The Fulcrum Point – Opinion – Rethinking What Counts as Leadership
For decades, the nonprofit sector has been shaped by a hierarchy that privileges certain functions as “strategic” and others as “support.” Executive leadership, fundraising, and communications often sit at the top of that pyramid, while research, operations, data, and stewardship are relegated to the middle or bottom. It’s time to challenge that hierarchy. If our sector truly believes in collaboration, evidence-based decision-making, and mission alignment, then we must recognize that leadership exists in every corner of our organizations. Some of the most powerful leadership functions are hiding in plain sight — and one of the clearest examples is advancement research.
The Fulcrum Point – Opinion – Workplace Exodus: Why Talent is Walking Away and What to Do Now
The latest Fulcrum Point article, “Workplace Exodus: Why Nonprofit Talent Is Walking Away and What We Must Do Now,” examines the growing crisis of burnout, low pay, and inequity driving skilled professionals out of the nonprofit sector. It challenges leaders to move beyond surface solutions and rethink how organizations value and sustain their people. The piece calls for bold reforms in compensation, staffing, equity, and professional development, urging boards and executives to build workplaces where mission-driven talent can truly thrive.
Filling the Cup of Others in Nonprofit Leadership
In the nonprofit world, leaders are often surrounded by people giving deeply of themselves—time, energy, emotion, and care. Every task, meeting, and outreach effort draws something from the internal “cup” of staff, volunteers, and even leaders themselves. Over time, that cup empties, leaving fatigue, burnout, and disengagement in its place. The best nonprofit leaders recognize this early and see it as their responsibility not just to refill their own cup, but to fill the cups of others. This is the heart of servant leadership in the nonprofit sector.
The Fulcrum Point – Opinion – Why Nonprofits Should Look Within Before Looking Outside
In the nonprofit sector, we talk a lot about sustainability, culture, and mission alignment. Yet one of the simplest ways to strengthen all three is often overlooked: promoting from within. Too often, nonprofits bypass their internal talent pipelines in favor of external hires, especially when filling executive roles. This habit may seem harmless, even strategic, but over time it weakens the connective tissue that binds organizations to their people and their communities.
The Power of a Great Meeting: Turning Time Together into Mission Momentum
Nonprofit leaders spend a significant portion of their time in meetings—board meetings, staff meetings, donor briefings, and committee sessions. Yet too often, these gatherings drain energy instead of generating it. Running a great meeting is not just a logistical skill; it’s a leadership discipline that reflects an organization’s culture, values, and respect for people’s time. When done well, meetings become a strategic tool to strengthen alignment, accelerate decision-making, and inspire action. When done poorly, they erode engagement and momentum. The difference lies in intentional design and disciplined facilitation.
The Fulcrum Point – Opinion – Who Will Teach the Next Generation to Give?
For generations, religious congregations trained Americans to give regularly and generously, shaping philanthropy as part of everyday life. With 20 million fewer churchgoers today, those habits are eroding, leaving fewer donors and a generation less practiced in generosity. Fulcrum Nonprofit Leadership argues that philanthropy is like a muscle—without consistent training, it weakens. As churches step back from their historic role, new institutions such as colleges, universities, and nonprofits must step forward to cultivate the next generation of givers.
The Power of Momentum in Nonprofit Fundraising
Success in the nonprofit sector often depends less on a single breakthrough and more on the ability to generate and sustain momentum. Momentum is the energy that builds when a nonprofit creates forward motion, experiences small wins, and leverages them into larger victories. In fundraising, this force is particularly powerful: donors respond to progress, campaigns grow when they feel urgent and relevant, and organizations thrive when their leaders know how to cultivate a “snowball effect.”
The Fulcrum Point – Opinion – The Overhead Myth is Dead. So Why are We Still Starving Nonprofit Infrastructure?
The overhead myth may be dead, but its ghost still haunts our sector. If we truly want thriving nonprofits that deliver lasting change, we must put that ghost to rest by funding infrastructure with the seriousness and respect it deserves.
Process Protects: Safeguarding Nonprofit Success Through Strong Systems
Nonprofits are built on passion, purpose, and the drive to make a difference. Yet even the most inspiring mission can falter without the right structures to sustain it. As Kenya Beckmann described on the Mastering Fundraising podcast, “Process Protects.” This phrase, credited to her husband, a university professor, captures a fundamental truth: strong systems and processes safeguard organizations from the most significant challenges, barriers, and pitfalls.
The Fulcrum Point – Opinion – Bring Back Apprenticeship: A Nonprofit Imperative
In a sector built on mission, meaning, and mentorship, it is remarkable how little we now invest in the long game of leadership development. The nonprofit sector is suffering from a talent gap not because we lack passionate people, but because we have quietly abandoned one of the most effective and time-honored ways of preparing future leaders: apprenticeship.
