A PERSONAL NOTE FROM LAURENCE: A Group of Coaches

Lately, I have been thinking a lot about coaching--why it is important for nonprofit organizations and what it has done for me personally. The executive coaching group that I co-facilitate, CEOs Together, just celebrated its fifth anniversary. That made me reflect not only on my experience with the group, but also on the years before that when I made use of a coach myself.

Having a coach gave me more perspective on the problems I faced in the organizations I was leading, and later in my emerging consulting practice. It helped me to be more patient. (I’m still working on it!) And it allowed me to receive honest, constructive feedback--to test my ideas with someone with experience in nonprofit management who also had a deep knowledge of my history and habits, strengths, and weaknesses.

I stuck with coaching because I knew that the guidance it provided was essential if I was going to remain in the field over the long term. I saw that many colleagues were unable to stay engaged in the work they loved because the demands of the work seemed to exceed their personal capacity. On their own, they were often not able to find ways to stay healthy in their jobs, avoid overwork, and remain effective and creative leaders.

Five years ago I started CEOs Together to share my coaching experiences with others. The group is professionally facilitated and relies on peer coaching among its members. The group setting provides a cost-efficient way for nonprofit executives to get the support they need and to become better leaders.

In my five years with the group, I have witnessed some remarkable things. To document those results, I recently produced a paper called “A Group of Coaches.” The article includes interviews with current and former participants who discuss four key issues addressed by the group: 1) Decreasing isolation and stress; 2) Breaking patterns of unproductive behavior; 3) Developing leadership and modeling behavior for the organization; and 4) Gaining technical assistance.

The paper is now available on the LAPA Web site: http://www.lp-associates.com. I encourage you to take a look. Although I focus on the needs of executive directors, I believe coaching is important for all managers and supervisors. I hope you will share with me your thoughts on the topic.

Laurence A. Pagnoni, MA, MPA
lapagnoni@lp-associates.com

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NEW DIRECTORY FOR THE HIV/AIDS SERVICE COMMUNITY

by Melissa Shurkin, LAPA Senior Associate

If your organization is an HIV/AIDS service provider, or works with healthcare providers in New York State, you will want to know about a new resource. In a few weeks, LAPA and the Westchester County Department of Health (WCDOH) will release a comprehensive directory of HIV/AIDS service providers in Westchester, Rockland, and Putnam Counties. This user-friendly tool is chock full of details about programs serving the Tri-County area’s 2,900 people living with HIV/AIDS--all organized around multiple indices for quick reference.

LAPA used a survey to gather up-to-date information on 125 providers within 18 major service categories, including primary care, housing, food, legal, substance use, and transportation services. We also created wallet-sized Resource Cards with the phone numbers of essential and emergency services in each county. We thank team member Orlando Adiao, a skilled graphic designer who has worked with LAPA since 1995, for his dedication and expertise in tackling the project.

The 2004 Directory and Resource Cards are available through the Westchester County Department of Health Ryan White Title I, and posted in PDF format at www.lp-associates.com and www.westchestergov.com/health.

If a service directory is on your horizon, or if you have other material development needs (such as annual reports, e-newsletters, brochures, or campaign materials), don’t hesitate to contact Melissa Shurkin at 212/932-8001 (ext. 4) to explore how LAPA can help you gather, organize, and publish the information your stakeholders need most.

“ASK LAPA”: ANSWERS TO YOUR QUESTIONS ABOUT MANAGEMENT AND FUNDRAISING ISSUES.

Q. Dear LAPA,
I'm looking for advice on overcoming the following scenario: A board member, during a board meeting, responds to an anticipated campaign by suggesting to the other board members that they each chip in a set amount, when, in fact, some are capable of giving more than others. The board member might say, "Let's each pledge $10,000 today!" But you know that there are board members who could give as much as $250,000 or more. How do you overcome the board member's suggestion?

- Kim in Manhattan


A. LAPA President Laurence Pagnoni responds:
Dear Kim,

This has happened to me three times in my 25-year career. The first time I did not respond in the group setting, but later dealt with each board member privately. That proved to be a mistake. Most potential high-level givers still made the smaller gift. I was able to salvage one board member. When he handed me the check for the smaller amount, I asked him if he could pledge the same amount every six months, and he agreed.

When it happened the second time, two years later at a different organization, I was more prepared. I simply said: “Your enthusiasm is contagious, and it pleases me greatly that you care that much to give what for you is a significant gift. Thank you. However, because we all don't give the same amount, but give at higher or lower levels based on our means, circumstances, and abilities, it would be more beneficial for our campaign to allow me to speak privately with each of you after this meeting. Then, at our next meeting, I can report back to you on the collective board giving.” I then turned to the board chairperson and asked, “Don't you agree, Ruth?” And thankfully, she did! I made sure to handle the situation the same way the next time it happened to me.

It is important to remember that despite all their governance hats, a board is also a group of donors. It was good for me to free myself from their board member status (and the assumption that I have to treat them more gingerly than other donors) and ask myself how I would handle any group of donors in a similar situation. My answer was to take action to correct the misconception that all donors behave the same and give the same way.

Of course many smaller, community-based organizations would love to have this problem! I mention this because the "let’s all chip in and pledge" issue unites both smaller (poorer) and larger (wealthier) nonprofit boards in an unusual way--these types of "surprises" happen when not enough preparation work is done before the board meeting. It is the executive’s, the consultant’s, and the committee chair’s job to stretch to reach new potential (in the case of the smaller agency), and refine giving performance (in the case of the larger agency). Poorly prepared board meetings are the bane of nonprofit performance.

Sincerely,
Laurence

DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS FOR LAPA? Please e-mail your queries to lapagnoni@lp-associates.com with the subject “Ask LAPA.” Our team will answer as many of your questions as possible in future newsletters.

LAPA associates may be reached as follows:

Enid Harlow, MA: eharlow@lp-associates.com
Melissa Shurkin, MMHS: mshurkin@lp-associates.com
Bodi Luse, MS: bluse@lp-associates.com
Raissa Smorol, MPA: rsmorol@lp-associates.com
Mark Engler, BA: mengler@lp-associates.com
Shifra Weisberger, MPA: sweisberger@lp-associates.com
Dwayne Sampson, BA: dsampson@lp-associates.com
Elsa Rios, MSW: elsarios7@aol.com
Julia Ritchie, CSW: ritchieinc@aol.com
Jenk Kurt, BS: jkurt@lp-associates.com
Kevin Quan, BA, cMA: kquan@lp-associates.com

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