Skip to main content

The Nonprofit Director's Skill Set: One Group's Opinion

Image
By
THIS SUMMER I'M LEADING AN ONLINE COURSE in museum administration -- a new venture offered by the American Association for State and Local History.  The small band of participants -- most not museum administrators, by the way -- are being treated to the basics of nonprofit organization spanning how museums are founded to issues of leadership.  

 The most recent lesson explored the complex and sometimes competing roles of the museum director.  A director has allegiances to both the governing board and the staff requiring continual alignment of priorities and mitigation of distances between the two.  A director also has allegiance to her vision for organizational health, sustainability and excellence.

 Add to that the fact that as an organization develops, its leadership needs will change.  What worked for the start-up may be too informal and inefficient for a more mature organization.  The director's role, therefore, is not only played out vertically and horizontally, it's also played out over time.

 One of the assignments for the week was to review several job announcements for directors to deduce where the organization might be in its development, the irons it had in the fire, and the skills it was looking for in the next director.  All three pieces ought to link together.

 One participant noted that an announcement stated several times that the director would need to wear many hats -- this caused her to wonder if the museum had experienced some prior misunderstanding about staff responsibilities.  I figured it was a really small institution where a new director would be faced with having to prioritize focus and time right from the get-go.

 In other cases, it was much clearer to deduce what an institution was looking for in its next director -- building audience, expanding the museum's role as an educational resource, taking on a bricks and mortar expansion.

 When asked what the three most important qualifications they would look for in a director, the class responded with a mixture of hard (business knowledge, fundraising) and soft skills (communication, problem-solving).  In the final analysis, the class gravitated toward:

 1.  a track record of leadership and managerial experience
2.  fundraising
3.  vision, commitment to mission, and passion for/understanding of the subject matter

 What do you think belongs on that list?


Labels:

Comments

Sharon said…
Hi Anne! I enjoyed your Blog post! I have thought of a couple more things to add to the list. These come through my experiences in the volunteer positions that I have held over the past several years. 1) Basic computer skills and a willingness to learn new skills in order to stay current; 2) Desire and willingness to be a member in good standing of similar organizations within the community, county, state, and region, as well as museum related professional organizations and attend their conferences and workshops.
July 5, 2014 at 7:15 AM
Anne W. Ackerson said…
Thanks for these additional thoughts, Sharon. I agree that directors must be technologically forward-leaning. I remember one director telling me that he felt pencils, paper and old-fashioned catalog cards were the best and most reliable means of recording information! Well, I don't know about that....I do know that the museum he led was pretty much stuck in a rut of older ideas and ways of getting work done.
July 7, 2014 at 2:10 PM
MVD said…
Flexibility and a sense of humor!
July 7, 2014 at 4:36 PM
Anne W. Ackerson said…
What would we do without humor in the workplace? It's a must!
July 9, 2014 at 7:32 AM
Jon Hill said…
I think this is a good skill set for a director. I too agree, that a description of many hats is more in line with a younger organization, but I think it helps to have the experience with those hats to more fully understand the organization. I think a good addition to the list may be a good business acumen. I believe a director should ensure their institution operates in a fiscally sound manner,and knows the role that cultural institutions play in the community. I have seen several institutions which have an outflow of cash that far outspends their inflow. These institutions rely heavily on endowments that can not support their expenditures. Finally, I think being all things to all people is another great trait. A director is a counselor, friend, mother, disciplinarian, employee and advocate for their institution all at once. She has volunteers, staff, guests, community partners and board members who demand her time and need her attention. But, there is nothing more fulfilling than seeing ones mission being a success!
July 10, 2014 at 11:32 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What Would Make You Turn Down an Invitation to Join a Board?

By
THERE'S SO MUCH WRITTEN ABOUT RECRUITING BOARD TALENT, I thought I'd spend a little time thinking about it from the prospect's point of view. Clearly, there are boards where the line is long to get on them. But what would make you turn down an invitation? Here's a short list to get the conversation started: 1. You've had no prior exposure to the organization. Your immediate reaction is "did you pull my name out of a hat?" (Is that lady in the picture the head of the Nominating Committee?) Seems as though there must be a hidden agenda at work (like you're rich and once you become a board member you'll pour all your resources into the organization) or the organization is simply looking for any warm body to fill a seat. 2. The organization doesn't have a good reputation. There's something to be said for street cred. An organization that's floundering may be strengthened by your participation or you may find yourself sucked into...
16 comments
Read more

Three Most Important Nonprofit Executive Director Soft Skills

By
If you were asked to narrow down the list of executive director qualifications to the three most important, which ones would you identify? Would the list consist of soft skills, hard skills, or some combination? Would your list be based on the great ED you are or one you've worked for, or would it be your wish list for the ED you haven't been fortunate yet to work for?  This was an assignment in my recent online class in leadership and administration for the American Association for State and Local History . I asked the class to review three-five advertisements for museum directors and analyze what these listings intimated about the organization’s past experience, current focus and goals, and future aspirations. Then, I asked the class to identify what they consider to be the three most important qualifications they would look for in a director. (Okay, so there's more than three if you dissect my three big groups.)  Soft skills outnumbered hard skills, although ...
28 comments
Read more

What to Do With Dead Wood on Your Board?

By
MY POLL ASKED WHAT ONE BOARD DYNAMIC YOU would change this year and the top response was "remove dead wood". For my first post on this topic I'd like to start with two obvious facts: 1) most boards have some non-performing or under-performing board members AND 2) most boards already have mechanisms in place for removing dead wood...or at least the non-attending dead wood. Those mechanisms are found in the Bylaws and perhaps in a board job description. Few boards, it seems, invoke these mechanisms, mostly out of fear of offending the offender. We end up side-stepping the dead wood, dancing around it, ignoring it, wishing mightily it would go away. Oh, and complaining about it. So, even though the dead wood isn't doing much, it's sapping the energy and focus of many others. (There must be a Law of Physics about this!) Where to start and how to implement? While removing dead wood is not the most pleasant of responsibilities, it does not need to be -- and s...
2 comments
Read more