Seven Turning Points

by Gross, Susan

• ISBN13: 9780940069732
• ISBN10: 0940069733
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-03-06
• Publisher: Fieldstone Alliance

Summary

SEVEN TURNING POINTS identifies the pivotal stages when nonprofits must reassess the way they operate and make fundamental changes or risk decline. Author Susan Gross goes beyond describing symptoms and challenges and offers leaders usable advice on what to expect and what to do. You¿ll find: the characteristic pattern of problems that signal the need for change; reassurance that problems are an inevitable consequence of change or growth; recommended changes in structure, leadership, management, governance, operating style, and culture; warnings about resistance you¿re likely to run into and how to manage it; vivid examples of what really happens in organizations based on the author¿s real-life experience with hundreds of nonprofits. With Seven Turning Points, you¿ll recognize when your organization is at a pivotal stage, understand the underlying dynamics, and be prepared with concrete actions to move the organization to the next level.

Author Biography

SUSAN GROSS is a noted organizational development consultant who has spent more than forty years strengthening nonprofit organizations so that their people and programs succeed. She is cofounder of the Management Assistance Group (MAG), an organization that sees building the power of nonprofits as a critical contribution to the creation of a more just and equitable world.

Table of Contents

Dedication	p. iii
Acknowledgments	p. vii
About the Author	p. viii
About the Management Assistance Group	p. viii
Preface: Genesis of the Turning Points Framework	p. ix
Seven Turning Points: Leading Through Pivotal Transitions in Organizational Life	p. 1
Turning Points-Not a Linear Progression	p. 4
A Characteristic Pattern of Problems Signals Need for Change	p. 4
Turning Points Involve Balancing Creative Tensions	p. 4
Aspects of Turning Points We'll Examine	p. 6
Two Important Caveats	p. 6
A Word about Diversity and Inclusiveness	p. 7
Do We Need to Get Organized?	p. 9
Signs That Change Is Needed	p. 10
Turning Point: The Need to Get Organized	p. 11
Adjustments Needed	p. 11
Counter-Tensions to Manage	p. 13
Do We Need Infrastructure?	p. 17
Signs That Change Is Needed	p. 18
Turning Point: The Need for Infrastructure	p. 20
Adjustments Needed	p. 20
Counter-Tensions to Manage	p. 23
Do We Need to Let Go?	p. 27
Signs That Change Is Needed	p. 28
Turning Point: The Need to Let Go	p. 29
Adjustments Needed	p. 30
Counter-Tensions to Manage	p. 32
Do We Need Focus?	p. 37
Signs That Change Is Needed	p. 38
Turning Point: The Need to Focus	p. 39
Adjustments Needed	p. 39
Counter-Tensions to Manage	p. 42
Do We Need to Decentralize Power?	p. 47
Signs That Change Is Needed	p. 48
Turning Point: The Need to Decentralize Power	p. 49
Adjustments Needed	p. 50
Counter-Tensions to Manage	p. 53
Do We Need to Recapture Our Core?	p. 57
Signs That Change Is Needed	p. 58
Turning Point: The Need to Recapture the Core	p. 59
Adjustments Needed	p. 60
Counter-Tensions to Manage	p. 64
How Do We Move On?	p. 69
Signs That Change Is Needed	p. 69
Turning Point: The Need to Move On	p. 70
Adjustments Needed	p. 70
Counter-Tensions to Manage	p. 72
How Do You Make Change Happen?	p. 77
Getting an Executive Director to Change	p. 77
Making Structural Change	p. 79
Shifting an Organization's Culture	p. 82
The Board's Role in Change	p. 84
What Funders Can Do	p. 86
General Principles for all Seven Turning Points	p. 89
Afterword: A Perpetual Balancing Act	p. 93
Bibliography	p. 95
Index	p. 99
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