Why Successful Nonprofits Should 'Fix' What Isn't Broken
Happy Friday!
If you’re like me, you’re suspicious of mini-marshmallows, you can shuck a dozen oysters in 60 seconds flat, and you cringe whenever you hear the phrase “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
That phrase prevents change right when it’s needed most: during times of growth and success.
Like the guy in this GIF, I did some super thorough research and concluded that success is the leading cause of failure for nonprofits. Here are four things I found (the first three came from Jamshid Gharajedaghi):
Imitation: When your org succeeds at something, others will recognize that and imitate it. Most nonprofits welcome a bit of “coopetition,” but it can be confusing to partners, investors, and other stakeholders.
Icarus Paradox: Every strength can be pushed past its limits to become a weakness. You know the drill: a strategy succeeds. Its creators gain a reputation. Then that one thing they did becomes the only right answer for everything. Then your wings melt and you spiral to the earth.
Game Change: Yay, you solved a problem! Oh, and BTW you unleashed next-level “upstream” problems that are much more complex.
Operational Constraint: Yay, you doubled your fundraising! But that growth was limited by a previously-hidden constraint in your implementation network, which could only grow by 25%.
So if you are leading a successful program or organization, congrats! You can sustain that success by empowering your team to learn, adapt, and fix things that ain’t broke yet.
Oh, and remember that change is a thoughtful response to the environment. So change must always begin with the implementing functions in your org. Any change that originates from the executive suite or the “office of change management” will only make people more resistant to change.
Have a great weekend!
Drew
PS: If you know someone who would find value in this, please forward it! Sharing is caring.
