresented groups need access to the same mentorship and advancement opportunities as everyone else. •̲ ̲𝙲̲𝚛̲𝚎̲𝚊̲𝚝̲𝚎̲ ̲𝚊̲𝚌̲𝚌̲𝚘̲𝚞̲𝚗̲𝚝̲𝚊̲𝚋̲𝚒̲𝚕̲𝚒̲𝚝̲𝚢̲:̲ It’s critical that teams are held accountable for practicing inclusive behaviors. This means setting clear expectations and following up with real consequences for failing to meet them. • 𝙵̲𝚘̲𝚜̲𝚝̲𝚎̲𝚛̲ ̲𝚙̲𝚜̲𝚢̲𝚌̲𝚑̲𝚘̲𝚕̲𝚘̲𝚐̲𝚒̲𝚌̲𝚊̲𝚕̲ ̲𝚜̲𝚊̲𝚏̲𝚎̲𝚝̲𝚢̲: People can’t thrive if they don’t feel safe being their true selves. I’ve seen how creating an environment where people feel they can speak up without fear of judgment leads to stronger teams and more authentic collaboration. The goal isn't perfection. It's progress. It's creating workplaces where everyone, regardless of their background or identity has a real shot at success and fulfillment. What do you think? #leadership #DEI #highperformance #culture