Engine of Impact : Essentials of Strategic Leadership in the Nonprofit Sector

"We are entering a new era--an era of impact. The largest intergenerational transfer of wealth in history will soon be under way, bringing with it the potential for huge increases in philanthropic funding. Engine of Impact shows how nonprofits can apply the principles of strategic leadership to attract greater financial support and leverage that funding to maximum effect. As Good to Great author Jim Collins writes in his foreword, this book offers "a detailed roadmap of disciplined thought and action for turning a good nonprofit into one that can achieve great impact at scale." William F. Meehan III and Kim Starkey Jonker identify seven essential components of strategic leadership that set high-achieving organizations apart from the rest of the nonprofit sector. Together, these components form an "engine of impact"--A system that organizations must build, tune, and fuel if they hope to make a real difference in the world. Drawing on decades of teaching, advising, grantmaking, and research, Meehan and Jonker provide an actionable guide that executives, staff, board members, and donors can use to jumpstart their own performance and to achieve extraordinary results for their organization. Along with setting forth best practices using real-world examples, the authors outline common management challenges faced by nonprofits, showing how these challenges differ from those faced by for-profit businesses in important and often-overlooked ways. By offering crucial insights on the fundamentals of nonprofit management, this book will help leaders equip their organizations to fire on all cylinders and unleash the full potential of the nonprofit sector. Visit www.engineofimpact.org for additional information." Cover Contents Foreword Preface Introduction: Strategic Leadership in the Impact Era PART I: STRATEGIC THINKING: BUILD AND TUNE YOUR ENGINE OF IMPACT 1. The Primacy of Mission 2. The Few Strategic Concepts That Matter 3. Count What Counts 4. Insight and Courage PART II: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT: FUEL YOUR ENGINE OF IMPACT 5 Your Team of Teams: Building and Sustaining a High-Performing Organization 6 Money Matters: Funding as Essential Fuel 7 Board Governance: Do What Works 8 Scaling: Leveraging the Seven Essentials to Magnify Your Impact Conclusion: Strategic Leadership: Now Is the Time Acknowledgments Notes Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y "We are entering a new era{u2014}an era of impact. The largest intergenerational transfer of wealth in history will soon be under way, bringing with it the potential for huge increases in philanthropic funding. Engine of Impact shows how nonprofits can apply the principles of strategic leadership to attract greater financial support and leverage that funding to maximum effect." -- From publisher's website Introduction : strategic leadership in the impact era The primacy of mission The few strategic concepts that matter Count what counts Insight and courage Your team of teams : building and sustaining a high-performing organization Money matters : funding as essential fuel Board governance : do what works Scaling : ready, set, are you sure you're ready? Conclusion : strategic leadership : now is the time. Inspired by a popular series of articles in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, Fundamentals, Not Fads teaches the social sector how to buck passing trends by using wise and time-tested strategies that foster investment and impact Engine of Impact provides actionable guidance for increasing impact in the social sector-a must-read for all donors, nonprofit board members, executives and staff who seek to achieve extraordinary results for their organization.