Fulcrum Leadership Institute offers pratical, leadership focused learning experiences designed for nonprofit professionals at every stage of their journey. Open to anyone, and led by experienced practitioners, Fulcrum Leadership Institute courses are built around the real challenges nonprofit leaders face including people management, strategy, governance, fundraising, financial leadership, communication, technology, and more.
Nonprofit Leader Certification Program
The Nonprofit Leader Certification Program is designed for all nonprofit professionals, especially those stepping into leadership or preparing for their next level of responsibility.
These sessions focus on building core leadership skills while helping participants understand how nonprofit organizations function optimally.
The Nonprofit Leader Certification Program is the single most important training experience an organization can offer executives to best prepare them for the roles they will step into in the future.
Trainings are interactive, practical, and grounded in real nonprofit scenarios. Participants may attend individual sessions or complete the full series to earn certification.
Program Overview
- Virtual, live facilitated trainings
- Two-hour sessions
- Open to non-members
- Each session is currently offered at $50.
- Fulcrum Members are able to share a discount code of 50% off to colleagues and contacts.
- Programs offered monthly or more frequently
- Sessions may be taken in any order
Certificates and Certification
- Each completed course includes a Certificate of Completion
- Completion of any 12 courses results in certification as a Fulcrum Nonprofit Leadership Institute Graduate
Upcoming Emerging Nonprofit Leader Certification Programs
Scroll down to explore the upcoming courses.
Purpose Driven Time Management for Nonprofit Leaders
Purpose-Driven Time Management
The 3 Ps for Leading with Greater Intention and Impact
Purpose-Driven Time Management – The 3 Ps for Leading with Greater Intention and Impact
Tuesday, October 13, 2026
10:00 AM to 11:30 AM Pacific Time
1:00 PM to 2:30 PM Eastern Time
Facilitator: Dawn S. Reese, CFRE
CEO, The Wooden Floor
Most nonprofit executives would say there simply are not enough hours in the day.
Between leading teams, advancing the mission, supporting boards, developing relationships, responding to immediate needs, and planning for the future, even the most effective leaders can find their time consumed by what is urgent rather than what is most important.
But purpose-driven time management is not simply about getting more done. It is about being more intentional about where you spend your time, with whom you spend it, and how those choices align with your purpose and your organization’s mission.
In this interactive Fulcrum Leadership Institute course, Dawn S. Reese, CFRE, CEO of The Wooden Floor, will share the 3 Ps of Purpose-Driven Time Management, an approach she has used to spend her time more effectively and strategically while leading a nonprofit organization.
Participants will explore:
Purpose
Learn how leveraging your personal purpose can help you make better choices about where you spend your time and with whom.
Priorities
Explore practical approaches and techniques for determining what deserves your attention and prioritizing what you need to accomplish as a leader.
Pause
Discover why energy management is essential to balancing leadership priorities with the need to recharge, reflect, and sustain yourself for the work ahead.
This course is designed for nonprofit executives and leaders who want to move beyond simply managing increasingly full calendars and become more intentional about aligning their time with what matters most.
Join us for a practical and engaging conversation about making one of a leader’s most limited resources, time, more purposeful.
Fulcrum Leadership Institute
Preparing nonprofit leaders to be Future Ready.
Purpose-Driven Time Management – The 3 Ps for Leading with Greater Intention and Impact
Fundraising 101 for Nonprofit Leaders
Build confidence in fundraising conversations and donor relationships.
The Anatomy of a Strategic Plan (Part 2 of Strategic Planning)
Executive Presence
Strengthen written and verbal communication for internal and external audiences.
Media Training
People Management: Direct Reports and C-Suite Team
Strategic Thinking and Decision Making
Develop frameworks for making better decisions in complex nonprofit environments.
Vision Casting and Strategic Planning
Learn how to translate mission into clear strategy and shared direction.
Change Management and Adaptability
Build confidence leading through change and uncertainty.
Programmatic Excellence
Strengthen program design, evaluation, and impact alignment.
Emotional Intelligence and Self Awareness
Increase self awareness and emotional intelligence to lead more effectively.
Using AI
Explore responsible and practical uses of AI in nonprofit leadership.
Managing Staff
Learn how to support growth and development in others.
What Every Nonprofit Leader Needs to Know About Special Events
Hiring with Confidence: Tools for Building the Right Team
Hiring with Confidence: Tools for Building the Right Team
Date/Time – Wednesday, March 25, 10:00AM to 12:00PM Pacific Time
Cost – $100 Per Session
Register Here – https://fulcrumleader.com/event/people-management-hiring/
Course Description
Hiring is one of the most consequential responsibilities an emerging nonprofit leader takes on and one of the least formally taught.
This interactive training is designed for nonprofit professionals who are beginning to hire staff, participate in hiring decisions, or influence hiring outcomes on their teams. The session moves beyond job descriptions and resumes to focus on how leaders make thoughtful, equitable, and mission aligned hiring decisions.
Participants will explore how to clarify what a role truly needs, design hiring processes that reduce bias, conduct interviews that surface real capability, and make decisions they can stand behind. The training will also address common hiring challenges in nonprofits, including limited budgets, urgency to fill roles, internal promotions, and navigating organizational culture.
Supervisors will find this session especially valuable for emerging leaders who are stepping into people management for the first time and need shared language, tools, and confidence to hire well.
This session is practical, reflective, and grounded in real nonprofit scenarios. Participants will leave with frameworks, sample questions, and a clearer understanding of their role in building strong teams.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this session, participants will be able to:
- Identify what a role truly requires beyond the job description
- Design a hiring process that aligns with mission, values, and culture
- Conduct interviews that reveal skills, judgment, and potential
- Recognize and mitigate common hiring biases
- Make hiring recommendations with greater clarity and confidence
- Understand their role and influence in collaborative hiring decisions
Ideal Participants
- Emerging nonprofit leaders
- New managers or supervisors
- Staff involved in hiring committees
- High potential professionals preparing for leadership roles
Faculty
This session will be facilitated by a small group of experienced nonprofit leaders and practitioners.
- Christopher “Chris” Looney, Founder and Principal, Fulcrum Nonprofit Leadership
- Sarah Agee, President, Sterling Search, Inc.
- Claudia Looney, Principal and Managing Director, Covenant Philanthropic Solutions, LLC
Faculty will share practical insight, real world examples, and perspectives shaped by experience hiring and leading nonprofit teams.
Format and Logistics
- Virtual, live facilitated training
- Two hour interactive session
- Includes tools, frameworks, and practical takeaways
- Certificate of Completion provided
Register Here – https://fulcrumleader.com/event/people-management-hiring/
Performance Reviews and Promotions: Leading Growth with Clarity and Integrity
Cost – $100
Register Here – https://fulcrumleader.com/event/promotions/
Course Description
The training provides shared language, practical frameworks, and guardrails that strengthen consistency across teams.
- Structure performance reviews that are clear, developmental, and mission aligned
- Deliver candid feedback while preserving trust and dignity
- Distinguish between strong performance and readiness for promotion
- Evaluate promotion decisions through both equity and organizational impact lenses
- Navigate difficult conversations with greater emotional intelligence
- Communicate promotion and non promotion decisions with clarity and integrity
- Emerging nonprofit leaders and new supervisors
- Managers conducting their first formal performance reviews
- Staff preparing to take on greater leadership responsibility
- High potential professionals being groomed for future leadership roles
- Christopher “Chris” Looney, Founder and Principal, Fulcrum Nonprofit Leadership
- Kyle Houlton, CEO, Covenant Philanthropic Solutions
- Betsy Biern, CEO, Make-A-Wish Greater Bay Area
- Virtual, live facilitated training
- Two hour interactive session
- Includes practical tools and conversation frameworks
- Certificate of Completion provided
Register Here – https://fulcrumleader.com/event/promotions/
Leading as a Futurist Executive in the Nonprofit Sector
Future Ready: Leading as a Futurist Executive in the Nonprofit Sector
When – Wednesday April 29 at 11am
Cost – $100 for Non-Members; Free for Fulcrum Members; $50 for Fulcrum Member Referrals
Register Here – https://fulcrumleader.com/event/future-ready/
Course Description
In today’s rapidly evolving environment, nonprofit leaders are called to do more than deliver on current priorities. They are responsible for preparing their organizations, their teams, and the communities they serve for a future that is still unfolding. The pace of change, driven by technology, shifting workforce dynamics, and evolving donor expectations, requires a new kind of leadership, one that is proactive, adaptive, and grounded in long-term vision.
In this course, Robert Santana, CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Orange Coast, explores what it truly means to lead as a futurist executive. Drawing from his leadership experience and forward-thinking approach, Robert will challenge participants to move beyond reactive decision-making and instead build organizations that are resilient, agile, and positioned for sustained impact.
Participants will examine how to prepare teams for a future where many roles do not yet exist, focusing on developing transferable skills such as critical thinking, adaptability, and communication. The course will also explore how leaders can leverage data, emerging technologies, and AI to strengthen decision-making, improve organizational performance, and better inform boards and stakeholders.
A central theme of this course is the importance of focusing on what leaders can control while preparing thoughtfully for what they cannot predict. Through practical frameworks and real-world insights, participants will learn how to guide their organizations through uncertainty with clarity and confidence.
Whether you are an emerging leader or a seasoned executive, this course will equip you with the mindset, tools, and strategies needed to become future ready and to lead your organization toward a more impactful and sustainable future.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this session, participants will be able to:
Define what it means to lead as a futurist executive in the nonprofit sector
Identify key trends shaping the future of work, philanthropy, and mission delivery
Build strategies to develop adaptable, future-ready teams
Leverage data, technology, and AI to inform stronger decision-making
Engage boards and stakeholders in forward-looking strategic conversations
Apply practical frameworks to prepare their organization for multiple future scenarios
Ideal Participants
Emerging nonprofit leaders and new supervisors
Mid-level managers preparing for executive leadership roles
Senior leaders seeking to strengthen long-term strategic thinking
Professionals responsible for organizational planning, innovation, or growth
High potential leaders being developed for future executive roles
Faculty
This session will be led by experienced nonprofit executives who brings a forward-looking perspective on leadership, talent development, and organizational strategy.
Robert Santana, CEO, Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Orange Coast
- Chris Looney, CEO, Fulcrum Nonprofit Leadership
Faculty will share practical insights, real-world examples, and leadership lessons on preparing organizations and people for what comes next.
Format and Logistics
Virtual, live facilitated training
Two hour interactive session
Includes practical tools and strategic frameworks
Certificate of Completion provided
Register Here – https://fulcrumleader.com/event/future-ready/
The Nonprofit Leader as Chief Fundraiser: What Every Nonprofit Leader Must Know
The CEO as Chief Fundraiser: What Every Nonprofit Leader Must Know
Date: Wednesday, May 13
Time: 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM ET (10:00 AM – 12:00 PM PT)
Registration: https://fulcrumleader.com/event/fundraising/
In today’s nonprofit environment, the most effective organizations are led by executives who fully embrace their role as the chief fundraiser. Yet many CEOs and Executive Directors feel underprepared, unsupported, or uncertain about how to lead fundraising with confidence and clarity.
This highly practical, two-hour session is designed specifically for nonprofit leaders who want to strengthen their fundraising effectiveness and accelerate mission impact.
Led by Jethro Miller, a seasoned fundraising leader with decades of experience at national and international organizations, and Chris Looney, CEO of Fulcrum and CSO of Covenant Philanthropic Solutions, this session will provide clear frameworks, real-world strategies, and actionable tools.
Participants will learn how to:
- Embrace and lead from the role of chief fundraiser
- Build authentic relationships with donors and partners
- Partner effectively with development staff and boards
- Prioritize the right fundraising activities for maximum impact
- Overcome common barriers and mindset challenges
- Create a sustainable culture of philanthropy within their organization
Through a combination of expert insights, peer discussion, and interactive exercises, leaders will leave with greater clarity, confidence, and a practical path forward.
Communications and Storytelling: What Every Nonprofit Leader Must Know to Maximize Mission Impact
Communications and Storytelling: What Every Nonprofit Leader Must Know to Maximize Mission Impact
Every nonprofit leader is responsible for telling the story of why their mission matters.
Whether engaging donors, inspiring boards, aligning teams, building community partnerships, navigating change, or advocating for those you serve, your ability to communicate through meaningful stories can shape trust, influence decisions, and accelerate mission impact.
Join us for an engaging and practical two-hour leadership intensive designed to help nonprofit leaders understand the strategic role of storytelling, how powerful stories are built, and the tools leaders can use to deliver stories that connect, inspire, and move people to action.
In this course, you will learn how to:
✅ Understand why stories are one of a leader’s most powerful communication tools
✅ Identify the stories already living within your mission, people, and impact
✅ Build compelling stories with structure, clarity, emotion, and purpose
✅ Match the right story to the right audience, whether donors, boards, staff, volunteers, or community partners
✅ Use practical tools to deliver stories with authenticity across meetings, presentations, campaigns, conversations, and digital channels
✅ Avoid common storytelling mistakes that weaken trust or dilute impact
Ideal Participants
• CEOs and Executive Directors
• Chief Development Officers and fundraising leaders
• Communications and marketing leaders
• Foundation executives
• Senior leadership team members
• Board members and board chairs
• Emerging leaders preparing for executive responsibility
• Any nonprofit leader responsible for representing and advancing the mission
Faculty
Dyan Sublett
President and Chief Communications Officer, MLK Community Health Foundation
Chris Looney
CEO, Fulcrum
📅 Wednesday, May 27, 2026
🕙 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM PT
🕐 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM ET
Register Today
https://fulcrumleader.com/event/storytelling
Because people may support a mission…
But they remember the stories that bring that mission to life.
Building High-Impact Nonprofit Boards
Building High-Impact Nonprofit Boards
Register Here: https://fulcrumleader.com/event/nonprofit-boards/
Governance, Engagement, and Leadership That Drives Mission Impact
Monday, June 8
9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. PT | 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. ET
Facilitated by Chris Looney
Strong nonprofit organizations are built on strong boards. Yet many nonprofit leaders and board members struggle with engagement, accountability, recruitment, fundraising expectations, and the challenge of moving from passive oversight to strategic leadership.
In this practical and interactive course, Chris Looney will guide nonprofit executives, board members, and emerging leaders through the essential principles and practices behind building high-impact nonprofit boards that actively strengthen mission effectiveness and organizational sustainability.
Participants will explore:
* The defining characteristics of effective nonprofit boards
* The difference between governance and management
* Strategies for board recruitment, engagement, and accountability
* How to create more meaningful and productive board meetings
* The role of boards in fundraising, advocacy, and strategic leadership
* Practical approaches for strengthening board culture and CEO-board partnership
Designed for nonprofit CEOs, executive directors, senior leaders, board chairs, and board members, this session will provide actionable insights and tools that participants can immediately apply within their organizations.
Whether your organization is building a board from the ground up or seeking to elevate an existing board’s effectiveness, this course will help you move from governance compliance to mission-driven impact.
Register Here: https://fulcrumleader.com/event/nonprofit-boards/
Culture by Design: Building Healthy, Mission-Driven Organizations
Strategic Planning Best Practices for Nonprofit Leaders (Part I of Strategic Planning)
Strategic Planning Best Practices for Nonprofit Leaders – Creating a Roadmap for Sustainable Mission Impact (Part 1 of Strategic Planning)
Wednesday, July 15 – 10am to 12pm PT, 12pm to 2pm CT, 1pm to 3pm ET
Register Here: www.fulcrumleader.com/event/strategic-planning
Most nonprofit leaders understand the importance of strategic planning. Far fewer have experienced a strategic planning process that truly transforms an organization.
Too often, strategic plans become lengthy documents that generate enthusiasm during development but receive little attention once completed. The strongest organizations take a different approach. They use strategic planning to align stakeholders, guide decision-making, strengthen fundraising, improve accountability, and create measurable mission impact.
In this practical and engaging workshop, nonprofit leaders will learn the proven practices used by high-performing organizations to create strategic plans that drive action rather than collect dust. Participants will explore how to engage stakeholders, identify strategic priorities, establish meaningful metrics, and build systems that keep a plan alive long after it is approved.
Whether your organization is preparing for its next strategic planning process or looking to strengthen implementation of an existing plan, this course will provide practical tools and frameworks that can be applied immediately.
Participants Will Learn How To:
*Design an effective strategic planning process
*Engage boards, staff, donors, and stakeholders
*Identify and prioritize the issues that matter most
*Develop clear goals, objectives, and performance measures
*Connect strategic planning to fundraising and resource development
*Build accountability systems that drive execution
*Create a culture of strategic thinking throughout the organization
*Keep strategic plans relevant in a rapidly changing environment
Ideal Audience
*CEOs and Executive Directors
*Senior Leadership Teams
*Board Chairs and Board Members
*Advancement and Development Leaders
*Emerging Executive Leaders
*Strategic Planning Committee Members
Register Here: www.fulcrumleader.com/event/strategic-planning
Relationship Development and Management Skills for Nonprofit Leaders
Financial Fluency for Nonprofit Leaders: Understanding Budgets, Financial Statements, and the Story Behind the Numbers
Financial Fluency for Nonprofit Leaders – Understanding Budgets, Financial Statements, and the Story Behind the Numbers
Monday, August 31, 2026
11:00 AM Pacific Time
Facilitator: Neil Shah
Nonprofit leaders don’t need to be accountants. But they do need to understand the numbers.
A budget is more than a spreadsheet. Financial statements are more than reports for the finance committee. Together, they tell an important story about the health, priorities, risks, and future of an organization.
Yet many nonprofit leaders find financial reports intimidating, overly technical, or disconnected from their day-to-day leadership responsibilities. The result can be an overreliance on finance staff or board members to interpret information that every organizational leader should understand.
In this practical and accessible course, nonprofit leaders will develop greater confidence in reading, interpreting, and using financial information. Facilitator Neil Shah will help participants understand the fundamentals of nonprofit financial statements and budgeting while focusing on what the numbers actually mean for organizational decision-making.
The goal isn’t to turn nonprofit leaders into CFOs. It’s to make them better leaders.
Participants Will Learn
Participants will learn how to:
Understand the purpose and components of the primary nonprofit financial statements
Read a statement of financial position and statement of activities with greater confidence
Understand the relationship between budgets, actual performance, and financial statements
Recognize important financial indicators, trends, variances, and potential warning signs
Distinguish between revenue, expenses, cash flow, reserves, and restricted and unrestricted funds
Develop and evaluate realistic organizational and departmental budgets
Ask better questions of finance staff, auditors, board members, and financial committees
Use financial information to make stronger strategic and operational decisions
Communicate financial information more effectively with boards, staff, and other stakeholders
Ideal Audience
This course is designed for nonprofit executives and emerging leaders who have responsibility for organizational, departmental, or programmatic budgets and financial decision-making, including:
Executive Directors and CEOs
Chief Operating Officers and other senior executives
Development and advancement leaders
Program and department leaders
Emerging nonprofit executives
Leaders who manage budgets, revenue goals, programs, or teams
Nonprofit professionals seeking greater confidence in understanding their organization’s financial position
No accounting or finance background is required. This course is designed specifically for nonprofit leaders who need to understand financial information well enough to lead, make decisions, anticipate challenges, and ask the right questions.
Registration: www.fulcrumleader.com/event/financials
The Essential Yet Most Overlooked Skills of the Successful Nonprofit Leader
The Essential Yet Most Overlooked Skills of the Successful Nonprofit Leader
Wednesday, September 30, 2026 | 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM Pacific Time
Live Online Workshop
Faculty: Chris Looney, Founder & CEO, Fulcrum Nonprofit Leadership
Fundraising. Strategic planning. Communication. Financial management. These are the skills we typically associate with successful nonprofit leadership. But some of the capabilities that most distinguish exceptional leaders rarely appear in a job description or leadership development program.
The Essential Yet Most Overlooked Skills of the Successful Nonprofit Leader is a practical, interactive two-hour Fulcrum Leadership Institute course focused on the less obvious leadership competencies that can have an outsized impact on organizational effectiveness and long-term success.
Based on Fulcrum’s white paper of the same name, the course will explore ten often-overlooked dimensions of nonprofit leadership, including emotional intelligence, resilience and adaptability, cultural competence, innovative thinking, systems thinking, personal branding, decision-making under uncertainty, ethical leadership, self-care and well-being, and community engagement.
Participants will examine why these skills matter, how they show up in the everyday realities of nonprofit leadership, and where they may have opportunities to strengthen their own leadership practice. The session will move beyond theory to consider practical ways leaders can build stronger relationships, navigate ambiguity, make better decisions, foster innovation, sustain themselves through challenging periods, and increase their influence inside and outside their organizations.
Key Learnings
By the end of this course, participants will be better equipped to:
- Recognize the overlooked skills that influence leadership effectiveness and understand why technical expertise alone is not enough.
- Strengthen emotional intelligence and empathy to build trust, manage relationships, navigate conflict, and lead people more effectively.
- Develop greater resilience and adaptability when facing setbacks, uncertainty, organizational change, and unexpected challenges.
- Apply cultural competence and systems thinking to better understand people, communities, organizational dynamics, and the consequences of leadership decisions.
- Cultivate innovative thinking and create conditions that encourage creativity and new approaches to persistent challenges.
- Make better decisions when information is incomplete, balancing risk, opportunity, judgment, and organizational priorities.
- Understand how personal brand, relationships, and professional networks can expand a leader’s credibility and influence.
- Approach difficult decisions with integrity, transparency, fairness, and consistency.
- Recognize self-care and well-being as disciplines that contribute to sustained leadership effectiveness.
- Strengthen community engagement and keep organizational priorities connected to the people and communities the organization serves.
Who Should Attend
This course is designed for nonprofit CEOs, Executive Directors, senior leaders, department heads, development professionals, program leaders, emerging executives, and other mission-driven professionals who want to expand their leadership capabilities beyond the traditional skills associated with managing a nonprofit organization.
It will be particularly valuable for leaders who are taking on greater responsibility, navigating organizational growth or change, managing increasingly complex relationships, preparing for executive leadership, or looking for practical ways to become more thoughtful, adaptable, resilient, and effective.
Registration
Wednesday, September 30, 2026
10:00 AM to 12:00 PM Pacific Time
1:00 PM to 3:00 PM Eastern Time
Live Online
Cost is $50 for Non-Members
Fulcrum Members Are Free and the Zoom link is included with your calendar invite
Register today:
www.fulcrumleader.com/event/overlooked-skills/
Great nonprofit leadership requires more than knowing how to run an organization. It requires developing the less visible skills that determine how you lead when the answers are not obvious, circumstances are changing, and the stakes are high.
UPCOMING TRAININGS
Events
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Purpose-Driven Time Management – The 3 Ps for Leading with Greater Intention and Impact
VIA ZOOM – LINK SENT AFTER REGISTRATIONMost nonprofit executives would say there simply are not enough hours in the day.
Between leading teams, advancing the mission, supporting boards, developing relationships, responding to immediate needs, and planning for the future, even the most effective leaders can find their time consumed by what is urgent rather than what is most important.
But purpose-driven time management is not simply about getting more done. It is about being more intentional about where you spend your time, with whom you spend it, and how those choices align with your purpose and your organization’s mission.
In this interactive Fulcrum Leadership Institute course, Dawn S. Reese, CFRE, CEO of The Wooden Floor, will share the 3 Ps of Purpose-Driven Time Management, an approach she has used to spend her time more effectively and strategically while leading a nonprofit organization.
Get Tickets $50.00
Executive Team Trainings
Programs, information, and registration coming soon.
Board Member Trainings
Programs, information, and registration coming soon.
Customized Training Sessions for Nonprofit Leaders, Boards, and Teams
Programs, information, and registration coming soon.
