Nonprofits – Wishnick & Associates

Thanksgiving and What I Learned this Year

I love Thanksgiving. It is a joy to be together with family, to enjoy longtime traditions and to create new ones as the family grows. It is also a time when I reflect on the year about to end and that for which I am grateful.   Although this year is notable for celebrating 15 years of Wishnick & Associates, it is the work that makes every day special. Each engagement has offered the opportunity to renew client relationships or develop new ones and always to be part of an organization’s efforts to be more effective. Thank you to everyone I worked with this year and to those of you who […]

Onboarding a New Nonprofit CEO – Tools and Activities

You have just hired a new senior executive. Congratulations! Now what?

When the search activities conclude, the transition continues and a well-planned onboarding process is critical. In the best scenario, a transition task force (which might be the search committee) will have contact with the new executive in the period from offer acceptance to first day on the job. Having a plan for this “in-between” time will make onboarding go more smoothly. It will also permit the transition task force to discuss onboarding with the new executive to learn what she/he would like included.

Onboarding a new nonprofit executive may seem daunting. Depending on the size and complexity of an organization, […]

Thanksgiving Edition: Sharing the Bounty

At this time of year, I’m especially grateful to my clients, colleagues, and friends for the privilege of working and growing together. I’d like to share a few things that I’ve learned along the way – from you!

One of the great things about working with nonprofit leaders is the opportunity to learn new practices that are working for their organizations. These learnings are worth sharing with others across the nonprofit sector. Yet when nonprofit leaders gather with colleagues, it is usually with others in their field. It is not necessarily routine, for example, for a leader of a social service agency to meet with one from an arts organization. […]

Thanksgiving 2023

Greetings,

This year, I celebrate 20 years of Wishnick & Associates. Wow!

I am profoundly thankful for the opportunity to work alongside exceptional nonprofit leaders – chief executives and boards. I have benefitted immensely from my consultant colleagues and deeply appreciate all the referrals, shared resources, and free-flowing conversations. I am truly blessed by the loving support of my family and friends.

[…]

Thanksgiving 2022

At this time of year, I always reflect on what I am grateful for. And always, there is so much.

What initially comes to mind is that it seems as if there has been a grand exhale. Although Covid still lurks, earlier this month, I had the exhilarating experience of attending a client’s gala and feeling the energy in the room. The board, staff, participants and their families, and devoted friends had boundless enthusiasm for the organization and were delighted to share it. It was a reminder of past in-person events and held the promise of what we are all yearning to recoup. […]

Thanksgiving 2021 – What’s Next!

Thanksgiving 2021 – and I have so much for which to be thankful. I am profoundly grateful to engage in meaningful work with clients, to benefit from rewarding relationships with colleagues and friends, and have the support of a loving and growing family.

Through wide-ranging conversations with clients, prospective clients, colleagues, and others, a theme has emerged recently: What’s Next. First one client, then another invoked this call to action. No one is treating it as a question. Nonprofits are declaring their intent. Organizations are reexamining how and what they do what they do related to staff and those in the communities they serve. As individuals and nonprofits, we have […]

Thanksgiving 2020

To quote just about everyone, 2020 has been a difficult year – one of struggle and deep loss. As we approach Thanksgiving, with and without family and friends to celebrate, may we embrace that for which we can be grateful.

Adaptability. Compassion. Creativity. Equanimity. Patience. Resilience.

[…]